The Cost of Medicine in Australia (and how to keep it affordable)

Applying for and studying medicine in Australia is expensive. Exam fees, application fees, tuition, living costs and moving all add up quickly. Below I've broken down where the money goes and how much a medical degree in Australia really costs, so you know what you're getting into before you start.

Applying: what you'll pay before you even get an offer

If you're going down the usual graduate-entry route, expect to pay for at least:

• the GAMSAT, which is over $500
• the GEMSAS application fee (used by many schools), which is around $200 to $260
• extra application or processing fees if you apply directly to universities outside GEMSAS, usually around $200 to $300

Add prep materials, tutoring, and travel for interviews and the in-person GAMSAT, and applying alone can easily cost well over $1,000 before you've even started the degree.

Studying medicine

If you get in, studying medicine is a big financial commitment. Things to think about:

• Tuition. Full-fee places cost roughly $60,000 to $85,000 or more a year, depending on the university and program. A bonded or CSP place brings that down to around $10,000 a year, but those places are very competitive and come with extra commitments.
• Moving and getting around. If you move to a different state or city to study, most medical schools are in big, expensive cities. Placements often mean travelling a long way across the city, and not all of them are easy to get to on public transport (or you'll spend hours on it). You'll also have to do a rural rotation. Some universities help with the cost of moving and rural terms, and some don't.
• Other costs. Study materials, the right clothes for placement (scrubs aren't cheap) and student services fees.

On top of all that, the workload makes it really hard to work during a medical degree. Most people either don't work or only do casual shifts. Very few manage part-time hours while studying (trust me, I tried).

There's Austudy and Rent Assistance from the government, but for most students it isn't enough. Most people live at home or with a partner, rely on family, or worked beforehand and saved up. Some take a year off partway through to work, and others join the Australian Defence Force for financial support.

What does this mean for you?

I'm not telling you this to put you off. I just want you to be realistic about what medicine costs. I know doctors who worked for a few years first to build up savings, or only applied to universities outside the big cities or ones that offered financial help.

With all these costs, you definitely don't need to spend thousands on GAMSAT tutoring or courses. I've made a lot of free and affordable resources for you to use. Medicine is expensive enough, so let's not make it more expensive with GAMSAT prep.

• Start with free resources, like video lessons and worked solutions on my YouTube channel.
• Get an essay marked for free through my free Section 2 marking.
• Do the ACER practice papers first. Before you spend any money on other resources (yes, including mine), work through every ACER paper in full.
• Have a look at my courses. I could charge a lot more based on my experience and results, but I don't want to add to the already huge cost of getting into medicine, so I keep my prices low.

My inbox is always open, so email me at hello@gamsattutorials.org if you have any questions.