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Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score

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foars
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Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score [#permalink] New post   04 May 2013, 03:26
Hey guys,

So I just got back my TOEFL results back yesterday and scored a 100/120. Well some would say it's a good score but the school requires a 105.

The thing is I did good in speaking (26) and writing (28) but my reading (21) and listening (25) are just way off. Reading has always been an issue for me. In the listening section I was overconfident and didn't focus.

On the other hand, I've scored V36 (80% percentile) on GMAT's verbal section and pretty sure I nailed all the RC's except the 4th one you get towards the end.
Is there anyway I can spin this for the adcom? Have you guys experienced/heard of exceptions being made? In my case it would be a pretty big exception 100 vs 105.
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WomeMBA
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Re: Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score [#permalink] New post   04 May 2013, 05:53
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foars wrote:
Thanks for you reply. Taking the test again is pointless because the deadlines are over. I was supposed to send in my TOEFL score as soon as I have it. But I haven't heard back regarding the rest of my application anyway.

I would rate my English skills as close to a native as a non-native can get and I took this TOEFL test without any form of preparation (except for a glance at writing structure). I think my negative mindset going in "I can't believe I have to take this thing to prove my English skills" played a part in my low score and loss of concentration.


Well you shouldn't give them that explanation but you could have saved yourself a lot of trouble by getting the score that reflects your self-assessment. Anyway, I think the best chance you have is to get in contact with them over the phone and convince them with your speaking skills.
I did something similar at Yale and Said, I called admissions and convinced them to waive the requirement temporarily.
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Re: Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score [#permalink] New post   04 May 2013, 05:26
That certainly depends on your overall English skills. If you are very fluent in conversations I'm quite sure that the 5 points won't automatically kill you, calling admissions and having a chat with them might be a good starting point.

On the other hand the score will get you in trouble if your English skills aren't very good in terms of choice and variety of words, fluency, pronunciation etc...

Iou feel you should get a better score, take the test again. The language is the basic tool in Business School and without knowing whether you have specifically weak sections there must be a reason why you scored 100 only; work on that, go back and get a better result to eliminate this thing from your bad books - after all you should try to take out any weakness of your application that you are able to get rid of. The TOEFL score is IMHO the easiest one to sort out.
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foars
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Re: Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score [#permalink] New post   04 May 2013, 05:46
Thanks for you reply. Taking the test again is pointless because the deadlines are over. I was supposed to send in my TOEFL score as soon as I have it. But I haven't heard back regarding the rest of my application anyway.

I would rate my English skills as close to a native as a non-native can get and I took this TOEFL test without any form of preparation (except for a glance at writing structure). I think my negative mindset going in "I can't believe I have to take this thing to prove my English skills" played a part in my low score and loss of concentration.
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Re: Convincing adcom of my TOEFL score [#permalink]
04 May 2013, 05:46
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