First off, I'm so sorry you're going through this experience. It is so incredibly draining and frustrating to go through all the studying and gathering application materials and then not receive the decision you were hoping for.
I am by no means an expert on this topic, and we all know there is obviously the benefit of better chances of admission and scholarship money earlier in the cycle. What I can tell you is that based on several articles and videos I've read from prep companies and tutors, and something that has been noted by admissions' representatives in some application info webinars I've watched, is that this year in particular, because of the chaos with the August and September tests, more people than usual are signed up for the January test and so far, it appears that more people than usual are going to be sending in applications later, all together pushing this to be a slightly later cycle. This is something schools are aware of and are taking into consideration.
Will applicants who get their applications in earlier still benefit from doing so? Of course. But at the same time, it sounds like it can't hurt you to take the January test. You are already placed on hold at UM, so if you receive a higher score in January it seems like this could be a potential be push that could sway your decision for the better. There are also plenty of solid schools that will take a 159 or scores in that range, so either way you certainly should not feel like this is the end of the road for you. If retaking the test and then planning to apply for the next cycle is an option for you, of course that could be something to consider as well, as by then you would probably be able to achieve a higher score and then apply earlier next cycle. Again, that is up to you. You should feel incredibly proud of yourself for already making it this far and certainly should not feel this is the end of your dream.
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First off, I'm so sorry you're going through this experience. It is so incredibly draining and frustrating to go through all the studying and gathering application materials and then not receive the decision you were hoping for.
I am by no means an expert on this topic, and we all know there is obviously the benefit of better chances of admission and scholarship money earlier in the cycle. What I can tell you is that based on several articles and videos I've read from prep companies and tutors, and something that has been noted by admissions' representatives in some application info webinars I've watched, is that this year in particular, because of the chaos with the August and September tests, more people than usual are signed up for the January test and so far, it appears that more people than usual are going to be sending in applications later, all together pushing this to be a slightly later cycle. This is something schools are aware of and are taking into consideration.
Will applicants who get their applications in earlier still benefit from doing so? Of course. But at the same time, it sounds like it can't hurt you to take the January test. You are already placed on hold at UM, so if you receive a higher score in January it seems like this could be a potential be push that could sway your decision for the better. There are also plenty of solid schools that will take a 159 or scores in that range, so either way you certainly should not feel like this is the end of the road for you. If retaking the test and then planning to apply for the next cycle is an option for you, of course that could be something to consider as well, as by then you would probably be able to achieve a higher score and then apply earlier next cycle. Again, that is up to you. You should feel incredibly proud of yourself for already making it this far and certainly should not feel this is the end of your dream.