Decision about schools

[NYorker]

I am in a predicament. I have been accepted into a masters program in speech pathology abroad and was going to turn that down due to personal circumstances making it difficult to leave the country. However, I recently took the GRE and scored dismally which is making me re-evaluate my decision.

I scored : Verbal: 156  Quant: 148  and AWA 4

My GPA is around 3.2 

My fear is that if I turn down the school abroad, what if I don't get in here? I have read so many stories here about people who try for years or who don't get in and have to change their career choice. So although it would be very challenging for me to leave, I feel pressured to do it anyway. 

I could try to raise my GRE score and plan to re-test but time is of the essence as the masters program  abroad starts in September.

Any advice? What would you do? 

[bibliophile222]

I wouldn't call your GRE scores dismal--if you look at more posts here you'll see many examples of people with worse scores getting into schools. Your verbal is above 150, and a 4.0 isn't spectacular, but is still solid. Quant scores typically don't matter as much, and your cumulative score is above 300. 

Your GPA is on the low side, though again not low enough to totally obliterate your chances. If you really don't want to go abroad, take the next year and study for the GRE, and if possible retake any core classes you might not have done well in. Even if it doesn't raise your cumulative score much it may show schools that you'll do well in the program, which means more than GRE. 

If you read further on this forum, you will also see many people's experiences getting into schools with low scores. Numbers are not all that matter. Write a killer personal statement, get strong LORs, and emphasize your experiences. If you don't go to school this fall, take the year to do more observation or volunteer hours. Also, look for programs that are newer (meaning less competitive since fewer people know about them) and be willing to relocate or take an online program. Look for programs that are more holistic and less focused on stats. If you persevere you can do it.