There are three reasons I believe this low score should not be treated as an indicator of my actual performance. First, around the time of that exam, I was having numerous time conflicts with my other courses. Classwork began to accumulate, and so I was unable to dedicate the time and energy I would ideally need to perform well on the exam. Secondly, I have received excellent marks and scores for dozens of class assignments which involve writing and critical thinking; I have sufficiently proven through my other work that I have a high level of academic skill when it comes to writing and vocabulary. Finally, I did well on the quantitative portion of the test, leaving only the verbal part of the exam with a lower score. I believe that I would get a much higher score if I were to take the exam again, but as I understand it, I do not have enough time to retake it if allowed.
Because of these reasons, it is my hope that you will allow me to join your program despite the poor performance on the test. This program is something that I have been anxiously awaiting and working toward, and I have the abilities and academic skill to serve the program well.