Six points from UNAM admission, applicant retakes exam after enrolling elsewhere

Santiago Cortés, a 22-year-old applicant, is once again facing the entrance exam for Mexico's National Autonomous University (UNAM), despite having already enrolled in another university. Cortés narrowly missed the admission score in his first attempt, falling short by just six points.

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The difficult parts were indeed very difficult. Fortunately, mathematics seemed easier to me this time. In Spanish, they really made me doubt. The answers seemed more questionable.

He admitted the second exam felt different, with Spanish, Mexican History, and Physics proving more challenging than before, though he found mathematics easier. Cortés stated that the experience of the first exam allowed him to approach the second attempt with more calm, despite initial nervousness.

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I hope to get in this time. I have hope that I will.

However, the need to retake the exam came after Cortés had already made decisions about his academic future. He had enrolled at Unitec and was beginning to shift his focus away from UNAM. "They really disorganized our plans a lot," he said, referring to the sudden announcement of the exam's repetition.

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I had already enrolled at Unitec. I feel like they really disorganized our plans a lot. To suddenly say that it was going to happen.

Cortés explained that he had prepared extensively for the initial exam and felt discouraged after missing the cutoff. He had started discarding study materials to prepare for Unitec, feeling he had to "arrive clean." This second chance at UNAM came with only about a week of preparation, but he remains hopeful of securing a place this time.

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I prepared a lot since last year for this exam and to find out that I didn't get in by six points. I told myself, well, there's no way now.