Flunked My Final Exams

[Adder1234]

Hello again everyone, I'm back after taking some time to work on my studies. Which didn't go so well.

To start, I'll explain to those who don't know how the ATAR in Australia works. It's a percentile rank, giving you a rank compared to everyone else who started high school with you around the country. Anyway, it determines which university courses you can do. It can also be radically different from your actual results, and doing harder courses can improve it.

So after working my ass off doing physics, chemistry, mathematics extension, English advanced and geography for 2 years and expecting to get an ATAR of at least 85, I end up getting 76. Which, compared to all of my previous overall results and practice exams was completely awful. The worst part is, I actually did fairly well in all of my classes and final exams, I just managed to get a really bad ATAR compared to what I expected.

With some luck, I should still be able to get into my preferred university course, so that's not really an issue. The issue is that I'm taking my results very badly. Exams and mathematics and science are the only things that I've ever been good at, so doing this badly really hit me. Doing well in the ATAR has been my only goal for the past 6 years, so I'm not sure how to handle failing.

 

[Butterfly88]

Just because you failed doesn't make you bad at math or science, perhaps you are just not a good test taker.

 

[Adder1234]

Just because you failed doesn't make you bad at math or science, perhaps you are just not a good test taker.

But that's the thing, I didn't do that badly in my exams. I found that they were a bit harder than previous years, but because the ATAR is a rank, not result, it shouldn't have mattered. I don't know, I just don't know how to handle it.

 

[Suzanne]

I got a distinction in typing skills and that was during an exam and then, with my "evidence", I went into a temping agency, to apply for a typing job, which interestingly said that accuracy is better than speed. Even though I gave her my folder, she pushed it back and muttered and pointed to a couple of computers in a corner and said: test.

I failed miserably and she said: despite the evidence showing you are a good typest, the fact you failed this one test means I cannot let you apply for that work. I was MORTIFIED and so glad that it was a sunny day, because my glasses hid the tears streaming down my face.

I lost a lot of confidence and even when I took to practising my skills on the computer, in my own home, I get panicked and fail. Which is all utterly bizarre, because I passed with flying colours in college!

The burden of being a perfectionist.

 

[pax]

You didn't fail. You got a good mark and are probably into the course of your choosing. In a years time no-one's going to give a flying f%^& what your ATAR was.

 

[Ambi]

I don't know how it works - can you retake, and if you could, would you want to? I'm so sorry for your situation, that stinks :-(

 

[Adder1234]

You didn't fail. You got a good mark and are probably into the course of your choosing. In a years time no-one's going to give a flying f%^& what your ATAR was.

I know, I've calmed down a bit now. I always knew that I might do pretty badly, I just never expected to do that badly. It doesn't help that there are only about 20 people in the country that actually understand the ATAR. I've only met one person who even understood how it's calculated.

 

[WereBear]

Results are what matter. Our expectations are only that.