By IBS - 06/05/2014 09:11 - China - Shanghai

Today, after finishing a two hour essay exam that will determine the future of my career, I realized I misread the question. FML
I agree, your life sucks 51 188
You deserved it 13 180

Same thing different taste

Top comments

Maybe you'll get points for interpreting it a different way, you can always hope...

ouch! I know you must be nervous, but with stakes that high you should read even more closely.

Comments

Maybe you'll get points for interpreting it a different way, you can always hope...

Maybe the one grading you is a reader of FML, will recognize you, and make am exception since you did the impossible and got your post published.

It would be kind of bad if the question was "how closely do you pay attention to detail?"

maybe this isn't where your future career was heading.

The gaokao is the worst test I have ever heard of. It's sounds so very stressful and determining you life is a very big thing, all decided by one test.

ouch! I know you must be nervous, but with stakes that high you should read even more closely.

If only there was a, I don't know, maybe a button to press to show that you agreed with their comment... If only this technology existed

#40, if only there was a, I don't know, button to show that you dislike someone's comment. Perhaps it could be the opposite of the button you are talking about. If only that technology existed. On a side note, OP YDI. Always read, re-read, and triple read the prompt!

#40, your comment displeases me greatly.

Damnnn, any chance there is a way to explain and do the exam again?

shit i accidentaly tumbs downed you man, sorry! my bad!

Shame, poor #56 is getting down voted for apologizing. I think it's thoughtful of you. P.S I'm sorry I accidentally down voted your comment. I was wondering if you were getting down voted because you can actually change your vote, so I was checking.

There shouldn't be. He should have read it, reread it, and underlined the mains points to be sure he didn't miss anything. It's his own fault for rushing into it.

I'm sorry OP. Hopefully, your professor is one of those people who skims essays. Have faith. :)

Since OP is from China and the exam determines their future, I believe this is the gaokao (college entrance exam) which is like three dozen SATs on steroids and is taken very VERY seriously. It pretty much sets your fate, and retakes are unheard of.

Maybe you can take it again? If you can redo it then good luck OP!

HeadlessSparrow 20

All that hard work gone to waste. Maybe you'll be able to get credit for what you wrote!

sorry but YDI. Always read the question and make sure you answer it. On a test that will determine your career there is no reason for such carless mistakes

Careless? Ever thought maybe nerves got the best of OP? Plus, don't sit there and say you've never misread anything. Happens to all of us.

Especially on important exams and such. It happens. Sometimes, I'll read the question a couple of times to make sure I'm reading it right, then I realize after I start that I misread it. It wasn't careless, just nerves.

You guys, he said it was a carless mistake. Before you get all upset about #8's observation, understand he's talking about automobiles, or rather, the lack thereof.

Sucks that it happened when the stakes were so high :

askullnamedbilly 33

I'm absolutely with #8. OP knew very well that the exam was extremely important - and they couldn't take the time to read carefully (and multiple times) until they were absolutely sure they understood the question? That is THE most important part of an essay exam, and if you manage to mess that up, you absolutely deserve your failing grade. It's not a test with multiple questions where it's easy to skip over a few words because you ran out of time or lost concentration, it's one or two assignments that you have to follow. You always have time for that.

Not just read but re-read over and over until you're 100% sure

Sometimes during tests people get panic attacks, I know I do, and it actually makes it quite hard to read. I've had times where in multiple choice and essay questions that I've reread it over and over for 5 minutes, and I still read it wrong. Yes OP should have made sure to reread it, but you have no idea if OP did and just kept reading it wrong or was just careless. But with an exam that important, I betcha OP was super nervous.

1dvs_bstd 41

There's a short story about a student who was very late to an exam that had started an hour prior to his arrival. Everybody was surprised when he finished less than 30 minutes. After everyone submitted they realized that the instruction requested them to answer only one question. Moral of the story, always read instructions/proof read.

Hopefully the exam wasn't on comprehension. :)