In the United States, most exams in high schools and universities are written so that a diligent student, who does all the assigned classwork and homework, can answer every question. Often, 60% is a "passing" score, and good students score above 80%.

This was not the case when I was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the 1960s. Many professors liked to give extremely difficult exams, in which you were asked to solve complicated problems or find mathematical proofs that had not been covered in class. You really didn't have any idea how you had done until you talked to other students afterward.

I wish I could remember more details, but I do remember one very difficult open-ended, test. It had ten questions. I stayed an hour past the scheduled "end" of the test. I only wrote answers to four of the ten questions, I did not write anything at all for six of them. I thought I had two out of ten right.  I really felt terrible (and scared).

When I compared notes with other students I began to hope that it wasn't a complete disaster.

I got an A.

Hi Emily! I've done the exam to get the C level of German twice. Surely this Summer I'm going to try it again because I haven't pass it yet.

This kind of exams last 5 hours more or less. 'That's the most difficult exam I've never done. When I finished it and I could finally go out to the street, I felt as I had spent the last 5 months in Mars and finally I had got the Earth after fighting with an alien during the tryp back to home. In fact, I think I'd prefer fighting with an alien instead of doing again this exam but I don't give up. One day I'll achieve this.

So, and what about you?

@ Emily

Thank you. I rarely get disappointed and this didn't happen to me in that case. Falling down, standing up again and learning from previous experiences is the true way of life, based on what I have been taught by the life.