Is this ok?Some top students in school have turned out not to be as successful as they were/are...
Is this ok?Some top students in school have turned out not to be as successful as they were/are expected.

Thanks

Question

Is this ok?Some top students in school have turned out not to be as successful as they were/are...
Is this ok?Some top students in school have turned out not to be as successful as they were/are expected.

Thanks

Answer

Not quite. 
...as successful as expected 
or
...as successful as they were expected to (be). 
You definitely need 'were'.