Experience of being very bright but not stellar at exams?

[FannyFink]

We have a DS who is clearly very very bright. He’s on the spectrum. Full set of A*s and As across the board. A 2.1 from Cambridge (he really hoped for a 1st), and then good but not stellar results in his professional exams. I was wondering if anyone else had dc who were like this? How did they fare in the workplace, did it have any impact?

He is about to start a career where people are very bright and top of the year at university is not uncommon. Some of his colleagues got high 70s in Oxbridge exams and then 90s or 100 in their professional exams (not a regular uni)

He feels that he isn’t as good as other colleagues who got better results.

How are his soft skills? Those are what will matter in the workplace

Does he have imposter syndrome?

A 2:1 from Cambridge is excellent and his employers clearly feel he is capable of the job.

Worth reminding him that he might well have been the top of his year if he had gone to a different university!

Once he starts work all of them will be in the same boat, it's not unusual to find that the best exam achievers aren't as good day to day, or getting on with people, or attention to detail or the numerous other skills you need in a workplace instead of university.

Sounds like he actually is pretty good at exams - stellar set of A levels, 2.1 at Cambridge is pretty awesome and then he’s getting excellent results in what are probably highly competitive professional exams. It’s worth remembering that probably pretty much everyone sitting those exams is remarkable so not coming top doesn’t mean you’ve underachieved. I wonder if what he really needs to work on is his confidence?

How is his work ethic? Does he work hard in a completely focussed manner? Or does he procrastinate? Did he understand the questions in the exams really well or did he sometimes go off tangent?

How are his leadership and team skills?

I have a lot of very bright colleagues on the spectrum. Sometimes we just have to spell out a bit more clearly what is being asked of them, but they also need to learn to ask clearly, if not sure.

People not on the spectrum can get better results simply because they understand better what is being asked of them. Get him to look at the urgent/important chart ie the Eisenhower Matrix.

What is the career? It's probably not the same, but I did ACA (chartered accountancy) and achievement in those exams (or in any previous academic exams) is entirely irrelevant once you're in the job. It's generally soft skills like people skills, confidence, flexibility/adaptability etc that make the difference.

Grades become irrelevant once the person gets a job offer. Noone will ask what sort of grades he had; what matters is the quality of his work and his social skills at the workplace.

Firstly sounds like he is pretty good at exams but maybe slightly less so than his work peers. Personally, I think coursework is a much better preparation for the workplace than exams. Very few people after university will be asked to perform under exam conditions whilst most people continue to be given projects to complete within a reasonable time frame (couple of weeks) with access to plenty of resources in the workplace. I’d offer that perspective if he’s nervous!

Workplace is very different. He may do better - he may do worse. He shouldn't compare himself to others though. That's a hiding to nowhere.

Work hard, continue training courses, use initiative, be flexible, add value where he can, undertake professional development and take on board feedback.