How Should a Colleague Respond?

Getting exam results is stressful, especially when the results are unexpected and less than hoped for.

Although you may have the grades you need to get onto your chosen university course, some of your friends might not be in such a lucky position. They may be feeling disappointed and upset with their results

While you should be proud of yourself and celebrate your achievement, it’s important to be there for your friends and support them through their next steps.

Everyone responds to bad news in different ways. Here are some ways you can help your friends feel better if they don’t get the grades they need on results day.

Be supportive

We all know what if feels like to receive bad news, or to not do as well as we expected. Even though you may have had a successful results day, you can still empathise with the emotions your friends are feeling.

Receiving a disappointing exam result can be a shock to the system, especially if you worked hard and expected to do better. The most important thing is to let your friend know you’re there for them and you’ll support them in choosing their next steps.

Accept that they will be upset, but don’t let them wallow in this feeling. Remind them they’re not defined by one exam result. There are still ways they can achieve their goals, but through a different route than they originally planned.

Be sensitive

Although you received good results, and you should be happy and tell your friends about it, they may not want this rubbed in their faces.

Be sensitive to their feelings when talking about your results. Good friends will be proud of you but they might not want to hear too much about it while they’re upset.

Give them time

Not everyone wants to talk about their failures straight away, and they may find it embarrassing to share results with friends and family.

Give your friend some space and time to process what’s happened, and let them know that you’ll be there whenever they’re ready to talk.

Listen to them

Sometimes people just need someone who will listen to them. Before they start thinking about what they should do next, allow them the time to vent about their feelings and get everything off their chest.

4 things to say:

· “I’m here for you if you need anything.”

· “Everyone fails at some point. Plenty of other people in our class are in the same position as you, and I know that you will all get through it.”

· “Let me know how you’re feeling, I’m here to listen for as long as you need me.”

· “Let’s take your mind off of things for a little bit and go for a walk.”

4 things not to say:

· “I didn’t even study but I still got all As.”

· “I thought the exam was really easy.”

· “Don’t worry about it, these results aren’t even that important anyway.”

· “Does that mean you can’t go to University anymore?”

Reassure them

Receiving a set of bad exam results can feel like the end of the world, but it’s not. It’s important that your friend knows this.

Failing their exams doesn’t mean that they’re a failure, it’s just a small bump in the road. Getting good exam results doesn’t guarantee that you’ll be successful throughout your life.

Encourage them to think positively and remain confident that things will turn out okay. The only real failure would be giving up.

They’re not alone

It may not feel like it at the time but they’re not the only one who has experienced a blip. Some of the most wildly successful people did badly at school or college, but this didn’t stop them.

Take their mind off of things

Your friend may have some big decisions to make on what they want to do next, but this doesn’t mean they have to make them immediately. Doing something small can help them to relax and get their mind off things.

It will help to get out of the results hall as seeing other people getting positive results may make them feel even worse. Take them out for a short walk, or get a coffee together. It doesn’t have to be big, just something to help them forget about the situation for a short while.

You could also give them something they can look forward to. The next few days will be stressful for them as they navigate their next steps, so organise to meet up for a meal together.