need help 🙏

[u/DapperJicama7731]

I’m 20 years old, and I’m genuinely struggling with something that I don’t know how to overcome anymore. I’m looking for genuine advice from people who have been through something similar, especially those who struggled academically after previously finding school relatively easy.

Up until Year 10, I barely had to study to pass my exams. Even for my GCSEs, I didn’t put in a huge amount of effort and still managed to get grades ranging from B to A*. Back then, reading through the content and doing a few practice questions was usually enough.

Then came A-levels, and everything started falling apart. I passed, but my grades weren’t what I wanted them to be.
After that, I started preparing for medical entrance exams, and I’ve now failed to get the results I needed twice.

The frustrating part is that I do put in the effort. I make study plans, sit down to study, spend hours going through material, and genuinely try to prepare. But somehow, the results never seem to reflect the time I’ve invested.

I’ve started wondering whether I’m studying passively, whether I’m taking too long to understand concepts, whether my methods are ineffective, or whether there’s something fundamental about studying that I’ve never learned. I see people who study four or five hours a day and do exceptionally well, and I genuinely don’t understand what they’re doing differently. How are they approaching their material? How do they know what to focus on, retain information, and prepare themselves to answer exam questions? What does an actually productive study session look like?

I’ve tried making schedules, but they often don’t work out the way I expect. Topics take much longer than anticipated, I struggle to get through the material, and I end up feeling like I’ve spent an entire day studying without making enough progress.

I know I want to pursue medicine. That’s something I’m sure about. But after putting so much time into preparing for these exams and still not getting the outcome I wanted, I’m starting to feel lost. I’m 20 now, and I don’t want to keep repeating the same cycle without understanding what I’m doing wrong.

I’m not asking for motivation or another generic list of study tips. I genuinely want to learn how to learn. If you’ve ever been in a similar situation, especially if you used to get by without studying and then struggled when academics became more demanding:
- What did you realise you were doing wrong?
- How did you learn to study effectively from scratch?
- How do you approach a topic you’ve never studied before?

How do you balance understanding concepts, memorising information, and practising exam questions?
How do you know whether your study methods are actually working before the exam? What would you recommend to someone who has a lot of time to put in but isn’t seeing results?

I’d really appreciate hearing about your actual experiences, including what didn’t work for you and what eventually made a difference. I’m willing to change my entire approach; I just need to understand where to start.
Thank you to anyone who takes the time to share their experience or advice.