Why Do I Keep Getting 45% in ACCA Exams?
A repeated mark in the mid-40s isn't bad luck — it's a small, consistent technique gap. Here's what separates a 45 from a 50, and how to find those five marks.
Landing on 44 or 45 sitting after sitting is uniquely frustrating, because it tells you your knowledge is basically there — you're a handful of marks short, not a mile off. A mark that consistent is never bad luck. It's a small, repeatable technique gap, and once you find it, five marks is a very reachable distance.
Reason 1: You're leaving easy marks scattered everywhere
Near-misses rarely lose marks in one place — they leak half a mark here and there across the whole paper: an unlabelled variance, a point stated but not applied, a procedure a shade too vague, a conclusion left off. Individually trivial, collectively the difference between 45 and 50.
Reason 2: You don't quite finish the requirement
Answering most of what was asked but stopping short of the conclusion, or giving four points where five were wanted, caps you just below the line. The last piece of each requirement is often the cheapest mark you're not taking.
Reason 3: Your application is thin, not absent
A 45 usually reflects points that touch the scenario but don't fully develop the reason and consequence. You're close — one more sentence of application per point across the paper is frequently the whole gap.
Reason 4: You can't see where the marks went
The reason the mark stays at 45 is that the gap is invisible from the inside — the same small habits repeat every sitting because nothing shows you where they are. Breaking the pattern needs feedback that pinpoints the scattered lost marks, not another pass through the notes.
The takeaway
A repeated 45 is a near-pass with a fixable, consistent leak: scattered easy marks, unfinished requirements and thin application. The five marks you need are spread across the paper — find them once and the pattern breaks.
That's exactly what The 50% Club is built for — the name is the target. It marks your practice answers against the official ACCA scheme and shows you precisely where the scattered marks are going, so you can turn a repeated 45 into the 50 you've been just short of.