KARACHI: Students appearing for their O level and A level papers this week faced both nervousness and excitement on Tuesday, the first day of exams.

Hazeela Tahir, an O level student who appeared for her first year history paper, said she was glad that it went very well. `I was expecting a very tough paper but it went very well actually.

The questions were simple and apparently we had studied more than was required,` she said.

`According to our syllabus the format of the paper was going to change from this year, so having practised on past papers we were a little unsure. But it wasn`t so bad. We had also studied and read up in detail on our former President Pervez Musharraf but there was no question about him in the paper, so we had over prepared,` she said laughing.

Hazeela`s next paper on Wednesday is Urdu but she wasn`t worried about it at all. `We study Urdu as a second language and the paper format is very simple just translations, etc. So I`m already expecting a very good grade there,` she said confidently.

Shayan Vohra, a student of second year O level, said he appeared for his English language exam on Tuesday. `It was not simple, kind of tricky at first but then I got the hang of it. Thank God!` he said.

`I had studied many past papers but this was different.

Thankfully I didn`t panic and answered all the questions calmly and sensibly,` he said. `But tomorrow comes the tough part as I have my Physics paper coming up. Hope it goes as well as my English language paper went today.

Zaid Hussain, a first year A level student, said he faced a really tough biology exam on Tuesday. `The paper was based on 60 marks and you can lose 20 marks and still pass with an `A` grade if you manage 40 out of the 60 marks. My grade will also depend on my practicals,` he said.

On Wednesday Zaid has two papers chemistry in the morning and maths in the afternoon. `In between I will rush home to have a quick lunch before returning for my maths paper,` he said.

Meanwhile, Ameer Islam, an A level first year student, said he would be appearing for his maths paper on Wednesday something he was not really so worked up about. `See, only last year I appeared for eight subjects for my O-Level finals. That was really hectic but this year in A level I have four subjects -maths, physics, economics and sociology so I think I can handle it,` he said.

`And if I can`t, there is always the option of retaking the exam or changing the subject altogether.

Students of elite institutions these days are lucky to have counsellors and advisers and Ameer said that he would be seeing to his counsellor in August af ter he gets his results. `Though it is not as busy as last year, I still have to be more serious about my studies this year as, after all, I need good grades in my A level to get into college. The counsellors are also there to guide us,` he said.

Hamza Malik, another A level student, said they were not the only ones so involved in their exams. Their parents also shared the load. `My mother helps me with my studies and is always there for me and I am grateful for that but I see how stressed mine as well as my friends` parents are about our exams and that burdens me further too. I see other mothers sitting outside examination halls, praying the whole time. Though I`m relieved my mother doesn`t do that I also feel I must do well for my parents` sake,` he shared.