The Israeli pre-academic preparatory programs were initiated in 1963 in order to ensure enhanced accessibility to higher education for diversified populations. Most of the students enroll in the programs after repeated failures at high school. Some manage to break away from the vicious cycle of failures, while others lag behind. This study investigated the students' perception of their decision to join the programs and complete their final matriculation exams. The findings illustrated that most of the students had described the post high school completion of the matriculation exams as an ambivalent process which embodied both difficulties and satisfaction. The way these students explained their failure at high school leaded to extensive insights about the learning functioning they acquired during the program and their expectations of success.