to make a breakthrough

a remarkable achievement

to have an excellent grasp of smth.

a crowning achievement

a dramatic improvement

to come in useful

to take advantage of

to pass one's exam

to fail one's exam

to gain good marks in the exam

to be a great success

to make good progress

to be highly effective

to make a useful contribution

effective ways of doing smth.

a brilliant success

to bring out the best in smb.

to enjoy the fruits of his hard work

to win the respect of smb.
 

to fail miserably

to be a spectacular failure

to flop

to be dashed (of hopes)

to go badly wrong

to be doomed to failure

to be a dismal failure

to miss the point

to go out of business

to be a recipe for disaster

to loose one's nerve