How Sweet It Is!

Ahhh.... finally.....a college degree I can be proud of!

Last January 27, 2010, I received my diploma as a degree holder in Public Administration. I walked with pride inside Justo Albert Auditorium of Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.

Almost 3 years ago, PLM opened it's doors to undergraduates working in the government through their Distance Learning Program for the Degree of Bachelor in Public Administration. Luckily, our agency, PAGCOR, is one of those granted to be part of this along with other government entities like the Manila City Hall among others. Upon knowing the program, I quickly grabbed the opportunity and took the entrance examination. More than a hundred passed the exam so PAGCOR decided to put up 4 sections, me in section 1, ehem!

February, 2007 was our first day in class. A memorable first subject, Intro to Public Administration, which is a requisite to continue the whole course. Mr. Osido, our professor, was a perfect baptism of fire for us. He not only made us listen but also study harder which I can attribute to his teaching style.

Along the way, I started to feel the load and difficulties I'm going through. First, I had to sacrifice my day-off, which is a Sunday, to attend the class. Second, I had to finished my assignments and research works while doing my job at the same time during breaks in office hours. But the most, I believe everyone in the class would agree, is the memorization. For me, it's just a thing of the past. Memorization is already a distant memory!

Subjects involving numbers like Intro to Accounting and Taxation 1, made me scratched my head a lot.

Outside the two, everything was just easy for me. Public Fiscal Administration, Government Planning & Control, Urban Development Process, Management Information System and even Human Resource Management presents topics that interests me. Everyone in the class is cooperative & participative that made the discussions very interesting. Though we laugh on some classmates with favorite lines like Sir Lito's " what is ironic", we learn a lot through the exchange of ideas coming from different experiences shared in the class.

Also, a lot of memorable events took place or classmates leaving funny memories. I will forever remember, Mr. Delgado's coffee & fish offering to our professors. Mr. Benedicto, who's always the first to pass his paper during examinations. Mr. Tiquio's Wanders tickets. Our resident attorney, Mr. Lagabong, who mesmerizes all of our teachers. Mr. Calingasan's story as a retired Army. Ms. Evangelista, who was voted as the most beautiful in the class. Mr. Del Pilar, asking for our payments. Ms. Tuazon's nervous recitation. The ultimate "pasaway" in the class, Mr. Coronel. And of course, Mr. Global crisis himself, Esteban Mora.

This diploma I received not only symbolizes the course I've finished but my dream to be a good example for my children. Maybe, I committed a bunch of mistakes before but that doesn't prevent me from realizing my goal in life. Time is never a problem. Age is never an obstacle. Money is never an issue. What all of us just want is to finish what we've started many years ago.
 
Congratulations BPA Graduates!