Psych Living a Balanced Life

Psych Living a Balanced Life
by Jennifer Francia Pugao Villanueva, RPm
11042014

“Tunay ngang maaaring pagsabayin ang: PAGTATRABAHO, PAG-AARAL, PAG-IBIG, PAGGALA kasama ng mga kaibigan at PAGTUPAD NG TUNGKULIN sa Dakilang Lumikha.”

Apat na taon na magmula nang ako ay nagtapos sa Sikolohiya sa mataas na Unibersidad ng Santo Tomas. Ako ay nagtrabaho bilang bangkera (Teller) sa BPI Kamias-Anonas. Akala ko ay hindi ko makakayanan sa Banking Industry dahil ang kurso ko ay Sikolohiya at hindi kursong pang Teller. Subalit sa biyaya ng Dakilang Lumikha, nagkamit ako ng pinakamataas na pwesto sa BPI Teller’s Certification na may markang 91%. Nagtrabaho ako bilang Customer Service Associate (CSA) sa loob ng dalawang taon. Ninais kong mag-aral muli, kung kaya’t nagdesisyon akong huminto sa pagtatrabaho at kumuha ng MS Human Resource Management sa UST Graduate School bilang isang full-time graduate student. Subalit, dahil na rin sa kalagayang pinansiyal, ako ay huminto sa pag-aaral at naghanap muli ng trabaho. Ako ay kasalukuyang nagtatrabaho bilang Customer Service Assistant sa PLDT Balara. Bagaman mahirap na trabaho ang isang frontliner, masaya ako sa trabaho ko.

May FRANZ’ TIPS akong ibabahagi sa mga nais kumuha ng Psychometrician:

1. HINDI HADLANG ANG PAGTRATRABAHO.

“Kung nakaya ko, makakaya niyo rin! Maaari mong pagsabayin ang pag-aaral at pagtatrabaho kung gugustuhin at didisiplinahin ang sarili.”

Ang istilo ko kasi, dahil sa pagod na ako pagkagaling sa work, matapos ang hapunan, natutulog muna ako at gigising sa madaling araw para mag-agahan at mag-aral. Inilalatag ko na lahat ng mga aaralin ko at mga kakailanganin ko para tipid sa oras, maiidlip ulit at maghahanda para pumasok sa trabaho. At ito pa, maaari mo ring dalhin ang mga reviewers mo sa work para during break, may binabasa ka. Maiintindihan ka naman ng mga kasama mo na nag-aaral ka. 

2. KUNG IKAW AY MAY GIRLFRIEND/BOYFRIEND HUWAG MAKIPAGBREAK KAPAG NAGREREVIEW.

Mas maigi na alam ng girlfriend/boyfriend mo na nagrereview ka para sa Board Exam. Kailangan malawak ang pang-unawa niya para hindi siya demanding sa time mo. Makabubuti kung ang date niyo ay “DATE REVIEW”. Maganda na siya ay iyo ring STUDY BUDDY, yung tipong kahit nakaupo lang siya sa tabi mo ay nararamdaman mo ang moral support niya – kahit hindi siya nagsasalita at nagpe-facebook lang siya.

3. POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT REALLY WORKS.

Hindi lang hanggang libro sina Skinner – nagagamit talaga ang kaniyang teorya sa tunay na buhay. Tuwing pagkatapos ng Mock exams ko sa UST, bumibili ako ng paborito kong pagkain. At motivating rin ang masarap na luto ni Inay pagkauwi ko galing review – HAPPY TUMMY! 

4. KELANGAN MO RIN GUMALA WITH FRIENDS

Siyempre! You need to take a break once in a while specially when studying. Nakakaurat kayang mag-aral nang mag-aral. Kelangan rin tumawa at makipagkulitan sa mga kaibigan. At ang GROUPIE na pang FB. =))

5. HUWAG MONG IDEDEACTIVATE ANG FB, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM O ANUMANG SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES

Maximize your resources. Actually, ang social networking sites ay mayaman sa kaalaman kung gagamitin natin sa tama. Tsaka pang tanggal umay sa pag-aaral. Ako, I personally use my FB as a motivator. Nagpopost ako ng mga larawan ng activity ko, in line sa mga napag-aralan ko in Psych and I feel motivated sa positive feedback nila for every post. Same as goal-setting: Goals stated in public are more motivating than the ones stated in private. Kasi may other people na pwedeng makamonitor ng progress mo towards attaining your goal. At ang goal ko nung during review ay makapasa sa 1st Psych Board Exam and it pays well.

6. START AND END YOUR DAY WITH A PRAYER AND WITH A SMILE

"Masaya sa pakiramdam na motivated kang mag-aral. Yung sigurado kang gigising ka kasi bigla kang mapapaigtad sa kama, "OMG, marami pa pala akong aaralain!" Masarap basahin ang iba't ibang teorya ng Personalidad lalo na ang pagkakadepinisyon nila ng PAG-IBIG. Para kang nagbabasa ng isang romantic novel nang hindi mo namamalayan napapangiti ka na pala.

7. HUWAG KANG MAGPAPAGUTOM 

"Hindi bale nang mataba, basta't busog habang nag-aaral."

LAMESA ang study area ko. No wonder biglang lobo ako after review. Walang papasok sa isip kapag gutom. Lagi mo lang uulitin sa isip mo, "Gutom na ako, gutom na ako, gutom na ako.. (to the nth power)

8. MAINTAIN A PEACEFUL HEART

Kahit sinong irate subs, walang makakapagpaiyak saken. Kahit anong galit nila, napapangiti ko sila pa rin sila at friends kami pagkaalis niya ng business office. Iyon ang bentahe natin PSYCH PEOPLE - kaya natin ihandle each personality types. Sa araw-araw na problems na naeencounter mo sa trabaho, just leave them all in your work place. Pag-alis ng office, may ibang buhay ka pa - pamilya, kaibigan, pag-ibig, pag-aaral at paglinang ng talento't kakayahan (mahilig akong sumayaw, gumuhit at gumawa ng art journal with reflections. Pinapaunlakan ko rin ang mga imbitasyon na makapagbahagi ako sa mga espesyal na talakayim sa kasaysayan at boluntaryong pagtuturo sa mga kabataan)

9. HAVE A POSITIVE OUTLOOK.

Umpisa pa lang, sinasabi ko na sa sarili ko, "Kapag ako hindi pumasa, masaya pa rin ako. Iba ang ligaya na dulot sa akin ng pag-aaral na ito. Binigyan niya ng buhay ang routinary kong buhay. At ang lahat ng ito ay para sa mas ikabubuti ng aking tatahakin sa buhay." Kaya buo na ang desisyon ko na ako ay magtutuloy sa UST Graduate School ng MA Clinical Psychology para mas malawak na mundo na ang aking galawan at maibahagi ko ang likas na talento kong pagmamahal at pagtulong sa paglinang ng kakayahan ng bawat kapwa ko Pilipino. Ang motto ngayon ay: PROMOTING POSITIVE MENTAL HEALTH AND WELL-BEING IN EVERY FILIPINO. 

© Jennifer Francia Pugao Villanueva, RPm

(Note: Jennifer graduated in 2010 at UST. She is currently working as a CSA at PLDT.  Among her numerous hobbies include, Dancing, Painting, Art Journaling with JFPV Reflections.  She is interested in serving as volunteer lecturer of CUFI and teacher of KISLAP (Youth Org).  Albert Bandura is her fave psychologist (I personally chose his Behavior Modeling in our thesis - Cinematherapy on the Aggression Level of Male Juvenile Delinquents. His theory is holistic!  Whenever I do volunteer teachings, I use Filipino movies/clips in order to instill Filipino Values in my participants and his theory works best!). For her  future plans, "I want to be a Psychologist". I dream of helping my Filipino men to heal their self - holistically. I love giving advice and uplifting my friends, loved ones and students. I believe that I was born to help others discover and develop their God-given gifts. Especially nowadays that people in social networking sites develop low self-esteem, depression, experiencing being bullied, I believe I can help in my own simple ways.) 

Poor performance in the BLEPP 2014, whose fault?

(Note: The article below was submitted to us by one of our readers. A reflection and constructive feedback to schools, department heads and teachers offering course in Psychology. We hope you can share your sentiments and feedback if you resonate or dissent/disagree to the article contributor.)

"The board exam performance of our school says a lot about their Psychology program," my friend who is currently working in the Middle East told me. He has a point. After all, he graduated in one of the best schools in the Philippines - a school that enjoys a passing rate of 80%-96% on a yearly basis and always included among the  top 10 schools of good performance in most licensure examinations. Both of us graduated from the same school,  known as "Home of the Topnotchers" in our city. But the passing rate of the Psychology graduates who took the BLEPP 2014 is such an eye sore compared to the glorious passing records that other programs or courses enjoy.

I rationalized "first time pa naman kasi, nasa establishing at transition stage pa lang." But then, after seeing the national passing rate of 39%, and comparing and contrasting the passing rates of other colleges, I know that something is not right. 

After much thought, I decided to write a list of the things that the various Psychology Departments here in the Philippines should improve on. This is based on my personal experiences and observations of the various schools I've visited and attended. It is also informed by anecdotes and experiences of my friends who are Psychology graduates from other schools. I am not fond of sugar-coating since it does not lead to  improvement. So, here it goes:

1. Lack of regular and competent instructors to teach the fundamental Psychology subjects

Our batch from our school struggled on fundamental Psychology and other important subjects (namely Statistics). Teachers were either part-time, always late or  absent, or too incompetent or too lazy to teach. My close friend from another colleges also said the same thing of their teachers.  She said that their teacher in Abnormal Psychology would even ask them what their topic when they have class. What also affected us is that some teachers were forced to teach subjects they  have no interest or no strong knowledge or background to begin with.  And it negatively affected the way they taught the subject. In the end, we learned almost nothing about the subjects except for the personality quirks, nuances, and life stories of our teachers.

2. Reading fundamental Psychology books are not encouraged or properly utilized.

Some students have stated that they were not properly taught on how to use the DSM (!) in their college years. Other students would say that they would buy books, yet end up not using it. Some would not use books, and instead, resort to photocopies, powerpoint slides, and handouts given to them.

3. Too much focus on the Clinical aspect of Psychology, less focus on the other fields of Psychology

Many Psychology students are confident in the field of Abnormal Psychology, but struggle in understanding the concepts and terminologies in I/O Psychology, Psychological Assessment, and etc. Many graduates desire to work in the clinical setting, but ended up working in the I/O field. However, their knowledge in the I/O field of Psychology is not as strong compared to their knowledge in the clinical field.

4. Lack of practical application training in Psychological Assessment

Some schools offer Psych Assessment for one semester only, while other schools offer it for two semesters. Psych Assessment is a wide field and one semester is not enough to learn the theoretical and practical implications of Psychological tests. Many students know the value of reliability and validity of tests, yet still 

struggle on making psychological reports, interpreting and correlating different results from different tests, and on administering exams to a group.

5. Review centers are helpful, but are more beneficial if the Psychology graduate has a strong conceptual knowledge and application to begin with.

Many students enrolled themselves in review centers, paid fees, yet failed. Review centers reinforce, enhance and strengthen knowledge in Psychology, but can be rendered useless if the graduate has a weak knowledge base to begin with.

I hope Psychology Department heads and teachers who read this piece would make ways to improve their Psychology Programs in their respective schools. I would also hope that students and graduates who would take the BLEPP 2015 would improve their knowledge and skills in Psychology to better prepare themselves in the exam and in their career.

Thank you guys and God bless.

- The French Baker

In the Philippines there are only three universities that are considered Center of Excellence for their Psychology Program and one university as Center for Development.

From the above list of universities categorized as Centers of Excellence and Development for their Psychology Program, the following schools produced students who made it to top 10 highest places in the exam:

1) Ateneo de Davao University

2) Saint Paul University - Tuguegarao

3) Manila Tytana Colleges

4) Trinity University of Asia

5) Mirriam College

6) Laguna College

7) Saint Louis University

8) Centro Escolar University

9) Canossa College

10) University of the Philippines - Angeles City

Sources/Related Links:

http://www.ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/CMO-No.50-s2012.pdf 
(20 December 2012)

http://www.ched.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/CMO-No.16-s2012.pdf
(Implementing Guidelines for COE)

http://prc.gov.ph

http://psychometricpinas.blogspot.com/2014/11/official-result-from-prc-website.html

Fallen but not defeated

Fallen but not defeated

by Elay Tawano
AB Psychology graduate
La Consolacion College Manila

Three nights ago, PRC announced that 1,290 out of 3,283 passed in the first-ever Psychometrician board exam. 1,993 didn't make it and I was one of them.

Embarassment. Shame. Depression. Disappointment. Loss of direction. Diminished self worth.

When I discovered it, the natural instinct was to run away. The experience was psychologically paralyzing. Man, I wanted to vanish. All of my efforts were wasted. I consider this as the first failure that really affected me given the fact that I had many people in my life awaiting for the board exam results, and I had to tell them that I failed. The thing that I am most afraid of was that everyone would think I'm dumb or stupid. I immediately compared myself to others who passed which even made me feel down. I spent a couple of hours grieving over what I could have done differently; what I wish I could change. I wanted to isolate myself from those around me, not wanting to bother them with negativity about my failure for I know letting them down is more painful than letting myself down. 

After hours of being distant, I realized that at the end of the day, it is merely just a test. A result does not change who I am. I'm still proud of myself for I was brave enough to even be one of the thousands who courageously took the risk in taking the first Board exam for Psychometricians. I took the chance, I put myself out there and my ability to confront fear and doubt was really something. I'm still part of history and that will never change. I stopped wondering if things would have been different if I made it. I learned that the board exam has absolutely no bearing on whether I will be good at administering psychological tests or not. Also, I've discerned that my family, closest friends and significant other still believe in me and that they don't see me any differently today than they did yesterday.

From that surreal experience came a fresh realization that goals are just goals; dreams are just dreams. They are important, but we should not be totally dependent on them. Life goes on. The one who falls and gets up is much stronger than the one who has never fallen. 

My Saykometrisyan Dyurni

My Saykometrisyan Dyurni 
by ARMAN MANALO BUENO
[224 BUENO, ARMAN MANALO]

Nakatutuwang pangyayari sa aking buhay na makikita sa isang news network website ang buong pangalan ko. Subalit, masasabi ko na hindi naging madali ang pag-abot sa ganitong tagumpay.

Naaalala ko noong ika-31 ng Oktubre 2013, ika-2:33 ng hapon, ito ang Facebook status ko:

"Arman M. Bueno, RPm (in progress)

Registered Psychometrician"

Nagdesisyon akong itigil ang trabaho ko sa isang rehabilitation facility para makapaglaan ng oras para sa pagrerebyu ko sa Board Licensure Examination for Psychometricians (BLEP). Hindi ko kasi nahabol ang deadline sa isang review center. 

Dalawang buwan bago ang nakatakdang petsa ng BLEP, hindi ko nagawang makapag-aral ng matino, nagpadala ako sa katamaran. Puro bahala na. At higit sa lahat, mas nababad ako sa isipin na wala na akong pera at kailangan makahanap ng panibagong trabaho. Ang hirap maging jobless.

Isang buwan bago ang BLEP, nagkaroon ako ng trabaho bilang isang financial advisor. Bagong sabak sa larangan na hindi ko gamay. Ika-6 ng Oktubre, 2014, dalawang araw bago ang huling petsa ng aplikasyon sa PRC, natulungan ako ng aking nanay na magkaroon ng perang pamasahe papuntang PRC at pambayad sa aplikasyon. Dahil sa bunso ako sa apat na magkakapatid, ang aking nanay ay sinabihan ako na magpasama pag pupunta ng Maynila. Pero sinabi ko sa kanya na dapat marunong na akong mag-isa pag may pupuntahan. Sa 24 taong nabubuhay ako sa mundo, hindi ko nagawang magsolo papuntang Maynila, parating may kasama. Sa loob-loob ko kinakabahan ako na pumunta mag-isa. May anxiety na rin kasi ako pag sinabing Maynila. Nang dumating ang Ika-7 ng Oktubre, sobrang saya ko na nagawa kong tapusin ang aking takot. Nakapunta ako sa Maynila ng mag-isa sa unang pagkakataon, at sa PRC pa! Nakauwi rin ako ng matiwasay.

Dalawang linggo bago ang BLEP, wala pa rin akong kita, hindi ko alam kung saan kukuha ng pangtustos ko sa eksaminasyon. Hindi ako nakakapagrebyu. Naging banaag ang aking pananaw kung itutuloy ko pa ang pagkuha ng BLEP. 

Pagduruda at pagiging negatibo sa aking sarili at sitwasyon ang mga nararanasan ko sa mga panahong ito. 

Ang aking mga kaibigan, kaklase, at mga mentor ay patuloy sa paghikayat sa akin na ituloy ko ang pagkuha sa kabila ng mga nangyayari.

Tatlong araw bago mag-eksaminasyon, nalaman ko na ang aking room assignment sa St. Jude College-Manila. 

Ika-28 ng Oktubre, unang araw ng BLEP, dumating ako sa pagdadausan ng ika-5:40 ng umaga. Kabado ako. Maingay ang paligid. Mayroon akong nakilalang dalawang ka-psyche major mula sa ibang pamantasan. Ang iba ay tahimik at may mga dalang reviewers at highlighters. Ang iba naman ay parang dala ang buong mag-anak bilang pagsuporta. Ang gandang tingnan ng bawat eksena at mga kilos ng mga kukuha ng BLEP. Ang ikalawang araw naman ay halos normal na ang sitwasyon. Marami akong nakilala at mga bagong kaibigan, ang iba sa kanila ay galing pa sa ibang bahagi ng bansa.

Sa kasagsagan ng eksaminasyon, inuuna ko parati ang madadaling tanong. Parang isang game show ang peg. Minsan, nag-50:50 ako, bawal nga lang ang Call A Friend. Naranasan ko din manghula na lang dahil sa hindi naituro sa amin ang ilan sa mga paksa na kabilang sa eksam. Andun din na nagkamali ako na dapat na sasagutang aytem, pero wala akong nagawa kundi sheydan na lang ito para iwas aberya sa pagtsek. Binibilang ko din ang mga aytems na siguradong tama ako. Nahirapan ako sa Industrial Psychology at sa Psychological Assessment na kung saan dalawang minuto na lang ang nalalabi sa akin para tapusin ang pagsagot. Nagpaka-OC-OC na din ako sa takot na baka may naiwanang ako na aytem na hindi nasagutan.

Panalangin ang ginagawa ko bago at tapos sagutan ang bawat asignatura. May punto din sa eksam na pinepressure ko ang aking sarili na kailangan kong maitama ang karamihan para pasang pasa na. Pero kailangan pa rin i-enjoy ang pagsasagot. Minsan, natatawa na lang ako kung hindi ko alam ang sagot. Kapag may free time pa, nakikipagdaldalan ako sa mga roommates ko para iwas stress. 

Makalipas ang isang taon, ika-4 ng Nobyembre, ika-9:55 ng gabi, nagpost sa Facebook ang isa sa mga psychology majors ng Adventist University of the Philippines (AUP), ang aking Alma Mater, ng impormasyon mula sa isang news website page na nagsasaad ng mga pumasa sa Board Licensure Examination for Psychologists and Psychometricians (BLEPP). Nang aking makita, saya at kaba ang nangingibabaw sa isip ko pero hindi ko mabuksan ang post. Ilang minuto ang lumipas, tinawagan ako ng isa sa mga mentors ko at ngayon ay isa ng Registered Psychologist. Sinabi niya, "...andito na yung mga names, BUENO....ano middle name mo, Arman?" Sabay sagot ko ng, "MANALO po."

Sabi ng mentor ko, "Uy pasa ka!"...

Galak ang naramdaman ko. Subalit, mas matinding kagalakan ang sumapit sa akin ng magpost ang aking pinsan. Ang post na ito ay isang larawan na cropped mula sa isang website, at nakalagay ang ilan sa mga pumasa. At nasusulat roon ang "224 BUENO ARMAN MANALO."

Hindi ako makapaniwala. Isa pala ako sa mga pumasa. Nakagagaan talaga ng puso ang ganitong tagumpay sa aking buhay. Laking pasasalamat ko sa Panginoon sa pagtulong sa akin na huwag sumuko sa siphayo o kalungkutan, at sa walang kamatayang 'anxiety'. 

Sa darating na Oath Taking kasama ang mga kapwa ko #PioneersPsychometricians, ito na ang Facebook Status ko:

"ARMAN MANALO BUENO, RPm

REGISTERED PSYCHOMETRICIAN"

Sa haba-haba ng ikwinento ko, ito ang mga natutunan ko sa BLEP 2014:

1. Ask help from God through prayers.

2. Attitude is the psyche-key of all successes.

3. The greatest competitor is the Self.

(Note: Si Arman Manalo Bueno, ay 24 taon gulang na AB PSYCH graduate ng Adventist University of the Philippines noong October 2013. Kasalukuyang Financial Advisor, part time ang kaniyang trabaho. Ilang sa kaniyang hilig ang pag-drawing/designing dresses (pwede kayang magpadesign pang-Oathtaking) at pagsusulat. Siguradong pasado sa Theories of Personality dahil paborito niya si Alfred Adler.)

Registered Psychologists and Registered Psychometricians Oath Taking Ceremony

Announcements

Registered Psychologists and Registered Psychometricians Oath Taking Ceremony:

The Oath Taking ceremony which will be held at the Philippine International Convention Center on December 9, 2014 from 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm. Attire is Barong and Filipiniana. 

Tickets will be sold at PAP, DLSU and UST. Early bird discounts will be given until November 15, 2014. 

Payments until November 26 - 1,000/ticket
Payments from November 27- December 4 - 1,200/ticket
December 5 - December 9 (Onsite fee)- 1,500/ticket

Registration is scheduled on November 24 to November 26 but that tickets will be available starting next week.


Source - http://www.pap.org.ph/

Hindi naman ako bobo, bakit ako bumagsak?

Hindi naman ako bobo, bakit ako bumagsak
by Lady Psychologist

Bumagsak po ako sa Board Exam for Psychometrician at hanggang ngayon di ko pa rin matanggap dahil matagal ko yung pinaghandaan at handang handa po talaga ako. Nag-attempt akong mag apply for work at kahit natatanggap ako di ko kinukuha dahil laging sumasagi sa isip ko ang board na baka mapabayaan ko. So naisip ko mag focus talaga ako sa paagrereview.

Simula pa lang ng June 2014 nag review na ako.  The first two months ng June at July ang ginagawa ko or review is puro reading at konting gawa ng lecture. Nag-aaral ako mula 10pm-3am Monday-Saturday. Minsan nangyayari na every other day. Kasi sobra antok ko at wala na ko maintindihan at nangyari pang nagkasakit ako almost one week. Pero nagcontinue agad ako afterko gumaling. 

Bandang September, nagenroll na ko for review center late enrollee na ko dahil huli na nang nalaman ko ang tungkol sa review center na yun dahil ang alam ko puro malalayo.  So yung first day ko huli na talaga ako. Kasi huling araw na yung topic sa Abnormal Psychology so dahil doon mas nagfocus ako kasi nga di ko na naabutan yung ibang topics sa Abnormal Psychology.  At simula noong nag review center ako, everyday na ko nagrereview  from 10pm-5am nagaaral ako. 

Minsan nga nangyayari kahit may review ako that day na kailangan 7am plng umalis nako ng bahay. Ginagawa ko pa rin yung 10pm-5am kong pagrereview at umaalis ako ng bahay na walang tulog. So iyon ang hindi ko talaga matanggap dahil pinaghandaan ko iyon at marami din akong inayawan na work kasi minsan may nagtetext sakin for interview dahil nakita daw nila ang record ko sa iskul at nagustuhan daw nila yung performance ko tapos inayawan ko for review na wala namang nangyari. 

Hanggang ngayon sa tuwing mag-isa ko naiisip ko yung mga nagawa ko na hindi pa ba sapat ang effort ko. Hindi naman po ako bobo. Nagtop naman ako sa iskul namin at sa totoo lang simula noong first year sa college every subject ng Psychology ako palaging highest. Nangyayari mang may mas mataas sakin minsan lang iyon at pangalawa lagi ako. Pero wala na akong magagawa naiisip ko kung magshi-shift na lang ako ng career na tatahakin ko sa twing tinatanung ako anu nang gagawin ko at kailan uli ako magtake. 

I want to start a new life at ayoko ng makakita ng kahit anong related sa Psychology. Pero pagiging Psychologist talaga ang sinasabi ng nararamdaman ko. Buti nalng may ganito po kayong ginawa kasi wala akong makausap dahil di naman ako papakinggan ng mga tao dito sa bahay. 

So thank you din at nakatulong naman din po itong page niyo sa pagreview ko.

(Note: We admire the courage of Lady Psychologist for sharing with us her experience. We believe that she's not alone - having done her best effort yet did not make it. Writing is a therapy, voicing out our frustrations can alleviate some of the pain we have. Sharing your story is very personal so we respect those who share their stories to heal as as well as to give hope to others. We hope that  for those who did not pass, you will continue to pursue your passion  and will be courageous to try it again.)

Bewitched by my name

Bewitched by my name
by Elvira Masferré

A stroke of bad luck came when we heard that they did not approve the exam to take place here in Baguio, too. Now that was devastating, not to mention inconvenient, especially to those who lived even farther. It was scheduled on the 28th and 29th of October and my friends and I travelled Monday, a day before the exam. I did not even bother bringing all my notes, just one notebook. That’s self-fulfilling prophecy working in the flesh right there! I didn’t scan the materials from the review center until the last week. (It was not even the serious type of reviewing, too) And to top it all off, I had sore eyes a day prior to the board exam. Wow. Clearly I was not meant for this.

If there's anything worse than failing the board exam, it's failing the board exam because of my condition. I can't even read a single item without pouring Visine on my eyes and trying to remove the unlimited production of discharge every 5 minutes with my bare hands because I forgot to freaking pack with me a handkerchief which, by the way, caused more irritation. The dreadful cycle goes on as I try my best to answer each item correctly in the first subject: Theories of Personality. I want to pull it off until the end but it was too painful, and that is when I decided not to take the rest of the exam; I can hardly understand the stems presented. I tried reasoning out with our proctors but they told me to endure the pain and not give up since I can’t take the exam on a different day. I had no choice. Even with my case, I actually thought I had a chance, a slim chance though, of passing given the first three subjects, but when Psychological Assessment came, I lost hope. My chances suddenly fluctuated and I nearly cried as I continue to intellectually figure out distractors from the correct answer number after number. I don’t think I can pass even if I did work hard reviewing for it. It was not anything like I thought it would be. I mean, I knew it was going to be difficult, but not like this. The problem was not even about the effort or time spent on reading; it was more like focusing on misleading, irrelevant topics. I did not take into consideration that it was an Outcome-based board exam.

I became realistic, not pessimistic. I'm evaluating myself basing it from my performance, and frankly, I know I did not do well. My family and friends kept on telling me not to lose hope, and have faith in God, and to open my gates for possibilities, but I simply cannot hold on to these when I know that they are barely there. I do trust Him; it’s me that I don’t trust. I know myself enough to know what I can and cannot do. The fact is that this is one test I cannot achieve. When I got home, everyone asked me how well I did and I answered, “Ang importante kumpleto tayo at nagmamahalan tayong lahat.” I told my Mom not to expect anything from me and to simply move on and pretend that we did not waste money, effort, and time just for me to fail the exam.

It did not take long before they posted the results online. There was not even one bit of excitement nor anxiety left in my body. I humbly accepted defeat and failure. I quickly searched for my friends’ name if they passed. Some made it, some didn’t. Last but not the least, I looked for mine.  

WHAT.IS.THIS.SORCERY. That’s my name. That’s my name right there! How the bloody hell did that happen? Are they even serious? Don’t play with me gma news and PRC that is not a good joke. I was literally crying. It wasn’t pure happiness though since some of my friends did not make it. It doesn’t feel right at all. I pictured success with them, together. Nothing really changed because of the result. This does not mean that I am any better than them. I have not proven anything just because I passed; I have not proven anything yet. THE BOARD EXAM DOES NOT DEFINE YOU AS A PERSON AND YOUR LIFE IN GENERAL. There’s more to life than this. But in that very moment I thanked everyone who believed in me despite not believing in myself in the first place. It was an in-your-face moment to that one person who never believed in me and never thought I’d make it: ME. And I came to a realization that I should stop being harsh to myself and start being nice because I deserve it; I deserve my own forgiveness. I can’t even put into words my exact feelings about this whole experience. But on a serious note, there must be some crazy good witchcraft going on here.

(Note - we made a call for contributions for anecdotes of individuals who took the 2014 BLEPP (Psychometrician). For our first post, we are featuring the experience and success story of Ms. Masferré. We hope that her story will serve to  inspire those who would like to take the exam.)