What Will It be Worth

After graduating last April 2010, I finally got around to going back to Ateneo to get this.  Surprisingly, it wasn't that inconvenient to get it.  I was afraid that since I already lost whatever receipt I had that it would be impossible to get it just by appearing at the Registrar.  I was happy to know that all I had to do was present any valid ID which I have ready in my wallet at all times.  The question now is ... will it be worth anything to me in the years to come? 

(Master in Business Administration Diploma)

The diploma of course, is just a symbolic representation of what a student (supposedly) has really acquired in school ... and that is Knowledge, Wisdom, and Experience that one can carry on one's shoulders forever.  So it may show its worth, I hope my shoulders are broad enough to carry it in the years to come. (Whatever that means. hehehe)       

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Marcia! April 30,2010

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From P to F

It takes 2 strokes to write a "P."  It takes 3 strokes to write an "F."  But more strokes to cross out any letter in the alphabet.  I wonder what drives a professor to write a "P", cross it out, and change it to an "F!"

Well, so much for me being an outlier.  I got 78% in my Strategic Management exam.  Just 2% short of passing it.  I guess this means I will have to retake the exam this Saturday.  But right now, I'm seriously considering petitioning my answers and trying to squeeze out 2 more points just to make it to "P".  It's worth a try.  Not only because it will save me time but because the exam is worth 1,200 pesos.  Universities definitely know how to make money.  That's why students wonder why they need to increase tuition fees every year. (^o^)v

Tomorrow I'm ready to go full force even if I have to declaim and say "alms, alms, alms. Spare me a piece of bread. Spare me your mercy. Spare me 2 points!"   hahaha (^o^)/  - so elementary school - Just remembering some moments back in grade school.  I wonder if they still do declamation / oratorical contests now.

Well ok.  Just to make me feel a little better, although it really doesn't matter that much for me now.  I heard that I topped one subject, placed 2nd in the next, and got a perfect score in another.  Hmmm ... I wonder whether these are all true. (But I can still hear Yoda say "But failed StratMan, You did." hahaha) 

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Fulbright Scholarship for Filipinos

Fulbright Scholarship for Filipinos

A friend, through email, told me that the Fullbright Scholarship Philippine Student Program is now accepting applications for MA/MS, PhD, non-degree doctoral dissertation/enrichment in the United States for academic year 2010-2011. The deadline for application is on March 23, 2009. Completed applications must be submitted to the Philippine-American Educational Foundation (PAEF) office.

Grants under the Fulbright Philippine Student Program are for five months to nine months for non-degree, one to two years for master's, and two years for doctoral degree studies. The grant provides for round-trip international travel, monthly allowance, tuition and fees, book/supply allowance, and health and accident insurance.

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SP Jain: Global MBA Scholarship Update

A month ago I received an email from the SPJCM-Dubai and Singapore campus. Apparently, they have started accepting applications for their Global MBA program for April 2009! And the good news is, apart from spending 6 months in Dubai and 6 months in Singapore, the students will get a chance to spend 10 weeks in Toronto, Canada! SP Jain has partnered with York University-Schuilih School of Business which is said to be the No. 1 business school in Canada and ranked No. 15 in the world!

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Good as the offer is, I don't think I'll be ready for the April intake as well. For now, the MBA education I am getting here in Davao will have to do. Hopefully though, Fujitsu will grant me the EWKLP Scholarship, an Advanced Management Studies Scholarship to be held in JAIMS at Honolulu, Hawaii! I'm scheduled for an interview end of March or early April. *fingers-crossed*

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Whew! I got it!

I got it! SP Jain is offering me a full scholarship for their GMBA (Global MBA) program! Classes will start on December 13 for the Dubai campus and December 16 for the Singapore Campus. Each student will study 6 months in each campus. As to where you will be assigned first will depend on the specialization that you choose. (^o^)/ I have opted for a specialization in Retail Marketing.

Happy as I am of being accepted, I had to turn down the offer. Although they didn't say it explicitly, I got the feeling that my parents want me here in Davao. My sister said that it was a waste of time. A friend said I have to reevaluate my priorities and that I just did. Somehow, going away for another year for my MBA feels like a postponement of my goals (although still quite vague at this time hehehe ^^). For now I'll have to contend myself with the so-so education I am getting from Ateneo de Davao University.

The good news is SP Jain is still looking for scholars! And they have asked me for referrals. If you are interested please email me by tomorrow, October 23, 2008, at sunjun(seven)(nine)@gmail.com. (^O^)/

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SP Jain is offering a full tuition scholarship amounting to around $20,000 (USD). You'll only need to pay around $10,000 (USD) for lodging, visas, and books. Coming up with the $10,000 is still hard but SP Jain can arrange a financing scheme for you. They have asked me to pay only 50% as downpayment and then later pay the remaining balance upon graduation. They are confident that you will be able to pay them back because so far they have 100% placement with their graduates. Average salary offer for their graduates was at around $40,000 (USD). For more information, visit their site at www.spjain.org.

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This would have been a good stepping stone for a career change for me but I'll have to pass it up for now. In the meantime, I am looking at applying for another scholarship which will just take 3 months and the program won't have to start until late next year.

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Davao Great Finds: Yurushi Japanese Restaurant

Just when I was blogging about Tonkatsu (fried breaded pork) and how I've been longing for Japanese cuisine lately, comes a great find in the city of Davao! Yurushi, located at corner Suzao street and Uyanguren, is here to serve the Davaoeños affordable Japanese food! Now anyone can get Tonkatsu, Katsudon (Breaded porkchop topping), and Gyuudon (Beef strips topping) for only 57 pesos! Not only is the food affordable, but it actually tastes very authentic. Must be because it is personally prepared by their Japanese cook. I've tasted their Tonkatsu and Katsudon meals and I wasn't disappointed. This is truly a great find and I'm adding it to my list of great Davao City restaurants. (Good authentic food at an affordable price)

A problem you may have with the place is that it looks like a carinderia (local canteen). Despite being one, the place is really clean and well maintained. If you go upstairs, you'll be surprised to know that the place is airconditioned and even has a coin operated karaoke machine that the whole gang can enjoy! So start saving up those 5 peso coins so you can sing your hearts out! (I haven't checked out the comfort rooms (toilet) yet.)

A funny thing I noticed is the name. Yurushi in English actually means "forgiveness." I wonder why they named it that way. My guess is it's suppose to be Yoroshii which means "good" but with the native slang, with the not so flexible tongue, made the name sound like how it is spelled now. (The next time I'm there I'll try to muster enough courage to ask the owners and maybe even practice my Japanese. (^^;))

This restaurant is truly a great find, perfect for our after (MBA) class meals. The next time you find yourself craving to try something new, head to this restaurant, try their Tonkatsu or Katsudon and feel like a winner.

They also have Chahan (Japanese style fried rice) in their menu. Fresh fruit shakes, like Mango, are priced at 14 pesos for 8 ounce servings. Softdrinks (8 oz., served in bottles) are priced at 13 pesos each.

(WINNER Tonkatsu meal with cabbage salad topped with Japanese style mayonnaise)

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SP Jain: Global MBA scholarships for Filipinos

Last Saturday, I skipped my Statistics class to attend the Global MBA road show of SP Jain Center of Management. They have 5 scholarships up for grabs exclusively for Filipinos!




They are looking for Filipino students so as to diversify their student body. Most of their students right now are Indians but they also have students from Nepal, Malaysia, Thailand, and Singapore.

The scholarship offers 100% tuition fee subsidy! That is why I'm very much interested about it. Not to mention that you'll be spending 6 months in Singapore and then 6 months in their Dubai campus. A great travel opportunity as well.

However, since it's a residential program, you'll have to pay for the dormitory. Including the fees for the books and materials, you'll have to shell out around $10,000 USD! It's quite a big amount that I'm not ready to pay for so I'm pushing for a full-pledge scholarship. That is if I make it through the application procedure, of course. If a full-pledge scholarship is not possible, I heard you can pay for it in installments, depending on your agreement with the school.

The school also boasts of a 100% job placement record and an average salary of USD $40,000 for all their students that's why they're confident that money shouldn't be a problem. For those of you looking for a career change, like me, then this opportunity might be the one for you.

Deadline of application for their december intake is on September 30, 2008. Visit their site at www.spjain.org for details on how to apply online. Disregard the application requirements in the site for they have reduced this to anyone with a degree and with at least 2-3 years of work experience.

If you think you're not ready to apply for it this time, I believe they have a March intake as well so visit the site sometime next year.

If I get accepted and I don't have to worry about the money, I think I'll accept the offer! I want to go to Dubai and the MBA education I'm getting here in Ateneo Davao doesn't feel complete so I'm looking for alternatives.

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Portraits of Love: Kadayawan sa Davao

Early in the morning today (August 23), at around 8:30am I was wide awake with my Statistics book at hand. My mid-term exam was scheduled later that afternon (2pm) and I haven't started studying yet. It's the Kadayawan festival here in Davao but I wasn't in a festive mood at all. I planned to go and watch the Indak Indak sa Kadalanan Street Dancing Competition but I had to settle for watching it on television because I still had to study. So no Kadayawan street dancing pictures from me again this year. I know it's all my fault. I was too complacent not to study because I was too confident that I'd pass it somehow because it was an open book exam. I sent an SMS message to our professor asking for confirmation if he will be holding classes in the afternoon. No reply came, so I opened my stat book and began studying. (Needed to read 7 chapters!)

At around 10am though, reply from our professor came! He was postponing the exam to next week! Yey! I was so elated because I only had 2 hours of sleep that night. What did I do, you ask? Well, what else, I was finishing an "important" blog hehehe (^O^)v. So I prepared to go back to sleep. The street dancing competition has started already and from the looks of it on TV, I didn't feel like going anymore. Maybe I'll write about what I thought about it on a future post. But before I slept, of course, I checked the blogs again. tsk tsk tsk.

And that's when I heard about "Portraits of Love." A photo exhibit depicting the beauty of the bond between mother and child in the hopes of encouraging more mothers to breastfeed. So like the true bloggista that I am, I grabbed my cam and headed for the city to cover the event (after I slept for a couple of hours, of course (^O^)v).

Part of the reason why I wanted to cover the event was because I knew most of the mothers being featured in the exhibit. Here are some of the photos and their commentaries.

"I never had second thoughts about breastfeeding. From the moment the idea was presented to me, I knew it was the best way to go. It came quite easy to me. My son seemed to know exactly what to do the very first time we tried. Nothing can compare to the joy of knowing that I am giving my baby the best of myself.
...
Breastfeeding is the best gift any mom can give to a child. Aside from being economical, healthy and ecological, nothing can beat the level of bonding mom and baby achieve from the experience."

- Sophia Yao -
A Mother's Euphoria (Photo by: Kat Mercado)


"Breastfeeding did not come easy to us. Plugged ducts, sore nipples, wrong latch, nipple confusion, spilled milk and buckets of tears were the staple during our first 3 months. Everyday, I thought about quitting but just continued to tell myself-'just one more day'. It became easier and we are still breastfeeding at 8 months.

Breastfeeding is not easy BUT is the best sacrifice you can make for your child."

- Jennifer Joy C. Ong -
Breastfeeding and a Wedding
(Photo by Stanley Ong)


See the rest of the pictures from the photo gallery here.
Read the sunstar article about the event here.

Catch "Portraits of Love, Celebrating the Mother-Child Bonds of Breastfeeding" Photo Exhibit at Gaisano Mall of Davao (August 22-28, 2008) and SM City Davao (September 1-4, 2008).

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