Althea May Benjamin, who recently ranked 7th in the 2024 Chemical Engineers Licensure Exam, attributes much of her success to her foundational years at La Consolacion College Bacolod. Here’s a glimpse into her inspiring journey and the pivotal role her early education played in her achievements.
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐๐๐ง๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐๐ช๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ
๐๐ฉ ๐๐ ๐พ๐ค๐ฃ๐จ๐ค๐ก๐๐๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐พ๐ค๐ก๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ฅ๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐๐ค๐ช๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฎ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐ง๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐๐ค๐ง ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐จ๐ช๐๐๐๐จ๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐พ๐๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐จ ๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐จ๐ช๐ง๐ ๐๐ญ๐๐ข?
“For 12 years, La Consolacion College Bacolod has been my home,” Althea begins. “An institution that follows St. Augustineโs values and virtues. Two of the core values of St. Augustine that I always adhere to are Humility and Excellence. When I started my engineering journey in the halls of Colegio San Agustin Bacolod, I would always aim high regardless of how difficult or how seemingly impossible it was to pass my subjects, especially the professional ones. With the achievements Iโve attained and the awards Iโve garnered, keeping myself grounded and humble was a must. Additionally, during my time at LCCB, Iโve attained several skills that have been a big help in my engineering journey, especially when speaking in front of a large audience, creating essays and doing
research, dealing with difficult decisions as a leader, and in-depth comprehension of certain technical problems. My Alma Mater has strengthened my foundation in those specific areas and their teachings have remained with me up to my board examination journey. For that, Iโm always grateful.”
๐พ๐๐ฃ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐จ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ข๐๐ข๐ค๐ง๐๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ค๐ง ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ฉ๐๐๐ช๐ก๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ฉ ๐๐พ๐พ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐จ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐ก๐ฎ ๐๐ฃ๐๐ก๐ช๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ก ๐๐ง๐ค๐ฌ๐ฉ๐?
“I remember during my 5th grade classes with Miss Del Rosario, who was my favorite teacher, learning about science and how it applies to the real world, I was hooked,” Althea recalls. “At that time, I knew I would always pursue a degree in science and/or engineering. My love for the field only grew as I entered Junior High with Miss Tingson and Miss Cabreros. I took STEM in Senior High School and had Chemistry
classes with Sir Cornel and Sir Rewey as well as Physics classes with Sir Jomil. The teachings I received from them influenced my decision to take up Chemical Engineering.”
๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐๐ก๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐๐จ ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฃ๐จ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ข ๐๐๐๐ ๐จ๐๐๐ค๐ค๐ก ๐๐ฉ ๐๐พ๐พ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐จ๐ฉ๐ช๐๐ฎ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐พ๐๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฉ ๐พ๐ค๐ก๐๐๐๐ค ๐๐๐ฃ ๐ผ๐๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ฃ – ๐ฝ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐ค๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข?
“Since Colegio San Agustin Bacolod was also an Augustinian school, I felt at ease knowing that I would be learning in a similar environment. I was grateful that I entered the institution with my friends who also took up engineering. The biggest challenge I faced was probably the different teaching styles, which was expected since college was very different from high school, and the unfamiliarity of the people and the place. However, I adapted quickly because I didnโt worry about adjusting since CSA-B has approachable employees, especially
from the College of Engineering, and very nice and bright students, some of whom are now very close friends of mine.”
๐๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐จ๐ฉ๐ช๐๐๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฉ๐จ ๐๐ช๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช๐ง ๐ฎ๐๐๐ง๐จ ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ค๐ก๐ก๐๐๐?
“When handling several responsibilities such as being an officer of your organization or being a part of the student council, time management and discipline are a must,” Althea explains. “In engineering, we learn how to plan and organize our studies and activities, especially nearing the exam periods. In our last semester, we had our plant design course, which required us to form a team and create a project feasibility study, that took up the majority of our time. It was a heavy task to lead, calculate, create several technical papers, revise corrections, and study at the same time. But my team and I created a Gantt chart or a project
time schedule (which was insisted by our instructor) that would guide our activities indicating the start and end of a certain event which gave us several times to study as well as finish our feasibility study.”
๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ช๐ก๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ช๐ง๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ฉ ๐๐พ๐พ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ค๐ก๐ค๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ช๐๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ฅ๐ช๐ง๐จ๐ช๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฃ ๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ค๐ง ๐ค๐ฉ๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐จ?
“Engineering is a very demanding and challenging course. It requires a lot of sacrifice, dedication, and hard work,” Althea advises. “Youโll experience a lot of overwhelming information being taught to you in a matter of 3 hours, your calculator will be your best friend, youโll be exhausted with the several math problems every single day, and youโll be frustrated with yourself. However, the journey is a fulfilling one. Youโll meet people who will be with you throughout your entire journey, your mentors that will teach you and mold you in becoming the best engineer that
you could be, youโll laugh and cry when you receive your grade of 10/100 because you and your classmates have the same scores, and youโll learn several things that you thought were so simple, yet in reality, is quite complex that requires critical and analytical thinking, which you’ll eventually develop. Engineering is a never-ending journey of learning. Itโs a course that will make you love and hate it at the same time.”
Althea May Benjamin’s story is a testament to the power of a strong educational foundation and the enduring values of humility and excellence. Her journey from LCC Bacolod to achieving remarkable success in the Chemical Engineers Licensure Exam serves as an inspiration to all aspiring engineers and students