Source: Yahoo.com
MANILA, Philippines -- This year's bar topnotcher from the San Beda College of Law admitted having a hard time answering questions in the 2009 Bar Exam.
Reinier Paul Yebra, who is the first San Beda student to top the bar in over 40 years, passed the exam with a score of 84.80%. The last San Beda law student who topped the bar exam was Rodolfo D. Robles in 1967.
“Mahirap talaga ‘yong exam. Mahaba at mahirap. (The exam was difficult. It was long and difficult),” Yebra said. “The examinees had a difficult time answering the questions.”
Yebra said the Supreme Court’s decision to lower the passing grade from 75% to 71% was "just right" because the exam questions are becoming more and more complex.
“I think na tama lang na ibinaba nila. (It’s just right that they lowered the passing grade),” he said.
Yebra told ABS-CBN News in an interview that he is glad he passed the exam, becoming one of the few lucky passers.
Less than a quarter (24%) of 5,903 examinees passed this year, according to the Supreme Court (SC).
Yebra, the eldest of 4 siblings, now works for a law firm. His classmate at San Beda, Charlene May Tapic, placed 2nd overall.
More difficult than previous exams
Ateneo Law School graduate John Paul Lim, who came out as the Top 3 examinee, meanwhile, said he was caught off guard by some questions in the bar exam.
He said the exam was much more difficult than the past exam questions he encountered while reviewing for the Bar.
“Kasi syempre [ka]pag nagrereview ka, you try to look at past exams. It's different from what we encountered during the Bar,” said Lim.
Six other Ateneo law students were included in the top 10, including Eric David Tan, Yvi Randolf Gonzales, Joan Mae To, Timothy Joseph Lumauig, Naella Rose Bainto and Shiela Abigail Go.
The Supreme Court released the Bar results last Friday evening (March 26), 5 months after the actual examinations took place.
The law bar exam is considered the most difficult among professional licensure exams in the Philippines.
'Agony is over'
Meanwhile, 4th placer Caroline Lagos of the University of the Philippines College of Law said she is happy she survived the “ordeal."
Lagos, whose father topped the 1980 Bar Examinations, said she would have been satisfied if she simply passing the exam without landing in the top 10.
“Hindi ko na iniisip na number 4 [ako]. Basta ‘yon na nakapasa na ako, tapos na. Tapos na ang agony ko. Sobrang saya ko,” she said. (I wasn’t thinking of ranking Top 4, I just wanted to pass and finish my agony. I’m so happy with the results).
Only two UP Law students ranked in the top 10 this year.
Aside from Lagos at 4th place, UP law student Herminio Bagro III ranked 8th overall with a score of 84.04%.
The 2009 Bar Examinations were held on September 6, 13, and 20; and October 4, 2009 at the De La Salle University in Taft Avenue, Manila.
The Bar exams are traditionally held in 4 consecutive Sundays of September, but the High Court had to reset to October 4, 2009 the last exam week due to the widespread flooding brought about by Typhoon Ondoy. With a report from Abner Mercado, ABS-CBN News.
Posts
