The family could not afford the review center expenses, so this Topnotcher built an engineering firm (a small startup design company) to pay his review fees. What an absolutely brilliant idea. The heart of this kid is incredible. The persistent desire to pass the board exam is such a joy to read. For everyone who has more difficulties with the performance of any homework, they have the opportunity to order the do my English homework service.
Life doesn’t always hand us everything we need on a silver plate. Most of the time, we have to take our fate into our own hands and build the future we want.
That is exactly what Engr. Jann Frey Pangilinan Pescasio did, and his efforts paid off a hundredfold.
Engr. Jan Frey tops April 2022 with two distinct recognition
- Registered Electrical Engineering Licensure Examination (REELE) and
- Registered Master Electrician Licensure Examination (RMELE).
Pescasio ranked 5th in REELE and 8th in RMELE, with 89.30% and 88.00% scores, respectively.
As a teen, Jann Frey, more often referred to as Frey, was very science inclined.
He would often get compliments from his high school teachers about how great he was at science subjects, and he was always picked to represent his school in various science quiz bees.
That was why when it finally came time to pick a course for college, it was no longer surprising that Frey had already set his mind on becoming a medical surgeon.
It was one of the most interesting science-related professions for him, and he knew he could do well in the field.
Unfortunately, with his mom being an office clerk and his dad being a warehouseman, his family couldn’t afford to finance his needs should he pursue a degree in medicine.
Frey decided to put his family’s needs before his dreams, so instead of enrolling in a pre-med course, he opted to choose from the offerings of the nearby universities.
Ultimately, he made a decision to take the entrance exam at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines – Maragondon Branch, the closest university to his home in Tanza, Cavite.
He managed to pass and ace the test, placing 7th in the overall ranking.
However, Frey was a bit torn about what course to take from the dozens that PUP was offering.
To narrow down the choices, he talked to his dad and asked for his recommendations.
Surprisingly, his father was quick to suggest that he take up Electrical Engineering.
He had always dreamed of Frey becoming the first engineer in the family, and since he already had hands-on experience with basic electrical installation from his trade subject in high school, his dad knew it was a great course for him.
That’s how Frey ended up picking BSEE.
Being the determined and go-getting guy that he is, his college life was nothing short of a walk in the park.
He would frequently ace his subjects, especially when they involved analysis and problem-solving.
That said, Differential and Integral Calculus were a piece of cake for him and so were Power System Analysis, AC & DC Machineries, and Electrical Transients.
By the time he graduated in October 2020, Frey was named PUP-Maragondon Branch EE Department’s First Ever Class Valedictorian and Magna Cum Laude, just as expected.
But earning his diploma and the Magna Cum Laude title was just the start for Frey.
He was eyeing a bigger prize: a spot on the REE topnotcher list.
So straight out of college, he decided to enroll in a review center with the help of his parents.
He was very committed to becoming a topnotcher, and he truly made the most out of his time in the review facility.
Unfortunately, the pandemic took a toll on his family’s finances, and before he knew it, he had to stop reviewing for a year so he could look for a job to cover his review expenses.
Luckily, he got hired by a design firm where he worked for several months.
There, he gained plenty of experience with designing electrical plans, and when he was confident enough, he decided to launch his own design firm (The Electrical Designer) last August 2021 that offers design outsourcing of the following:
- Electrical System Design
- Electrical Design Analysis for Residential
- Commercial, and Industrial Structures
However, his services weren’t an immediate hit. Like any startup company, it was an uphill battle.
Being a new player in the already competitive field, Frey found it difficult and challenging to gain clients.
But he never gave up hope and continued to work his way up.
He began regularly advertising his small firm on various construction-related Facebook groups.
Engr. Frey also worked to grow his network and connect with different engineers, architects, and construction firm owners.
Despite his efforts, Frey still didn’t get any design work, and the pandemic crippling the construction industry made things even harder for him.
He endured months without income from his small firm, but he was not one to give up that easily.
Engr. Frey pushed himself harder and harder till some small design contracts started trickling in.
This continued until Frey found himself doing bigger and more scalable projects.
He couldn’t help but be happy that he finally was able to finance his study expenses and even save some.
While he was working at his design firm, he continued to prepare for the board exam.
It was challenging for him to make time for both, but his determination was enough to help him power through.
When the board exam finally rolled around, Frey was confident that he would become a topnotcher by the end of it.
Unfortunately, his plans of snatching a spot on topnotcher list were thrown out the window the moment he saw how difficult the exam was.
He knew he couldn’t make it as most of the questions were about terminologies instead of problem-solving, something that he was pretty weak at.
He left the board exam room defeated but still happy that at least he was sure he’ll be on the list of passers.
But lo and behold, life decided to give him a little surprise.
When the results came out, Frey’s little brother was the first one to see his name in the Top 5 in the REE exam and Top 8 in the RME exam.
All of his hard work paid off!
He was flooded with congratulatory messages after that, and his parents couldn’t be prouder of his achievement.
Engr. Frey accommodated an interview with GineersNow, and here’s the full transcript, where he shared his struggles and some valuable tips.
My Student Life
Why did you choose this course? Who or what was your inspiration?
Actually, Electrical Engineering wasn’t my first choice.
I originally wanted to take medicinal studies and was formerly dreaming to be a medical surgeon in the future.
It’s just that we do not have the financial capability to sustain the finances that I’ll be needing if I were to take on my dream course.
As a result, I opt for courses that nearby state universities offer.
I took two entrance exams namely: UPCAT (UP College Admission Test) and PUPCET (PUP College Entrance Test).
After a couple of weeks, the results were released and I managed to pass both.
I was qualified to study BS in Chemical Engineering at UP Los Banos.
On the other hand, I was qualified to study the course offerings at PUP Maragondon Branch since I managed to get a high score on their college entrance test and placed 7th in their overall rankings.
My mother didn’t permit me to study at UP Los Banos as it is quite too far from our home (Tanza, Cavite) and she thinks that we can never afford all of the expenses studying from there will incur so I opt for PUP Maragondon Branch.
As a background, the high school I previously attended offered trade courses for 2nd-year students above.
There, I decided to study a trade course regarding Electricity.
I was exposed to working with basic electrical installation back in my HS days so probably, I used this background as a base to decide which course I would later take in college.
Given these reasons, I picked BSEE to study for the remaining time I have in the academe.
What are your favorite subjects in your entire engineering study? How about least liked subjects?
I think my favorite subjects back in my entire engineering study are closely related to analysis and problem-solving.
Given this, math is a no-brainer answer haha.
I have loved studying math since college algebra up to differential equations.
Of course, this includes the overrated twin-demons of engineering called Differential and Integral Calculus.
Personally, I do not think that Calculus, Differential Equation, or Math is hard because it has a pattern.
Once you study all the patterns and get used to it by answering a plethora of math problems, you’ll fear nothing.
I also came to love the study of subjects which are closely related to my general course of study which is EE.
Worthy mentions among the rest includes:
- AC Circuits – single phase & three phase
- Electrical Transients
- AC & DC Machineries
- Power System Analysis.
For Engineering Sciences and Allied Subjects, worthy mentions include:
- Statics of Rigid Bodies
- Dynamics of Rigid Bodies
- Strength of Materials
- Fluid Statics & Dynamics
- Thermodynamics
I guess my mind thrives more in the analysis of things.
My least liked subjects are subjects that stray from the nature that I specified from above because most of the time, my professors skim through it.
I find it boring to listen to plain readings and presentations but I would appreciate it if they would exert more effort on getting the idea across.
Have you had any subject failures or disappointing academic performance to the very least? If yes, what did you do about it? How did you cope?
Actually, before I came to love math and analysis, I was super bad at it.
I can’t even pass pre-algebra during my 2nd year of high school. I even remember my teacher’s remark which picks on my weakness in math despite being great in science subjects.
As math and science go hand in hand as you progress your study in engineering, I came to understand that this was plain acceptable.
It was then that I realized that it was high time for me to improve my proficiency in math subjects.
What I did is I read textbooks from 6-am (class-in) until 5-pm in my 3rd year of HS.
I do this early in the morning before the flag-raising ceremony, on vacant periods, whenever we have no classes because our teacher is sick or absent, and before going home.
I even study during weekends before I go out and play. It took a while before I was able to catch-up on my math deficiency back-log but it was all worth it.
During that same year, I was able to represent our school for Math Quiz Bees. It paid off.
Alongside this, I was always a consistent quizzer for Science-related Quiz Bees.
Given all this, engineering is still hard.
Engineering needs more study sessions as it requires a higher level of understanding of both Math and Science combined in principle and operations so I did more research.
More early-morning and late-night readings. More busy vacations.
More explorations on the net for materials to advance my studies in order to ace all of my quizzes and exams.
But even with all of these, it wasn’t enough to shield me from irregular blunders and miscalculations which burden me as I was originally aiming to graduate as my batch’s Class Valedictorian and Summa Cum Laude.
The answer to every failure I have come across is relearning. I would always go back to that specific mistake and assess where I went wrong and then relearn it from its root.
I would then proceed on widening my study regarding the subject where I miscalculated something in order to prevent it from happening again.
Mistakes feel like life-and-death situations for an individual like me who was always dreaming of the top spot.
What are your most difficult and most painful experiences during college life? What are your greatest struggles while in college?
I think the most difficult situation I found myself in during my entire college life happened in my final semester.
It was when a classroom conflict that I was closely involved with led me to being casted out of my circle of friends impliedly.
It was the saddest bit of my college life. Apart from 3 theses that I have to finish for that semester, I ran out of the usual people I would rely on. But well, life flows regardless.
I was always the leader figure of every group I was previously in so I managed to form a new group out of people I am new to have with.
It was a great run overall. We had a great research project as a group and we were able to introduce new innovations to the usual power system thesis schemes done at our university.
Though it had been too uncomfortable to forge on due to the feeling of being left out and being alone, it was such a great experience.
It was then that I learned that we must always be ready to encounter changes.
Nothing is indeed constant.
Everything changes – be it for good or bad.
Also, I learned to willingly embrace tough times and circumstances as it is meant to bring out the best of us.
I understand that it can be scary at times to go out of our comfort zones but we should also account for the evolution we will undertake by sailing waters that are previously unknown to us.
Any topnotcher study tips or tricks that you think others should emulate from you?
Aside from every technical yet cliché advice there is (which includes study hard/smart, make your review sessions effective, etc.), I think the best tip I can give anyone who is trying to top the board exam is related to vision or the right mentality to have at the beginning.
I personally believe that before our actions are delivered, it was first influenced by our minds.
Having the right vision will guide our thinking which will in turn provide the directions for our actions.
As this advice speaks about visions, we can always apply this to every similar circumstance we will encounter in our lives whether it be work-related or not.
Having said this, I want every licensure-exam taker to always dream high. Aspire to top the board exam.
This goal will further intensify your preparation for it in return as you are anticipating to get a high rating.
If ever the preparations for topping it would be later proven lacking due to circumstances that we cannot control (e.g., unexpected board exam scopes showing up on actual, harder level of difficulty of questions than usual, etc.), you would be confident enough at the end to declare.
Even without immediate results, that you’ll be an Engineer within a few more working days.
It may be insufficient to attain what you previously aspired (topping it) but at the very least, it will be enough to make you an Engineer.
It’s one of the guiding principles I learned in my entire journey as a student.
Back on my grade-school days, I aspired to finish at the top of my class but I only finished as the class’ 5th Honorable Mention.
In high school, I aspired to attain the same but I only finished as the batch’s 1st Honorable Mention.
Lastly, in college, I finally attained that dream of finishing at the top of my batch but as usual, it lacked something.
I was unable to get that “Summa Cum Laude” title as I only graduated as our department’s very first “Magna Cum Laude.”
And I continued to use this stratagem until the boards.
Of course, as you have guessed already at this point, I aimed to get the Top 1 spot but failed to do so hahaha.
It’s all fine though as I was able to acquire April 2022 REE Licensure Examination’s 5th Top Place and April 2022 RME Licensure Examination’s 8th Top Place.
I am still able to bring glory to my university as it was the first time that PUP Maragondon Branch’s EE Department was able to produce a Magna Cum Laude and Double Licensure Exam Topnotcher at the same time.
As our department phrased it, history has been made.
What is the best engineering school advice that you can give to other students?
I think the best advice that I can give to any engineering / non-engineering student there is to enjoy studying and exploring things in their respective courses.
I want them to keep in mind that grade is only a puny measurement of all the skills that we have/we hone.
At first, I also admit that I was a very grade-conscious student. It was hard for me to pursue academic success without attaining a certain acceptable grade-range and comparing myself to everyone.
Though it became an integral part of my system, I was able to remove it as I eventually realized that this was the most ineffective way to pursue success.
I came to realize that academic success must be pursued by enjoying our studies with a little sprinkle of perseverance and obedience to our mentors.
It was so late, but it’s only in my 2nd year in college that I realized that I must first enjoy what I am doing in order to excel at it so much.
It was then that I stopped comparing my progress to everyone but myself – to the former self of a later time.
As I started to enjoy studying (knowing new things in my course of study), I started to excel at it far more than when I was only doing it to get higher grades.
I eventually got higher ratings without thinking of it as I started to study more effectively because I’ve found the best way to evaluate my success.
Maybe one instance of this is that I enjoyed studying Integral Calculus so much that I learned all integration techniques in one all-nighter.
It was just curiosity-fueling my already tired body then haha but I have to admit that it was such a happy memory.
In general, I think this is the best way to excel in almost everything there is. You should enjoy doing it first.
Excellence is sure to follow as you’ve been doing it repeatedly through enjoyment.
My Board Exam Experience
What were your greatest struggles while preparing for the board exam? What did you do to overcome them?
I think the greatest struggle I experience while preparing for the board exam is that I initially do not have the minimum budget I would need to review for it.
I needed to take up freelance design work in order to support my review expenses as reviewing for licensure exams requires a hefty amount of money.
I did design work while reviewing. It was a great experience though as I managed to create my own mini-firm (The Electrical Designer on FB) which caters design outsourcing of Electrical System Design and Electrical Design Analysis for Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Structures.
My network of people grew rapidly as I was able to work with various architects and engineers from different fields.
It was really challenging at first as I started as a no-one who neither knows anyone nor any prospective clients in this field of practice but it turned out great as until now, I was already known by various engineers and am regularly taking-up design works for their requirements.
Also, I think another obstacle I came across while preparing for the board exam is the COVID pandemic itself.
The ongoing COVID pandemic has been crippling the construction industry since 2020.
It affected my work very much up to the point that I experienced not getting design work for months so it had been really challenging to advertise and make my mini design firm known as the demand for design works plummets in number.
Another misfortune led to the continuous postponements of licensure examinations.
Without the COVID pandemic, I would’ve been an electrical engineer already after the September 2020 REE / RME Licensure Examinations. I was delayed by 2 years.
Did you enroll in a center for your review? Do you recommend doing so? Which one did you go to?
Yes. I recommend studying under a review center as they provide the complete scope of subjects that a potential taker should study to pass a certain examination.
Personally, Multivector Training and Review Center helped me so much by providing a complete list of subjects that I need to study and explore in order to top both of this year’s latest REE & RME licensure examinations.
How did you find the board exam? Easy, average, or difficult?
April 2022 REE / RME licensure examination is dubbed by its taker as the most challenging and I personally think that it is.
The REE licensure examination is divided into three groups of subjects namely:
- Mathematics (Math),
- Engineering Science and Allied Subjects (ESAS), and
- Electrical Engineering Subjects (EE).
Math is fairly easy.
I think on a difficulty scale of 1-to-10, it is at least 2 in difficulty.
ESAS is harder compared to Math.
As an avid fan of problem-solving questions, ESAS failed to give those types of questions and opted for a lot of objective terminology questions instead which made it harder.
I think on a difficulty scale of 1-to-10, it is at least 7 in difficulty.
EE is the hardest one of the 3. I think on a difficulty scale of 1-to-10, it is a solid 10 in difficulty.
This year’s EE is more abundant with terminology questions than problem-solving problems.
As all of us expected that the EE part would be more inclined to give more problem-solving questions, we prepared accordingly.
But the examiner did the opposite haha and inserted more “alien” terms that most of us are unfamiliar with.
The same can be said with the RME licensure examinations.
It can be said that the scopes for the two licensure examinations have advanced quite a large margin compared with the traditional scope of examinations.
Another factor that made the board examinations harder are the traditional “troubleshoots”.
This refers to incorrectly typed symbols and given values concerning mainly problem-solving problems. Imagine solving a problem but you’re given the wrong information. Quite hard no?
What were your expectations after you took the board exam and before the results were out? Did you have a feeling that you will be at the top?
Before I took the exam, I expected to be at least on the list of the board topnotchers or even bagging the top 1 spot.
After I finished the licensure examination, due to its unprecedented level of difficulty, I find it hard to believe that I’ll bag the 1st place – let alone be included on the list of topnotchers.
I even conceded defeat and relied on the confidence that at the least, I’m already an engineer after that last day of licensure examinations. At the least, I will not go home empty-handed, as they say.
What did you do the first minute you discovered you topped the board exam?
I was sleeping in the middle of the night when I was awakened by the news that I bagged the REE Board Exam’s Top 5 and RME Board Exam’s Top 8.
It was my little brother who saw it first on FB as his classmate posted a congratulatory note attached to a shared post containing the list of topnotchers.
I was deeply overjoyed for a couple of hours.
A ton of congratulatory notes came running my way.
I was recognized by various people. It was really indeed a fitting victorious moment though silent in nature haha as I wasn’t really an outspoken person.
I just smiled a little in relief as I came to realize that it was a victorious end and every effort I offered was not for naught.
Who do you owe your success to?
First of all, I am deeply grateful to God who has always been and will always be there to answer my heartfelt prayers and honest efforts.
He was the greatest factor there is because, without Him, this milestone wouldn’t be possible.
Also, I owe this success to my family who were always there at my highs and lows and have offered the support and encouragement I needed to keep going.
After all, they were the original reason why I continually give everything to my study and work.
I also feel deeply indebted to every educator I met along the way who imparted their specialty to my education.
The knowledge that helped me top both licensure examinations is the combination of all their wisdom and experiences coupled with my own aspiration to discover outside what they imparted.
I firmly believe that this achievement is a collective success. Everyone I came across along the way is a part of this great triumph.
What incentives did you get from your university and review center after your board exam success?
As of now, my university is yet to give an incentive. However, my achievement is profoundly acknowledged by them.
On the other hand, I received some cash incentives from the review center which helped me prepare for the licensure examinations (Multivector Review and Training Center).
Share your most effective study habits.
- Before I dive into studying my materials, I would first set a time table to which the duration of studying each subject will depend. The next step would be organizing my materials and handouts as well as my study table in order to create a great learning ambiance that would further enhance my productivity during actual review sessions.
- During review sessions, I would refrain from using my phone. I would instead opt to play classical background music. I usually study for an optimal duration of 8 hours a day. If I needed some more time, this would be extended to 12 hrs or even 16 hrs a day. I usually break this duration into 4 parts and put a small window for a nap in between in order to account for short breaks between study sessions.
- Exercising and eating nutritious foods have also become a part of my entire cycle during review periods. I usually exercise for about an hour every day to relieve stress and bodily aches and stiffness due to prolonged sitting.
- In order to be more productive, I always maintain 8-7 hours worth of sleep at night. If I can, I try to avoid staying up too late and starting early the next day as it gives a great boost in productivity.
- During weekends, I give myself a considerable length of time to unwind depending on the availability of my schedule in order to relieve the stress of commencing review sessions on a daily basis.
Give 5 important tips for future board exam takers who want to become topnotchers.
- Strengthen your understanding of the basic principles and analyses. Do not rely too much on your calculator. A firm grasp of the basics gives you an edge as it will help you solve problems with greater complexity than their roots.
- Try to study outside what you already know. Exploring the depths of the complexity of each subject will make you prepared for problems/questions with greater complexity. The edge of a topnotcher is that he/she can answer the hardest problems there are during licensure examinations.
- Study smart. As the further advanced study is necessary, too much of it will kill your chance. Consider studying the topics which will more likely show up as questions during the actual board exams.
- Repetition is the mother of all learning. Read your review notes at least once every day. Solve a lot of problems per subject until your mind gets tired of it. Repeat these two things every day for the duration of the entire review period. Repetition aids your learning such that it strengthens neural connections which will enable great mental dexterity and memory recall.
- Stick to your preparation. No matter how hard or how boring it gets, commit to doing it every day. Maintain stern discipline in carrying out scheduled tasks every day. You know you’re doing good when you’re getting sick of it because it means that you’ve been repeating it well. Consistency is actually sickening in nature.
Family & Love Life
Describe your family, parents, siblings (and children if applicable).
My mother is a cheerful person.
She’s 44 yrs old and is currently working as an office clerk.
On the other hand, my father is a chill type of person.
He is 42 years old and is currently working as a warehouseman.
My parents are both very hardworking and street-smart in nature as they have managed to raise us by working their shifts alongside numerous side hustles in order to support our family’s financial needs.
I have 2 younger brothers. The 2nd one is quite similar to me but he maintains a good circle of friends around him.
He too is so fashionable that I even get my fashion ideas from him haha.
The youngest of us is like my polar opposite. He is energetic and a very outgoing type of person.
He likes being outside most of the time and he hangs out most of the time with his friends.
It’s no wonder that we’re all achievers and excel well in our own respective fields (2nd born took accounting while the youngest took a course in tourism) as my family maintains strict attention on our education as my parents want us to get a degree and land a stable job in the future.
Did your parents encourage you to study engineering?
My father encouraged me to take up EE.
He is very enthusiastic about recommending it to me as he wants me to become the very first engineer in our family.
Also, I feel that my parents dreamt so much of me getting a degree as they had regrets about not finishing their own studies during their times due to financial constraints and lack of opportunity.
I can say that in a way, I made their dream come true with this success.
I dedicated all of my achievements to my parents who were always there supporting me at every step with everything that they have. They are the best.
Are you in a relationship? Or is it complicated?
Currently? No haha.
All of my past attempts at finding a future partner for life turned out not so well.
It’s fine though because just like every mistake I made during the days of my studies, it’s a learning experience that contributed so much to my personal development.
Every single one is a valuable experience that taught me well.
I’m keen on finding one though so up to now, I’m searching.
The Future
Describe engineering in one word.
Interesting
Why is engineering important in our society?
Engineering is important in our society in such a way that it makes use of the discoveries we had in scientific studies and makes use of it to brings innovation that will improve our way of life.
Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?
10 years from now, I see myself as a large-scale chief electrical system executive officer, an adept system programmer, and also a successful construction firm owner who mentors young engineers in my field of practice.
