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I am inexperienced. And when compared to others who have delved into all things media, I am much more inexperienced. However, with experience, comes more room for growth.
Experience comes with time. And experience really likes taking its sweet time getting to you.

Given the UP grading system, I would rate my qualities as a media writer as the following:

1. Curious/Inquisitive: 1.5
2. Intelligent : 3
3. Industrious : 2
4. Resourceful : 2
5. Persevering : 1.25
6. Imaginative : 2
7. Puts a premium on accuracy and truth: 1
8. Loves to read: 2.5
9. Interested in and loves people: 2.25
10. Service-oriented: 3

Given the same system again, my skills as a media writer would be:

1. Gathering data: 2
2. Validating and clarifying information: 2
3. Organizing information: 3
4. Writing clearly and effectively : 2
5. Proficiency in the operation of communication tools/devices: 2

Among my qualities, the one that needs the most work would be being service oriented. As a development communicator, being service oriented should be a given quality already. However, I haven’t been service-oriented ever since I was little. I didn’t enjoy doing things just for the sake of service to others.
Though I am changing this inhibition of mine. Little by little, I find myself enjoying the act of helping others. Maybe it is the culture of UP urging this change within me– after all, we offer ourselves for the betterment of the country.

And among my skills, I would put the skill of writing clearly and effectively as the one that needs polish. As a communication major, this is the foremost skill I should develop first. What’s the point if I cant get my ideas across clearly?
My most competent one would be my ability to gather data. Whenever I research, I often exhaust all possible leads I have in order to get the most amount of information– most often online. A Google rabbit hole is a real thing; an activity I often partake in, ever since I was young.

I hesitate giving myself a flat one. I believe this is a grade I can’t give myself yet, not until I learn and grow more. Surely I am not as competent as I think I am. Giving myself a flat one would be an overestimation of how I think of myself.
I know I can be better. And until I know I am better, I can’t have the courage to give myself a flat one just yet.

Learn more and more.

I hated every minute of training, but I said, ‘Don’t quit, suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion’.

Muhammad Ali

Six years ago, I bought a t- shirt from the Regional Schools Press Conference with this quote from Muhammad Ali. At first, I found it weird that they would quote a boxer in a press conference souvenir t-shirt. Of course, by “training”, he meant boxing, but then, it hit me—it applies to all kinds of passion. We may hate or be annoyed with the training or the process, but we know that it will soon bear a fruitful harvest of knowledge and skills for us.

To be an effective writer, we need to know what our flaws and strengths are. Here are my self- ratings for my qualities as a media writer:

1. Curious or inquisitive – 2
2. Intelligent – 3
3. Industrious – 2
4. Resourceful – 2
5. Persevering – 2
6. Imaginative – 1
7. Puts a premium on accuracy and truth – 2
8. Loves to read – 1
9. Interested in and loves people – 1
10. Service- oriented – 2

While I was rating myself, I stopped and thought about the ‘intelligent’ part. Yes, I am curious, resourceful, imaginative, service- oriented, I love reading and people, I put a premium on accuracy and truth, maybe industrious and persevering, but intelligent? I think not. I gave it a rating of 3, because from the moment I stepped on UP, it made me realize that I’m not really that smart. As what Anthony Lagdameo (JM De Guzman) said in That Thing Called Tadhana, “When I went to UP, everyone was unbelievably talented. Until then, I thought I had it. I was just skilled, not talented”

I do not even know if I am skilled enough. Now, I am starting to believe that maybe it is just luck that brought me to UP. I am also starting to be insecure. Maybe what keeps me from getting the 1.00 rating is that I am bad at time management, but I sure am working on it.

My self- ratings for my skills as a media writer are:

1. Gathering data – 2
2. Validating and clarifying information – 2
3. Organizing information – 2
4. Writing clearly and effectively – 2
5. Proficiency in the operation of communication tools/ devices – 3

As what my self- ratings imply, I am really not that skilled. I had equally rated almost all of the skills. Even though I do not have a highest competency, I am thankful of the skills I have that have been developed because of doing our research paper back in senior high school, and also because of the years of being a campus journalist. Although I already have some skills, I still have to practice more on operating communication tools and devices because I am not very exposed to it.

I always remind myself of the quote on my RSPC souvenir shirt that it is alright to suffer now, for I soon will be successful. The shirt has gotten holes now, but I still wear it, because like in life, we might have flaws, even when it comes to our passions, but we still wear them.  It just takes a little repair, and we are good to go.

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A girl named Uriel Ian “Uan” D. Coronel has parents who are both veterinarians and a sister who’s currently taking up BS Development Communication in UPLB. This girl is full of dreams. She won’t give up on her dreams unless her fate told her so. Being inspired by her parents’ stories, Uan had always dreamed of wearing that all-white uniform. When asked if she had already decided on what college she wanted, she told them with pride: “UP or nothing”. Uan had always seen herself on the near future as a veterinarian. A she grow older, her curiosity on things around her made her love science more which doesn’t make her less excited to become a veterinarian. It was a dream, and they say dreams do come true.

A girl named Uriel Ian “Uan” D. Coronel has always been praised for her “skills” in writing back when she was in Junior High School. Her essay about her experience on her previous school had been chosen for the editorial page of the school paper. Writing has never been a hobby or a passion for her. It’s just a task that her teachers ask her to do for assignments or projects. She never realized that writing is her safe haven, her outlet when she feels something she can’t tell anyone.

She was on her graduation practice that she knew she can’t pursue her long-time dream. The feeling of losing something very important, the feeling of losing a battle, the feeling of hopelessness like it’s the end of the line, she felt all that at the same time when she knew that she won’t be able to wear that all-white uniform. She felt like crying the whole day but she felt thirsty and it’s awfully hot that day. Thankfully, her mother is the best motivator. Her mother told her a story about a King who lost a finger during a hunt with his servant. The King lost a finger when his servant accidentally chopped off his finger defending him from a big black bear. Furious for having incomplete fingers, the King loathed the servant and told him to never show his face again. Losing a finger made him feel weak and embarrassed. Of course, in every story there’s a turning point wherein the main character realizes that life is finally worth living for. The King once again went for a hunt and unluckily for him, another disaster happened. He was abducted by a cannibal tribe but when they were about to eat him, they noticed that he is missing a finger. It turns out that eating a human with a missing body part is against their rules. The nine-fingered King thanked the servant for causing an accident which surprisingly saved his life. But the servant thanked the King too. He was thankful because if the King didn’t throw him out of the castle he would be on the hunt as well. He would’ve been abducted and eaten by the cannibals because unlike the King, he wasn’t missing any body part.

The King lost a finger, Uan lost a dream. But it doesn’t mean that life ends there. There are more opportunities out there that are way suitable for her. The King was thankful for losing a finger because it saved his life. Uan, on the other hand, was thankful to be given a chance to serve the nation as “Iskolar ng Bayan”. For her, it was still a dream come true. She realized that there are things that are not meant to happen because God has better plans for her. Losing a dream shouldn’t be the end because there are millions of dreams waiting to be chased.

“A dream is a wish your heart makes” –Cinderella

Some wishes are not meant to be granted no matter how hard and how long you begged for it. If it’s meant to be, it will be. My mother always tells me that if God closes a door, he opens a window. I am a big believer of God’s will and I believe that God knows where I’m meant to be. Writing this story about how I lose a dream and how I discovered a dream of mine I never knew existed, I realized that my teachers back in Junior High School saw that passion for writing deep inside me. I denied the fact that writing is my passion for so long because I was so engrossed to my veterinarian dream. For all those dreamers out there, learn to explore because you’ll never know what you might discover. Learn to see opportunities, remove those blinders because there’s the whole world waiting to be seen by a dreamer like you.

My friends ask me, “How’s life?” Well, I am happy and contented on where my life is right now. I am learning a lot from the excellent professors within my two weeks of stay here in UPLB. I am also learning to be independent and wise on making decisions for myself. I am having fun with my super classmates but at the same time I admire their passion for communication. I never thought I would enjoy being a Development Communication student, I feel like every activity is an adventure. Now that I experience a little bit from the world of Development Communication, I am thrilled to learn more. As of the moment, I am interested to be a sports writer because sports is very close to my heart as well. I am also willing to improve the confidence I have in public speaking, for standing behind the microphone sound interesting for me too.

So, how’s life? I am currently living the dream I never knew I have.

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PEN

A pen is a DevCom student’s best friend, well, any students’ best friend. Though digital note taking mediums already exist such as smartphones, tablets, laptops,etc., writing by hand is still an effective way in taking down important details. Experts say that writing by hand improves learning. Writing by hand helps to retain information on a more personal level. Writing by hand makes the information more recognizable to the one who wrote it. Some learn better by writing the word or sentence repeatedly with his or her own interpretation.

NOTEBOOK

What’s a pen without a piece of paper? A wand, drum stick, a makeshift knife for protection to stab animals or people in unfortunate situations. Just kidding. As a DevCom student writing, transcribing, taking down notes is a pretty regular thing. A notebook is must especially for writing important reminders, school notes, reviewers, and such. you can never go wrong with a trusty notebook. Forgot to download the slides the previous lesson? It’s a good thing you took down notes during the discussion. The notes in your notebook could be a life saver especially during times of pop quizzes and you need a quick review of your notes. For me, I usually have one notebook for taking down notes and as a planner. While others do have separate planners but that doesn’t matter as long as you take note all the important details to get you through that subject.

LAPTOP

Laptops are a must. From a luxury, it has become a necessity. A laptop contains almost your entire life in college; readings, articles, your THESIS. It gives you access to to emails, google classroom, SAIS, social media accounts, and others. Personally, I prefer using my laptop when accessing google classroom, sending files, doing research, doing homework and what not because I feel like my phone is too small and I can’t access everything at once. Make sure you take good care of your laptop because if you don’t bad things will happen. Just kidding. If you don’t want your articles, assignments, or thesis to be magically disappear, keep it clean outside and inside, and by the inside I mean the software.

PHONE

Phones are like Swiss army knives for students. It has become a very useful and agile tool. Don’t have access to your laptop? Use your phone. Don’t have an audio recorder? Use your phone. Don’t have a a camera? Use your phone. Your phone is beneficial for a DevCom student because it can help in the documentation for your article. This can be a back-up if you happen to not bring your pen and notebook during an interview or a class (Some professors don’t like phone so beware).

CREATIVITY

This tool is very different from the others but it is essential in being a DevCom student. As a DevCom student, we need to write a lot. We need to think of topics that can make or break our article. Think of topics outside the box at the same time inside it. As writers, we write to help. It is our job job to think of ways to innovate to promote development. Creativity does not only apply to the arts but also in life. Diskarte, is what will help you survive in DevCom and in college.

Living in this world for almost two decades and yet, still clueless about my future.

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Back in my lower years, I have never been this clueless about my future. I have pictured myself being in different professions — chef, soldier, and computer scientist. As I remember, I was in elementary when I wanted to become a chef even though I didn’t have any reason why I wanted to be in that profession. I was still in elementary when my mind has changed and decided to be a soldier in the future. There are two reasons behind this: one because I wanted to help people in need by serving our country and two because my sister told me so. My family was always very supportive of what I want and they never forced me to be someone I don’t want to be. I just said yes on being a soldier because the reason somehow suited what I wanted back then.

I was in high school when I have realized that being a soldier wasn’t even my interest. I loved using computers and had always wondered how things inside it are made. That’s when I have decided that I was going to pursue the course of Computer Science when I go to college. But when my senior high school years were almost meeting its end, I realized that the said course wasn’t the one that was in my heart. Development Communication was one of my choices when I took UPCAT. Unfortunately, I didn’t pass the test so I applied for reconsideration with DevCom being my first choice. And thankfully, the University of the Philippines offered me a slot for this course.

As ironic as it may sound, I love seeing books but I don’t really like reading that much. Books are just pleasing to my eyes. I do read, but only if the book does interest me, but if it does not, I wouldn’t read it unless I have to. And now, I hate myself for not making reading as one of my hobbies for it is very important to a student taking Development Communication.

I do love writing when I don’t have to think about deadlines; when I just have to write things for myself. When I was in eighth grade, I was a blogger in WordPress. I did love posting things that were happening in my everyday life and my opinions about different issues. But I deleted my blog for a reason that I thought my life wasn’t worth sharing yet. And after that, I never wrote any more.

Living in this world is never easy. I am just one of those people who still can’t figure out what they want to be in the future. Those who are still unaware of the skills in them that have to be enhanced. It’s hard to find your place in this world when you, yourself isn’t sure what you’re capable of. But of course, one thing is for sure; I’m open to new learnings and experiences despite of being naive. I want to hone my writing skills and whatever skills I have by also helping people in need. I love the feeling when I see people smile because I have done something for them. I hope that after years of taking Development Communication at the University of the Philippines Los Baños, I would be a girl that has finally found my place in this world.

Clueless, no more. Indeed.

I am fascinated by the fact that I started writing this entry exactly one month from the first day I’ve started my college journey. This past month was filled with a combination of excitement and fun, stress and cramming, homesickness, and lots of learnings.

Excitement and Fun. With the astonishing environment and culture in UPLB, I was filled with excitement to know and explore the things UPLB has to offer the moment I set foot inside the campus. A month is not enough to know everything but in all of my little expeditions inside and outside the campus, I had immeasurable fun with my friends. In the past month, I was also able to meet a lot of people and make new friends. Friends that I could always count on. Friends that put a smile on my face whenever I’m with them.

Anxiety. Not knowing of what to expect and what to do in my classes, I wake up everyday feeling anxious of what might happen. Will my index card be picked by my professor for recitation? Will I be able to answer his/her question? Will there be a quiz/activity/exercise? I always have these sorts of questions every single day in the past month. At first, it was horrendous but, then, later on I get used to it. I realized that maybe my anxiety was due to the fact that I’m unfamiliar with my environment and I’m still in the process of adjusting as a college student.

Stress and Cramming. I could describe my first two weeks in college as “chill lang.” Most professors were just giving orientations and introduction about their courses during these weeks. No formal lessons yet, just a few requirements such as index cards and ID photos. Come the third and fourth week, the requirements all piled up and due day after another or worse at the same day. And because I’m not a fan of late submissions, also, I view it as a crime I never want to commit, I strive real hard to finish my requirements and pass it before the deadline even if I was just minutes away from it. Few minutes away from 11:59 when most of the requirements were due.

Homesickness. Living away from home and my family makes me want to go home and just commute everyday but I know I will be killing myself if I do that because it’s so time consuming and tiring as well. So, what I do is go home during the weekend, unless I have lots of requirements or I have something to do. I also call them every now and then just to hear their voice and to check on them. The dorm where I stay just makes my homesickness worse. I feel isolated. It was so quiet that all I hear was just the opening and closing of doors from other rooms. When I looked at the window, a view of the sky and rambutan trees is what I see. It gives a melancholic feel in addition to my homesickness.

Learnings. Having the privilege to study in one of the most prestigious university in the Philippines means having a world-class quality education. In the first month of being an iska, everyday I felt that I’m the most stupid inside the room. My classmates were actively participating in the class discussion while I was still trying to understand the lesson. They could easily get high scores or even perfect the quizzes and feel like it was no big deal while I was already celebrating when I guessed the answer to one item correctly. Because, I always bear in mind what one of my professors always say, “the lowest scorer gets to learn the most.” The low scores I get pushes me to study more and work harder because I don’t want to keep having low scores. I don’t want to stay at the bottom. I don’t want to remain stupid. In this way, true enough I’ve got to learn more. Learnings that aren’t limited inside the four corners of the classroom. Outside, I learned by seeing and hearing the anger of students protesting and fighting against the social issues and injustices in our country.

In just a month, I’ve met new friends, felt anxious, got stressed and crammed, experienced homesickness, and learned a lot of things. Surviving a month in UPLB physically and mentally healthy is already an achievement to me. I view it as a great start for the more months to come of being an iskolar ng bayan.

One month has already passed of data gathering activities, essay-making activities, position paper-making activities, interviews, quizzes, etc. Within the four weeks, I acquired some learnings or insights that I would like to share.

• Always come prepared

Always be one step ahead. In the context of devcom, I learned to never conduct an exercise outside campus without a letter especially when you are to gather information. Most organizations will normally ask for a letter as proof of your purpose and identity. Regardless, always present a letter.

Having a planner – or in my case, a dotted notebook, wherein I drew a calendar – helps keep you organized and prepared for the workload in the weeks to come.

Most definitely, bring an umbrella. The weather is unpredictable. You wouldn’t want to get sick.

Note: Use the template with the heading of the College of Development Communication and as much as possible, do let the professor in charge sign the letter.

• Extend your niche

It’s nice to form a support system in college especially knowing how tiresome and draining it can be. So as much as possible, extend your niche. Talk to people in your block, talk to your seatmate, attend school activities, put yourself out there and socialize. You just might meet people you can group study with, people you can eat with, people you can have discussions with, people you can relax with, and people you can share the college experience with.

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• Have confidence in yourself

One can easily fail an exam despite studying if he/she lacks self-confidence. I experienced that firsthand on a quiz. That experience made me remember how important self-confidence is, knowing how it can easily be dominated by self-doubt, considering that we’re in UP – one of the most prestigious universities in the country.

Reminder: It’s okay to fail. What matters is how you get back up!

When in doubt, always remember the end goal: Sablay.

Padayon iska’t isko!

• Balance health and acads

If possible, avoid compromising your health just to meet deadlines. It’s not a sin to give yourself a break. College indeed can be loaded with school works. However, all the skills, lessons, experiences you’ve acquired would all go to waste if you get sick in the long run. So try to balance out health and acads.

“Ang grades nababawi, pero ang tulog scientifically hindi.”

Nur Lemuel, Batch 2015

• Know your go-to places

Schedules can go from jam-packed to commodious. Look for places you can stay at to do your homework, to study or even to sleep. A recommendation would have to be the Reading Room and Media Room of CDC. Main Library is another recommendation. Also, discover where to eat that fits your budget, where to relax, where to buy school supplies, and where to print materials needed for a course.

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