By Alex Lauricio

As we continue to navigate the ever changing tides of college, we find ourselves treading into deeper waters—particularly the kind where we drown in test papers and questionnaires. College Entrance Tests (CETs) are a staple in most colleges and universities in the Philippines, including Ateneo. Here are a couple of tips and tricks to guide you into being accepted to colleges inside and outside the country.

It’s that time of the year again. While the University of the Philippines’ admission tests are over, it is only one of the coined Big 4. The other three are set this year until the next—and the University of Santo Tomas has just recently opened its application portal for the students, with Ateneo soon following suit.

The Ateneo College Entrance Test (ACET) is the blue-colored equivalent of any CET in the Philippines, bringing its own set of challenges and questions. While it doesn’t feature a science portion unlike UP’s admission test, it sets itself apart from all the Big 4 CETs by having an essay portion. Apart from that, the ACET has a reputation for being very time-bound, with a lot of student applicants not being able to finish the test on time.

With Ateneo in mind, let’s explore the world of colleges and discover what it takes to get into some of the best universities and colleges in the Philippines and in the world.

A Bird’s Eye View

Ateneo, like most other colleges in the world and within the country, only needs you to submit your grades from Grade 11 down to Grade 8—though rarely, some colleges also ask as far back as your Grade 7 grades to be more thorough.

The academic requirements of college applications give these institutions a bird’s eye view of your performance throughout high school, seeing as report cards may provide a more analytical view of your journey.

While Grade 12 grades aren’t usually submitted in the application process, do not be quick to diminish their importance—lest you find yourself struggling to go to the college of your dreams due to your ineligibility to graduate.

Between you and your dream institution, the only thing you can do to inch closer to them is to prepare for CETs, as most colleges in the country and abroad have their own exams that they’ll administer.

Of course, be careful and remember to regularly check the admission websites for school-specific requirements. But besides grades, there is an entirely different world of ways to set yourself apart from other applicants.

Grades are just numbers.

While we spend most of our time in school achieving and excelling in the fields of academics, it is only but one component of the bigger picture—and while it does do a good job of introducing and anchoring your college application, there is an entire world of criterion that goes beyond academic metrics and looks for more of you.

Besides, the ACET features a segment that sets it apart from other college entrance exams—an essay portion. While your writing skill is something you will definitely carry over from high school, this part of the test is the least “academic” as it challenges you to think outside of the box. Grades will not  counteract a lack of extracurriculars, and this essay portion will prove that to you.

Stepping outside the country, an international trend appears if you venture towards applying abroad for colleges— as there is greater emphasis on one’s extracurricular activities. While grades offer an objective view of the individual, it is largely monotonous and shared between people, whereas how you spend your time outside school via your extracurriculars tells a lot about who you are and what you can offer to your desired institution.

To put this into perspective, imagine applying for Harvard. All 1,000 students are the cream of the crop of their schools—sparkling straight A-students with nary a blemish in their report cards. While grades are a common denominator between competitive students, once they get interviewed by school officials, they separate the great from the good by the stories they tell.

For instance, an applicant could have been a student leader that ushered their student government to an era of prosperity with their projects. The other applicant right beside you started initiatives that helped their neighborhood become safer. The one to your left has a decorated shelf filled with medallions and trophies from olympiads. We all come from different walks of life and have done so much to deserve getting into the most prestigious colleges in the world, and most of these great feats aren’t only done through academics.

Likewise, earnestly take your pen, and learn to write beyond the scope of academics and see what you can do outside of the school. Afterall, the secret to college is surprisingly not just limited to academics.

Pen in Hand,

Of course, localizing ourselves back to the Philippines, most colleges and universities offer a mandatory college entrance exam—though some of them are waivable by submitting your SAT scores. Once you submit your credentials, it’s time to see if you can pass their test. The golden entrances to these school campuses are gated by score thresholds and in some cases, percentile and quartile rankings.

So, breathe. It might help to have a few general tips that apply to most CETs inside and outside the country:

To cram or not to cram—that is the question. Contrasting studies and evidence shows that cramming may be beneficial in the short-term, but harmful in the long run. While a quick memory jog from flipping pages may help you retain some random facts, such as knowing that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, it promotes an unhealthy style of learning that does not help with long term retention.

A wise teacher once said— ’to fail to prepare is to prepare to fail,’ and none the wiser words can be said about college, and specifically, CETs. The scope of the items and problems to be tackled in the winding questionnaires is vast and arduous, ranging from elementary mathematics to economics to even advanced chemistry. You might even need to reason out historical facts from fourth grade, or recall a certain event from Animal Farm.

It is better late than never, and even if you find yourself lacking time to finish the pointers to review, every little bit of knowledge is necessary for you to succeed. Whether you get by self-reviewing, or have the privilege of entering review centers, any means of preparation can save you from the mental trauma of seeing 11th grade calculus on the test paper. 

Last but not the least—take care of yourself. Have a healthy dosage of sleep and coffee on the day of the exam, and make sure to eat a hearty meal. You’re up against giants of the academic world, head-to-head with some of the best in the country. So with pen in hand, make sure to make the most out of the prep time that was given to you. 

Let us remember that our journey towards higher education doesn’t necessarily entail treading deeper waters—it just means we have to build a bigger boat to surpass its set of challenges, and learn to anchor ourselves in preparation and motivation to conquer tomorrow. Whether you’re after finally posing yourself in front of the famous oblation statue, or soaring high in Ateneo, college is an entirely different world waiting for us.