Recounting the Accounting Profession

I attended the joint Oathtaking ceremony of new CPAs, i.e., those who successfully passed the October 2012 Philippine CPA licensure examinations, last Tuesday held at the PICC. October 2012 successful examinees got the second highest passing rate in history. Over 4,000 new CPAs took their oath last Tuesday. Due to their size, there were two sessions - morning session was for passers with surnames starting from A-J while the afternoon session was for passers with surnames starting from K-Z. I attended the afternoon session which supposedly starts at 1pm. We were there before 1pm but we were stuck in the long queue to get in the Plenary hall. The girl inductees were all parading their heels but wanted to trade their stilettos for a pair of flip flops sooner than later. We were standing in the queue for a good 1 hour. Perhaps others stood longer. When the doors finally opened, the lines were disregarded which made parents a little frustrated. The distribution of certificates and PRC IDs took a long time as well because two queues were made separately. However, with all these troubles, the event remained to be a worthwhile experience and I'll tell you why...


Honorable Rufo Mendoza delivered the opening remarks. In his speech, he mentioned really compelling information. 9 out of 20 topnotchers came from provincial schools. He stressed that he was impressed with the quality of accounting education that universities and colleges are providing. Provincial schools are now very much at par with Metro Manila schools. Two provincial schools even received recognition for achieving 4th and 2nd highest passing marks in the October 2012 CPA licensure examinations. UP Diliman had the highest with 100% passing rate. The highest place that an examinee from a provincial school obtained is third. The topnotcher graduated from St. Louis University. Who says Philippine education is lagging behind?


Gerry Sanvictores was the master of ceremonies. If I had the chance, I would've approached him. He was the head of HR while I was working with one of the leading auditing firms in the country. Yes people, I am an accountant hehe. The SGV glee club sang the national anthem and "the prayer." They also provided two intermission numbers, one of which was "This is the moment." I thought it gave goosebumps to successful examinees because the song describes the great feat they achieved. I suddenly remembered the day I took my oath as a professional. Pride is bursting out of me. I had a terrible flu when I took the licensure examinations but with God's grace, he made a miracle and made me pass...

The oathtaking ceremony was very insightful. One of the topnotches (yes, a boy and a girl tied at number 1 spot both of whom are UST graduates) provided a speech on the morning session so I missed it but the PRC Commissioner kept on bragging about the topnotcher's speech to the extent that the commissioner (a man) cried. Apparently, the topnotcher went through a break up when he took the licensure examinations. The insight was "you can't have everything." You simply can't. Blessings don't come easy. There are pay offs. And besides, there must be a better girl who will come along... So what I heard was the speech delivered by the other topnotcher (a girl). She's a consistent achiever so her parents are already used to her receiving awards. She mentioned that seemingly her parents want more so she made it a challenge and strive to be #1. The insight was "children will stretch their limits to make their parents proud." Though we might have misgivings, we always wanted attention from our parents; we always want them to be proud and say "that's MY child!" I personally aimed for that while growing up and until now. I never wanted to prove anything to anybody BUT to my parents. My parents didn't get to see me took my oath but they are so proud. I am contented that my aunt who raised me and my brother were there, proud.

Like what the PRC commissioner mentioned in his speech, the milestone was as great a feat for the parents as it was for the successful examinees and I agree. The commissioner even emphasized (and this brought the audience to roar in laughter and applause) that the new CPAs should give their entire first paycheck to their parents. He even joked that parents could come to his office and file complaints for non compliance which then will result to revocation of their professional licenses. It was the best attempt at humor that night and the parents were all happy... Truly, it seemed like all the hardwork they did, from waking in wee hours to change the diapers to teaching the first word; from teaching them to ride the bicycle without balancer wheels to fetching them from school; from sacrificing new clothes to pay the tuition fees to having sleepless nights when they come home late from bogus group study, has finally paid off...

But is it really the end of the "olympics" or the torch has just been set on fire? I'd say the latter. Their journeys have just begun... It's up to them what they'll make out of it. They'll drive their paths. Ranking on the exams would be beneficial at the start but sooner than later, it will be a fair game for everyone. It's how you play the game... and thus I thought, "what have I done with my license?" Have I done something so great for my profession? Yes, I might not have a long career yet, but I guess it's high time to check where I'm at. I guess the best I did so far was to stay in my country despite opportunities abroad. I thought that if I'll work as a professional, I'll work in my own country. I am very lucky that the boom of the outsourcing industry in the Philippines testifies the confidence global companies have over the competence of Filipino professionals. I also have another dream, i.e., to teach. I wanted to work on this after I completed my MBA. If I can just influence one out of every hundred to stay here in the Philippines, I'll be happy. If we can elevate the accounting profession here in the Philippines, why not? I do hope that this blogpost lands on the hands of one of the successful examinees. But hey, it's just me and my idealism. Whatever it is that we make out of what we achieved is totally a matter of differing viewpoints and circumstances. All I know is that we are bound by the same profession. Some calls us nerds and number freaks. But dare I say, we are proud to be freaks who can make a difference, and we rock at it!