MY PHILNITS EXPERIENCE

The long and short of it is that I passed the PHILNITS exam! I couldn’t believe it at first but seeing my name in their website surely convinced me. ^_^ Although passing the exam is indeed an important part, the road I took getting there is equally important. I would also take this chance to promote PHILNITS and to help create an awareness among the students.

PHILNITS? What’s that? That is my reaction when I first heard the word. I have been studying Information Technology for three years and never did I encounter that word. Thanks to Rendel, USEP’s first passer, I became aware of what PHILNITS is and what it offers. So, for those who have no idea of what PHILNITS is, here is a brief description of what it is and what it offers.

The PhilNITS certification exams are used to evaluate the knowledge and skills of an IT engineer on the fundamentals of IT. It requires the person to have the ability to develop a good program by making full use of techniques related to basic-level algorithm and data structure. The PhilNITS certification exams also require the person to be able to successfully carry out jobs such as system designing, program development, unit tests, and system integration tests.

PhilNITS has played a great role in the development of globally competitive Filipino IT engineers. First officially administered in 2002, it has produced a total of 712 certified individuals, has grown to be one of the largest scale national IT examinations in the Philippines. Japan officially recognizes the certificate for processing of an engineer’s visa. And through the Japan IT Engineers Examination Center (JITEC), mutual recognition of the examination amongst several ASEAN countries brings about cross-border utilization of IT human resources and stimulates business alliances across the region.

Here are just some of the many opportunities PhilNITS can bring your way…
• Priority in availing of training scholarships (locally or in Japan) like AOTS, CICC, JETRO, etc.
• Preferential treatment in job applications (especially to Japanese companies) both here and abroad
• Gold medal award given to students during graduation

There, I hope that helps you. I hope that you will decide to take the exam and to also pass it. Going back to my story, after hearing about it, I decided to take the exam. The only hitch is that I did not have the necessary funds for the review and for the exam. I prayed to God that somehow I would be able to realize my goal. The Lord graciously answered my prayers through a sponsoring company, Data Horizon. I was very elated when sir Jappeht Fortich informed me that I was one of the students that they chose to take the review. At first, a rumor circulated that only four students will be sponsored by the company. But in the end all those who submitted their applications were approved. ^_^

For two month, from March to April, I attended the review classes that were being conducted by sir Aloysius “Loy” Torres, also a PHILNITS passer. All through that time, I was only absent once. I had to attend my PE 2 practicum class that was being held at the same time as the review so I had to excuse myself then. On April 26, I took the exam and after at least three weeks of waiting, sir Loy texted me to congratulate me for passing the exam. ^_^

For those who believe and think that I had it easy, well, you are wrong. The review period could never be considered as “smooth sailing” at all. There were many times that almost all day I was just studying at home. I also had to sacrifice things that were important to me. One of the things that I had to let go was the possibility of attending the 50th Anniversary of our church, Caloocan Bible Church, back in NCR. Even if this event only comes once in a lifetime I chose to remain here in Davao so I could review for the upcoming exam. During the holy week, I also had to forgo attending our church camp which would be held at EDEN because I had to review. What I’m trying to say is that you must take the review seriously and that you must want to pass the exam badly. You must be willing to sacrifice things that are important to you just to be properly prepared for the exam. Basing on the results, I think my decisions at that time were the right ones.

I think I’ve said the important parts of this segment in my life but before I end, I will give my thanks to where it is due. First and foremost, I thank the Lord for helping me throughout this experience. I give Him back all the glory and honor for without Him I would not be here at all. Secondly, to my parents , for supporting me in the decisions that I make and for being there for me always, to Data Horizon, for their generosity in sharing what they have in order to realize other’s dreams and aspirations. To sir Loy for patiently teaching us the smart way to pass the exam and also for helping me finish this article, and the last but not the least to the Institute of Computing of the University Of Southeastern Philippines (USEP) for equipping their students with the right tools in order to achieve their goals. Without you this achievement would never be possible.

SAD: Assignment 5

This is an activity diagram for the enrollment system of the University of Southeastern Philippines.

SAD: Assignment 4

The first thing that the actor, student, does in order to enroll himself is to pay the necessary fees such as the Local Council Fee, Headlight, and the OCSC fees. After getting the receipts from the three organizations the actor (student) then proceeds to the adviser (actor) in able to consult with him on what subjects he could enroll for the current semester. The student (actor) needs to show the three receipts and his grades from the previous semester. He then proceeds to the encoder (actor) so he could enlist the subjects that are available for him in the current semester. After encoding, the student proceeds to the university cashier to pay his tuition fee. After securing the Official receipt he validates his enrollment with the university registrar. the last step in the enrollment process is to validate his library ID with the university librarian. The student is then officially enrolled.

SAD: Assignment 3

If I would gather data based on my personality type I would say I would go for document review and observation. This is because I am not much of a people person. I believe I work best when I am alone though I could get along well in a group too. Long minutes or hours of thinking are involved in both document review and observations, unlike interviewing where you need to think fast. This is the type of gathering technique that fits best my personality. But these two techniques alone are not enough to gather the necessary data. Interviewing would always come into the picture. Even though information can be gathered through the documents you would always have to confirm the data you have gathered with a person who is knowledgeable in such matters, hence you still have to do an interview to double check what you have gathered.

SAD: Assignment 2

If I apply the System Development Life Cycle to achieving my goals in life then I would definitely use an adaptive approach, in fact I'm actually using one right now. Life could not be predicted fully. Unwanted circumstances would crop up now and again. We should be able to adjust and incorporate these circumstances into our plan of achieving our goals. I discussed about the spiral approach in my report, this is actually the model that I've been using. I also believe that every student is using a spiral approach in planning their lives. The first iteration of course is passing college, followed by finding a job, then doing well in it, then success in our chosen career follows. This concerns our chosen career paths only. Other plans may be born as we go on with our lives.
As for the steps (SDLC) needed to achieve my goals, here they are:
PLANNING
Everything starts with a plan. It would be difficult if we just go with the flow, so to speak. As for attaining my under-graduate degree, I also have a plan for achieving it. This plan involves, discipline, hard work, cooperation, understanding, honesty, and fun.
ACTION/IMPLEMENT
The next step after planning is implementation of the plan. Whenever an unwanted circumstances happen, this is incorporated and the plan is adjusted hence it is an adaptive approach. Probably additional effort and discipline would be needed so the unwanted circumstance would not be a hindrance to the achievement of the plan.
EVALUATION
As the plan for achieving my goals progresses, continuous evaluation of my methods are done so as to update the way I am handling things. If improvement is needed then it is implemented to the working plan, hence it is a spiral approach
Continuous planning, implementing and evaluating are done until the goal is achieved. In this way my methods in achieving my goals would continue to improve.

Baking: Brownies

This month i dabbled again into the art of baking. hehehehe. I tried to bake brownies. This is actually the first time that i every tried doing it. Usually, i only bake cookies and leave the rest to my mother but enable to expand my knowledge of the craft, i needed to try new recipes so i decided to try this month.

It took me three tries to create the intended outcome. The first try was almost perfect, it was creamy and soft in the inside and the top was crisp as though it had frosting on top. You could taste the creaminess of the brownies itself, this is due to the butter that was used (magnolia gold). But that batch of brownies left an after taste after biting into it. This was because the flour used was old. I suggest that if ever you are going to bake something that you should use fresh ingredients at all times.

The second batch was a lot worse. I burned it. hehehe. I followed the exact procedures i used in the first batch but i poured the batter into a larger container making the brownies thinner. The result was that i burned that batch. I learned that it is not enough to follow exact instructions. One needs to continuously check what is being baked so as not to burn what is being made. ^_^

The third batch was exactly what i wanted to produce. yummy! hehehe. I continuously checked the oven to make sure that i would not burn it and i succeede. I was able to make two pans.

To those who are interested in baking, here is the recipe for the brownies that i made have fun….

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup sifted flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cocoa

Procedure:

1. cream together butter, sugar, and eggs till creamy
2. sift in flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa
3. mix well
3. spread in baking pan. (an 8x8x2 pan is better? bake for at 20-25 mins in a 300 degress oven
4. DO NOT OVER BAKE. ^_^

hint: the creamier the butter used the more delicious the outcome is...if baked properly. ^_^