THOMASIAN Patrick Leonardo Co placed first in the July medical board exams after registering an 86.83 per cent average. Another Thomasian, Bernadine Chua, posted 85 per cent and placed second.
Aside from Co and Chua, other Thomasians made it to the Top 10. John Paul Gerard Rosales, with an 84 per cent average, placed seventh. Both Mark Sison and Nathaniel Chua clinched the eighth spot after registering 83.67 per cent.
But UST placed only fourth in the above-100 examinees category with a passing rate of 84 per cent, as only 271 of 322 Thomasians who took the exam passed. The national passing rate improved this year as 1,491, or about 55 per cent out of 2,696 examinees passed the exam.
The University of the Philippines Manila led the board passers, followed by Cebu Institute of Medicine and the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila.
Faculty of Medicine and Surgery Dean Rolando Lopez said that despite having several students in the Top 10, UST still has to improve its showing.
“I am happy with the results of the exam and for having several of our students in the Top 10,” Lopez said. “But I hope that next year, all the Top 10 slots will be occupied by Thomasians.
Meanwhile, UST also topped the Occupational Therapy (OT) and the Physical Therapy (PT) exams last August.
Both Kathleya Marie Aquino and Hero Yason placed first in the OT exams, registering an 83 per cent mark, while Diane Jean Padolina (82 per cent), Josette Juntilla Solis (79.8 per cent), and Cheryll Ann Tabao (79.6 per cent) landed second, third, and fourth places, respectively.
Out of UST’s 55 examinees, 54 passed, resulting in a 95 per cent passing rate, a slight improvement from UST’s passing rate of 92 per cent last February.
The University is also the best-performing school in the PT exam as it garnered a passing rate of 98 per cent—a big leap from its passing mark of 80 per cent last February.
PT exam topnotchers are Lauren Pacis (86.6 per cent, second), Paul Ryan Que-Sanchez (85.55 per cent, third), Christine Rose Sanchez (85.4 per cent, fourth), Martha Angela Montemar (84.75 per cent, fifth), Joanna Marie Chan (84.55 per cent, sixth), Eugene Vruce Fernando (83.85 per cent, eighth), and Genevieve Calvo (83.8 per cent, ninth).
“Our high passing rate in the board exam is just icing on the cake,” Anne Marie Aseron, Department of Physical Therapy chair, told the Varsitarian. “Our graduates’ performance is also recognized outside the country.”
Of the 1,419 students who took the PT and OT exams nationwide, only 577 passed or 40.67 per cent.
“We are planning to increase the number of our mock board exams so that our students will have a higher chance of passing,” said Joel Guerrero, Department of Occupation Therapy chair.
On the other hand, UST placed fourth over-all in the Architecture board exams in August. Its passing rate of 50 per cent in the category of schools with more than 20 examinees is a slight drop from Architecture’s showing of 52 per cent last January.
“Honestly, we can do better,” Architecture faculty secretary John Joseph Fernandez said.
Stephen Wu led the pack of new Thomasian architects as he posted 84 per cent and placed third, while Christian dela Pena (82.30 per cent), and Michael Caesar Chua (82 per cent) gained the top eighth and 10th positions, respectively.
Out of 1,105 examinees nationwide, 470 passed. Ivan Angelo De Lara and Leonard James D. Postrado
