By: Quennie Sereno and Patrick Jose
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Many of us went into law school because we are hungry for the challenge and want to be part of one of the noblest professions. For some, becoming a lawyer may even be considered the greatest achievement of their life. But becoming a lawyer may also be just a part of a law student’s aspirations. We hope to get you fired up in your law school journey, so we looked for law students who were already excelling at the other things that they loved before entering law school. For this article, we found four law students who have already made a name in their chosen field of expertise. So strap on your seat belts, read on, and be inspired by the true stories of our resident “game changers”.
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ARIJ ABUBACAR
Arij Abubacar is a sophomore in the school of law and a transferee from San Beda University College of Law. Before entering law school, Arij has been a race car enthusiast since childhood. She loves cars and her father supported her by allowing her to compete in car racing events, particularly in AutoCross which is a kind of off-road car racing.
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Her affinity for cars soon paved the way for a business idea – buying and selling cars. As of today, she has sold a substantial number of cars to many satisfied clients. According to Arij, the business not only brings in some cash, but also some enjoyment and satisfaction, not only for her, but for her clients as well.
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The business began when her father gifted her a Ford Ranger. This car was not the car that Arij wanted so she decided to furnish the car and sell it. She used the profit to buy another car, then by the same process, the buy-and- sell business took off.
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Arij says that what she loves in her business is the process of hunting for cars, repairing and fixing them as necessary, and then finding a buyer with matching needs and purchasing capabilities.
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Arij explains that not everything is about profit, because this business brings her more than just money. Because of this venture, she has learned to run a business by herself, negotiate with sellers and buyers, and even applied her legal knowledge, particularly in obligations and contracts.
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When it comes to setting priorities, Arij says that school takes precedence over business. “The secret to handling both business and law school is in setting a permanent study schedule. I dedicate portions of my day to reading only and attending class. If my client calls while I’m reading or in class, I either reject the call or answer and reschedule a meet-up. The drawback of rejecting a call is that I may lose that client forever.”
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Speaking like a true entrepreneur, Arij says she has found that, like in recitations and in business, you win some and lose some. “What matters is you continue fighting towards winning the war, not the daily battle.”
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What started as a hobby, turned to passion, and later into a rewarding part- time business. As an added benefit, her business continues to be an avenue for her to apply her knowledge in law to business and vice versa.
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When Arij began, she only had hopes of proving to her father that she can make something productive out of a hobby. But today, she gained her father’s approval and trust that whatever she puts her mind into she can
achieve.
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In the meantime, Arij is in a race against herself to stay on track, weaving through kilometers of cases and codals, to reach the finish line, that is, to get that coveted Juris Doctor, and then eventually pass the Bar. Race on Arij.
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PRECIOUS AERYK INOSA
Precious Aeryk Iñosa is currently taking third and fourth subjects as a law student and is the current President of SBCA – SOL’s Human Rights Center. Before entering law school, Precious was already working in the government as a museum worker, an educator, and a culture and arts advocate.
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Presently, she is the assistant curator at the Museo ng Muntinlupa, a modern community museum and a centerpiece project of the city government aimed at promoting and preserving the history and cultural heritage of Muntinlupa.
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Becoming a cultural worker and a public servant was all about timing and opportunity for Precious. Being a graduate of Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Arts Management and Cultural Heritage from the University of the
Philippines, and being among the few graduates in her field, when the city government of Muntinlupa announced that it was building a city museum, Precious was naturally in the position to apply for it.
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In essence, Precious’ work revolves around arts and cultural heritage preservation and promotion. Accordingly, she co-founded two NGOs, namely The Mindful Art Project and Kulturative – the former promotes mindfulness through art, while the latter is envisioned to empower grassroots through cultural heritage protection. Precious says that through her various organizations and advocacies, she is able to contribute to the development of her community and ultimately our country.
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Wanting to help more people, in addition to being a cultural worker, Precious decided to pursue law. Thus, not surprisingly, her biggest “why” in life is written in this bible verse: “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” Proverbs 31:8-9 (NIV). She holds dear to this mantra: “All from Him, All for Him.”
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If you ask Precious, there is no secret when it comes to achieving work-life balance. She says that as cliché as it sounds, it is all about effective time management. “I sometimes get surprised at how I am able to juggle all these. Pero tulad ng ibang bagay, sanayan lang.” To recharge, she reserves the weekends for her other interests and spending time with her family and significant other. Precious says that she can manage to do many things because she has found a system that works for her, and that you should also find a system that works for you.
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Precious is able to capitalize on her true potential by combining her passion for arts and culture, with public service as her impetus. Already contributing to change in her community even before finishing law school, we can undoubtedly say, Precious is an outstanding and admirable game changer.
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ELVIE AMISCOSA
Elvie Amiscosa is a 41-year-old, sophomore law student, and the president, co-owner, and co-founder of the company, PERA Consulting and Business Solution, Inc. She also works full time for overseas clients in an online setting as operation, project, social media and customer service manager forheir e-commerce, IT, or real estate businesses.
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The journey to becoming the president of PERA began as Ate Elvie worked in Singapore in sales, customer service, and marketing for three years. She was the Executive Assistant of the Business Development Manager of the Singaporean company she was working for. Her husband was also with her in Singapore, working as a programmer. When Ate Elvie’s husband got relocated to the Philippines, he went home and took their daughter with him. Ate Elvie got very homesick, so she started looking for jobs in the Philippines.
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During that time, Ate Elvie had a friend who taught her how to score clients overseas and build an online portfolio. Soon after, Ate Elvie got offered a job in an Australian company which provides translation services to clients around the world. Because her husband did not want their family to start from scratch in Australia, she proposed to her employer to just train her in Australia and allow her to work in a remote setting back at home since the job can be done online. The employer agreed, so Ate Elvie trained in Australia and worked for the company in a remote setting after.
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From there, Ate Elvie started to know how to score clients or companies who are involved in different fields such as e-commerce, IT, publication, education, and etc.
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As for how she met her co-founders in the company, the first one she met was the owner of IMA Philippines (also known as ABACUS learning center),where her daughter was enrolled in one of their branches. She met her second and third co-founders through The Rotary Club of which all of them are members.
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As a law student, while working full-time and raising a daughter, Ate Elvie acknowledges the monumental task at hand. But Ate Elvie has been in a similar situation. She says, “In college, I was a self-supporting working student and a university student grant scholar.” In those days, she got by, putting in her mind that the bigger the challenge, the bigger the opportunity for growth and so everything will be worth it in the end.
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One of the reasons Ate Elvie built the company is to help provide jobs to her fellow Filipinos. She says, “I was not born rich, but now that I have more, I want to share what excess we have with the less fortunate.” But, not being satisfied with just providing jobs, Ate Elvie now pursues law to become a lawyer to serve those who could not afford to have one.
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Truly, the unselfish aspirations, effort, and work ethic that Ate Elvie continues to display is nothing short of remarkable. Wouldn’t you all agree that emulating her is a great idea?
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ATHENA UY GADDI-GARCIA
Athena Uy Gaddi-Garcia wears many hats. She’s a wife, mother to two sons, businesswoman, public servant, law student, and follower of Christ. Being born in a Filipino-Chinese family, she is expected to either inherit the family business or start her own business. Athena chose to define her own path.
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Athena worked for Shell for seventeen years, rising up from the bottom of the ladder to being one of its global managers. “I wanted to be known by my own name, so when I was offered a job in Shell, one of the world’s largest energy (oil and gas) companies, I took it,” Athena recounted. There was a time that she would win a global award year on year. She was referred to as one of the most sought after female talents in a European and male dominated industry.
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Fast forward twenty years since starting at Shell, Athena decided it was time to move on to a different calling – raising her family, or spending more time with them at least. She left Shell to start her own fuels trading business, an industry where she was naturally groomed for. Now, she co-manages a reading school, and a construction and real estate business, among others.
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Seeing how Athena’s hands are full given the many roles she plays. Observing these three things work for her: First, knowing the difference between what’s urgent and important, and then doing that which gives the most value. Second, with only 24 hours in a day, making time even for just a few minutes to pray, bond with her kids, talk with her husband, listen to a loved one, and to study uninterrupted for at least 30 minutes or so, is mandatory. Third and lastly, having a strong support system both at home, at work, and in school, who understands the demands of studying law.
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Athena also shares that both in business and in law school you need to have resilience and perseverance. “Success in business and in law is not just about getting what you aimed for but how you used past failures to teach you how to approach future situations.”
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Athena is determined that she will not be known merely as the wife of Pichon Garcia, or the “anak ni ganito” (referring to her parent’s company name). She will be known as Athena, the woman with a humble heart; the woman who has a passion for raising the smallest unit of society; the woman who simply wishes to touch as many lives as she can; and of course, Athena, the inspiring game changer.
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AN INSPIRATION TO MANY
It is inspiring to see that these four law students have backgrounds and experiences that are diverse yet somewhat familiar. While they pursued their passions and law at the same time, in the process they learned that although the path they chose is not necessarily easy, coming back to your “why” will always push you to continue with what you started. Having had a glimpse of their stories, we hope that you were inspired to not only play the
game, but maybe even change it.