Philippine Bar exams musings redux

“Out of the hottest fire comes the strongest steel.” – Chinese proverb

On Dec. 5, the results for the 2023 Philippine Bar Examinations came out. As usual, newsfeeds were filled with photos of Bar takers crying tears of joy or sadness upon learning of the results. Like many lawyers, I often remember my own struggles in law school and taking the Bar exams when the results come out every year. As such, I often find myself indulging in random and oblique musings during this time of the year.

Out of a total of 10,387 law graduates who took the exam, 3,812 or 36.77 percent passed this year’s edition of the Bar exams. A University of Santo Tomas (UST) graduate topped the Bar but Ateneo De Manila graduates had the highest percentage of Bar passers with 94.08 percent of their takers passing the exams. It is often said that the Philippine Bar Exam is one of the hardest Bar exams in the world to pass with an average passing rate of 20 to 30 percent. For comparison, other developed countries have higher bar exam passing rate of up to 60 percent.

Bar exam results get attention because of the stories of the people who take it. Bar takers undergo four years of stress as law students, months to study for the Bar and then three weeks of hell during the Bar month. At the end of it all, each Bar taker will have suffered much to achieve his or her dream, including many illnesses caused by stress. The eve and morning of the results day are often filled with tension for them. In my day, we often had to wait in front of the Supreme Court for the results to come out. Today, even with instant information given by social media platforms, the stress-filled wait is still the same.

As always, I look for familiar names of relatives who took the Bar. I am delighted that I have a niece who passed. I am also extremely proud that a good number of my former students from the Ateneo School of Management are now my fellow lawyers. I was deeply touched by a former student who thanked me through a message.

I also always notice the human interest stories of certain Bar passers. Among the Bar passers is one who is detained in Cebu City. He learned that he passed the Bar while behind bars. There is also the story of a medical doctor and registered nurse who also passed the Bar. With the recent issue of a doctor who was sued by a lawyer, this new breed of doctor lawyer might come in handy for some beleaguered doctors. Then there is this 62-year-old Bar passer from North Eastern College in Isabela who will serve as an inspiration to many senior citizens that it is never too late to pursue your dreams.

The 2023 Bar Examinations, according to many, were also special as efforts were made to make it more inclusive and accessible to all examinees. The Bar Exams were regionalized and digitalized. Having 14 testing centers nationwide gave greater access to Bar takers from the province who otherwise would have had difficulties if the tests were done in Manila alone. Efforts were also made to allow those with certain disabilities to take the Bar exams. A visually impaired Bar taker was allowed to take the exam using a court-issued laptop equipped with a non-visual desktop access technology.

Even with these changes in the way the Bar Exams were administered, the nature of the Bar Exams is still the same. It is a weaning process fraught with difficulties and hardships for all Bar takers rich or poor. This is why the tales of Bar passers overcoming odds still make good stories. Perhaps, this mode of making exams very difficult with provisions for disabilities and financial disadvantages can be applied in general to our education system. Fire is still a good way to forge good steel.

This is my oblique observation. 

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in the foregoing article are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions and beliefs of the Philippine News Agency (PNA) or any other office under the Presidential Communications Office.