Despite a compressed review period, Ateneo de Davao University (AdDU) 2025 Batch Salutatorian Philip Jayson Lestojas, now a part-time professor at the university, placed 5th nationwide with a 90.8% rating in the October 2025 Electronics Engineers Licensure Examination (ECELE).
With his decision to prioritize his graduation over the review, Lestojas had to make up for the time lost.
“I only had three months to prepare. I started late because I chose to finish my college graduation first before flying to Cebu to begin my review. I studied around 13 to 15 hours a day, including review classes, woke up between 5:00 and 6:00 in the morning, attended classes, and spent the rest of the day in personal study sessions.”
He stressed the core ethical imperative that his field must fulfill to advance worldly development and visible improvements.
“Electronics engineering is a broad field, but for me, the paramount ethical duty of an electronics engineer today is to innovate sustainable electronic solutions that address real-world problems.”
In light of recent controversies surrounding ghost and substandard projects, he gave a fair warning about the importance of ethical obligations in his field and the role that it plays in the lives of the people.
“For me, staying committed to ethics means remembering that engineering decisions have real consequences, and no deadline or budget constraint justifies compromising people’s safety… Many of the projects we handle, such as CCTV and fire alarm systems, directly affect public welfare; if these systems are substandard, they put lives in danger.”
As a newly licensed engineer, Lestojas viewed this feat as a call to higher standards in serving Filipinos.
“The paths we choose should never be detached from those we are meant to serve. Being a topnotcher is a gift, but more than that, it is a responsibility to uphold higher professional standards, to lead by example, and to ensure that people’s welfare remains at the heart of every decision we make.”
AdDU achieved a 75% passing rate for the nationwide ECELE last October 2025 with 9 out of 12 passers, and a 100% passing rate for the Electronics Technician Licensure Examination (ECTLE).