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Arianne Paralisan began her journey with InvestEd in August 2019 while she was reviewing and preparing for the 2019 Bar Examinations.
A Cebu City local and a quintessential homegrown Cebuana, Arianne found herself looking for financing options in August 2019 as she mobilized a plan to temporarily leave her comfort zone in Cebu and live in Manila for 2 months to mentally, emotionally and physically prepare for the highly competitive Bar examinations and pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer.
“I almost quit law school”
“Going into 2nd year in law school, I almost quit because I felt obligated to work and support my family.”, Arianne admits.
At that time, Arianne’s younger sister was set to enter college; and her mother, a government employee at the provincial office, was making ends meet while sending two daughters to university.
As the eldest daughter, Arianne understood what was expected of her. She was working as an HR officer at a local hotel while studying law. During that time, however, Arianne was ready to quit on her dream and work full-time to help her mom with their family expenses and ensure that her sister is able to go to college.
However, blessings come in mysterious ways for Arianne and her family. Unexpectedly, her ninang (godmother) who was also a lawyer and believed in Arianne’s dream, offered to completely finance Arianne’s education for the remainder of her years in law school.
Arianne took that moment in her life as a sign and motivation to pursue her goal of becoming a lawyer. With a new found strength in knowing that there were people who believed she can make it, she poured her time and talent to be the best student she can be and paved the way to become the lawyer she is today. “Every semester thereafter, every subject, every major exam, no matter how difficult and draining, became less of a burden and more of a blessing”, Arianne fondly remembers.
The Exam of a Lifetime
After the short-lived victory of graduating from law school, Arianne found herself in another crossroads as she prepared for the biggest challenge of her entire journey in becoming a lawyer — the Bar exams.
In the Philippines, Bar exams can only be taken in Metro Manila, which is why it is customary for law graduates from provinces to come to the city every year, during bar season (September — November), to acclimate themselves in the area and find their way through the 4-week long exams in the bustling city jungle.
Arianne was mulling over her financing options as she and her batch-mates roll a plan to live in Manila for two months during the Bar season. Since funds were limited and living in Manila would be more expensive, Arianne tirelessly searched for alternative ways to fund her living expenses and support her Bar review studies. Luckily, through the help of family friends, Arianne was able to find InvestEd and apply for a student loan. She thought that a student loan was perfect for her situation as she wanted to do her own part in funding her education and unburden her family of further financing her dream of being a lawyer.
"Mama is a government employee–yung pay niya is not much and I believe she has exhausted her means to support us. ‘Yung mga relatives namin, feeling ko sobra sobra na ang tulong. I didn’t want to bother anyone anymore kasi alam ko
na hindi rin naman maluwag ang financial situation nila. I really wanted to find another way to support myself kahit man lang sa living expenses ko in Manila during the review.", Arianne shared
After going through the InvestEd loan application process and after receiving her disbursement, Arianne was able to fund her move to Manila and focus on what matters most — studying and preparing for the exam of a lifetime.
A Grateful Attitude
“I can’t really express how I feel right now but as I Iook back, if there’s one thing na nanginigbabaw — it’s gratitude.”, says Arianne.
Arianne never had a negative disposition on the high-stress and high-pressure environment of law school and law practice. She always had a grateful outlook on every experience in school and work because she felt extremely blessed to be there, given everything she had gone through and fought for to become a lawyer.
Currently, Arianne is working with the Judiciary and plans on pursuing a career in the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO). Arianne admits that it has always been her dream to become a corporate lawyer. However, after having worked for months in the judiciary, she had a complete change of heart and has found her true calling in social lawyering as she experienced handling cases where she met different types of people who most needed legal aid but could not afford private lawyers. If the situation permits, she hopes to be a judge or a prosecutor some day.
We asked Arianne what tips she has for students especially during this time of crisis, she shares:
"Especially in this time of health crisis, even if the situation makes it hard to be grateful, still choose to be grateful. Still, there are many things and numerous people to be thankful for. It is only when you have this sense of gratitude that you feel contented and carry on. This is what got me through law school and the Bar exams. This feeling of gratitude has calmed my senses that I get to sleep soundly every night and wake up motivated each morning. This, on top of people who never ceased to support and believe in me and pray for me.”
Arianne further shares how InvestEd has impacted her life and tells her fellow Investees to never stop pursuing their dreams:
"…I say thanks to the InvestEd Team for helping not only me, but also the many Investees who are given a chance to pursue their goals. This initiative and advocacy is truly commendable and I look forward to taking part therein. To the Investees, do it for yourself and for the people who believe you can make it big. I say you will. Make them proud.”
InvestEd is the only student loan company in the Philippines that provides financial assistance and a student success program that helps student borrowers achieve success in their chosen careers. InvestEd believes that every student has the potential to succeed which is its primary reason for believing that “No dream is out of reach”. InvestEd knows the struggles of students everywhere and offers affordable and accessible education support loans to help young people succeed.
Be a part of InvestEd’s social mission and help many more students like Arianne Paralisan turn their dreams into a reality!
Visit https://invested.ph/investing#why-invested to learn more about how you can invest in the education of young Filipinos through the award-winning InvestEd student loan program. For inquiries, please feel free to reach us at [email protected].