I'm thrilled to share that 3 weeks ago, I officially graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Information Systems from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. This achievement holds special significance for me as it represents years of dedication, growth, and relentless pursuit of knowledge.
A valuable lesson I've learned during my college years is the importance of patience, as the saying goes, "It's a journey, not a marathon."
While this sentiment might seem cliché, it became my guiding principle during the latter part of my college journey, particularly as I worked on my thesis. Although I had expected to graduate a year earlier, I faced a delay of over a year due to challenges with my thesis. By then, most of my batchmates had already graduated, and I found myself in a position where I was still working on my thesis.
During the first thesis defense, I neither passed nor failed. We were granted two academic terms to complete all necessary revisions before progressing to Thesis-2 (referred to as ISPROJ-2 in our curriculum), which covers chapters 4 and 5, along with the final thesis product—a website in our case.
Although the revisions could have been completed within one term, I found myself falling into a period of laziness. But more than just laziness, I intended to deliberately delay taking Thesis-2.
First, the delay gave me time to prepare for Thesis-2. With an end product requirement of a website at this stage, I could thoroughly explore, study, and select various tools that I could use for the end product, thereby avoiding last-minute experimentation during the actual Thesis-2 semester.
Secondly, due to my delay, the majority of my batchmates had already completed their Thesis-2 defenses. This allowed me to request their outputs, which served as a guide as I constructed my Thesis-2 output.
Additionally, I obtained a spreadsheet from over five groups detailing the feedback and revisions suggested by their panelists. This gave me a head start in understanding the changes panelists were seeking, giving me an initial idea of the questions they ask and areas they emphasize. As a result, I had the chance to work on my Thesis-2 output several months before the actual semester began, ensuring I had enough time to incorporate all the notes taken from other groups into my output.
This led to receiving good feedback from our panelists, which was music to my ears, considering how it turned into a heated discussion during the first thesis defense. As a result, the thesis was nominated for the “best capstone” award and eventually won it.
Now, as I step into this new chapter, I am excited to leverage the skills and insights gained during my college years. Heartfelt gratitude to my professors, peers, friends, and family, who have been my pillars of support. Here's to embracing the future with enthusiasm and the determination to make a positive impact! 🌟🚀
