Early in life, Norman already knew that his strength is really in numbers. It was this realization that eventually convinced him to pursue the actuarial profession and take advantage of the opportunities that came along the way to make things better for his family and, eventually, for him.
Norman earned his bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the Ateneo De Manila University. Although he was under full scholarship, he had to take part-time tutorial jobs to support himself financially. So he juggled school and work for practically four years. Prior to his graduation, Norman decided to take the first two preliminary exams in order to give him an edge in the actuarial field. He successfully passed both of them.
In 2008, Norman graduated from college and landed his first job at Manulife Philippines in the same year. He was just 20 years old at that time and could have spent the succeeding years enjoying his young life. Instead, he chose to build on his career and it was all for his family – to give them a more decent life and to secure the future of his two younger sisters. This is what sustained him when he kept on failing MFE (he failed four times in a row) and the same reason that drove him to finish it off, together with C, MLC and three VEE’s in a span of one year. He passed all of them in one seating. Prioritizing family and career over his personal life is a decision he had to constantly make from preliminaries to fellowship.
But whatever sacrifices Norman made in his actuarial journey eventually paid off, perhaps even more than what he expected and hoped for. He obtained three actuarial designations in a relatively short period of time – AASP in 2011, ASA in 2013 and CERA in 2016. His fast exam progression and prowess at work allowed him to rise in rank quickly. Over the course of 10 years of working at Manulife, he transitioned from Senior Actuarial Analyst to the Director and Head of Local Product Risk Management. His sisters successfully graduated from college and now both have steady jobs, enough for them to independently stand on their own. His mother, she’s happy and contented and proudly stares at her children’s achievements. All of these have become possible for Norman but not without him making huge sacrifices and keeping the right amount of discipline, resiliency and perseverance.
Norman became an actuarial fellow in 2017, exactly 10 years since he started taking exams in college. He’s 30 years old now and it’s funny that, today, what mostly worries him is what to do during his free time, having been very used to the hectic routine of a “professional exam taker” as he would call it. In trying to make the most of his time, Norman found himself doing the things that he had to put off in the past to focus on what’s most important during those times. Most of the time, he busies himself with his childhood first love – playing computer games. If not, he would meet with his high school barkada. For these people, Norman is still the same person they have always looked up to but who remained grounded amidst his achievements. Actually, Norman is remembered as one of the brightest students in his high school alma mater even up to this day and his high school teachers will testify to that. From time to time, he goes out with his officemates who have been there with him in the journey. At least once a week, Norman plays badminton and he is very determined to improve on this sport. But if there is something that he is very good at, it is in technology. Norman is a tech-enthusiast and that he can build a computer from scratch remains unknown to many. He said he would have been an IT person today, but he became an actuarial fellow instead. And whether that’s a good thing or not, for sure, he wouldn’t have it any another way.
UPDATE: Norman is now the Valuation Actuary at Allianz PNB Life Insurance Inc.
