is an Ateneo education worth it?

just after several weeks after graduation, there have already been two articles bearing and discussing the same title as this blog entry. reading up on them as well as the replies that followed agreeing/dis- on each given point just made me think about it myself. is the ateneo education i received really worth it? for me to even attempt to answer the question, honestly, already has its biases. of course, towards the positive. that it is indeed worth it. after spending my first couple of months in the institution already made me love it. not simply for its people, the ones i've met and haven't, but also for its teachers, what they stand for and what the things they teach stand for.

we often hear from them and from other ateneans how ateneo students are taught to always strive for service and excellence. true enough, right from the very moment you step foot onto the grounds of the ateneo, you're already given the feeling that you have and want to do as good as you possibly can knowing that its a bulwark of the intelligentsias, the cream of the crop, partly the best and brightest youth of the country. that although you did not enter the school to compete with other people, you know that you have your own inner battle to fight. you know that it's not gonna be easy. you know its gonna bring out the beast in you (at least from the stories you've heard from upperclassmen and some graduates). and perhaps that's one of the first things you learn right away. the value of believing in yourself and the value of hard work.

if you're an ateneo graduate, you would have instant thoughts, good or bad, agreeable or not, the moment i say the words philosophy and theology. first philosophy. i have always loved the course not only for what it teaches but also for what it makes you do- think rationally and critically. it extracts brain juice up to its last drop. many of us dread the somehow unbearable and almost always incomprehensible readings given to us. having gone through four philosophy classes in my last two years in the ateneo has tremendously developed my way of thinking- the depth by which i look at things (with even more criticism) and the way i try to and do understand things. this might not apply to everyone, and im quite sure about that, but im quite sure though that i'm not the only one who's experienced philosophy this way. there are way more of us out there.

second, theology. i really never appreciated the subject until i took the last of it under one of the living legends of and in the ateneo. it was at that time when i started giving value to it and the three other theology classes i had. by the way, the last i had was the theology of the catholic social vision and the one before that was theology on social commitment. (pardon me if i got the titles wrong.) and the former was under bobby guev. those who have taken the class under him would understand what a blessing it had been to be part of that class. the way he taught things was with an abundance of passion. he never lacked it. and the different (and new) ways he taught us to understand and look at some of the biblical stories, the story of creation and the story of the prodigal son, wowed many of us. moreover, how he linked them to reality, the philippine context, made us appreciate the things he taught even more. and he's not even a jesuit priest. i know this is my experience and not everyone had the same opportunity as i did. point is, not so much the teacher one picks out of the many, but instead what each one of them teaches his students. i do not think any other institution gives as much value to what our philosophy and theology classes as ateneo does. i dont think any of them gives as much value to being of service to society as ateneo does. if any one does, well, i don't think they do it as good as the ateneo does.

now to answer the question, is an ateneo education worth it? i think so. for the reasons stated above. not only does it tell you the value of being of serivce to other people, but just as important, it teaches you how to think rationally and to look at things with more criticism. and that kind of thinking allows you to look at philippine society with the depth of criticism it much deserves and to develop action points towards resolving or at least reducing the problem. finally, maybe the best among all, or again maybe just as important, the ateneo education provides you with the self-confidence and persistence that would allow you to tell yourself, i can do it. and those are not just empty words.