MANILA, Philippines – For 23-year-old Arkim Baronia of Candelaria, Quezon, the road to success was neither straight nor smooth.
Yet it was precisely this winding path, woven with long nights, sacrifice, and unwavering faith, that led him to finish Top 3 in the 2025 Customs Broker Licensure Examination (CBLE), with an impressive 94.00% rating.
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| Photo courtesy: Facebook/Arkim Baronia |
A dream he once whispered in private had finally unfolded in the brightest way possible.
Based on his Facebook post, four years ago, Arkim made a life-altering decision: to become a working student so his parents would no longer shoulder his expenses. He knew the choice could cost him academic honors, but it gave birth to a deeper, bolder ambition; to someday become a national topnotcher.
From that point on, he fiercely protected this dream. For eight years, he balanced academic life with an array of jobs: freelance makeup artist, tutor, choreographer, pageant handler, and student assistant.
Many days began before dawn and ended past midnight; many journeys required three to four hours of travel between Quezon and Batangas, hauling a suitcase filled with tools he needed for work. His only rest, at times, came on bus rides. Yet he showed up in class smiling, hiding the exhaustion he carried.
What kept him going, he said in an interview with The Summit Express, was routine, discipline, and balance.
He avoided burnout by ensuring seven to eight hours of sleep and maintaining habits he built during the comprehensive exam season. More than anything, he anchored his journey in prayer. “I owe everything to God,” he said. “He saw all the tears and effort.”
Arkim extended gratitude to the teachers, friends, clients, and mentors who believed in him, especially when he struggled to believe in himself.
His advice to future examinees is simple but powerful: pray constantly, stay in a positive environment, master the fundamentals, assess your weaknesses, and enter the exam room calmly, knowing you’ve given your best.
Above all, he dedicates his triumph to his younger self: the boy who had every reason to quit but chose to keep going. “Proud of you. Laus Deo,” he said.
Congratulations, Arkim!
— Noel Ed Richards, The Summit Express