MANILA, Philippines – “Like father, like daughter.”
After years of disappointment, deferred dreams, and quiet perseverance, Ferdinand Narciso finally earned the title he had long pursued—this time, alongside his daughter.
In the 2025 Bar Examinations, the 57-year-old Department of Education (DepEd) official passed the bar on his fifth attempt, sharing the milestone with Mary Joyce Narciso, who also joined the roster of new lawyers.
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| Photo courtesy: DZRH/Mary Joyce and Ferdinand Narciso |
The achievement carried added weight. Ferdinand’s journey toward the bar began two decades earlier, marked by repeated attempts, financial strain, and moments when he believed the dream had slipped beyond reach.
According to DZRH’s interview, Ferdinand is a public servant and former teacher. He works as a Project Development Officer 4 at the DepEd Regional Office 2. He pursued law to strengthen his advocacy for workers’ and community rights, attending night classes after work and reviewing while managing family responsibilities. After failing several times between 2005 and 2009, he stepped away, convinced it was time to let go.
Her daughter Mary Joyce, meanwhile, did not initially envision herself in law. She earned a degree in chemistry and began her professional career, careful not to inherit what she saw as her father’s unfinished dream.
It was only years later, after exposure to social issues, corruption cases, and violence against legal professionals, that she reconsidered.
Law, she realized, offered a platform for service, something she had seen her father practice long before he became a lawyer.
Their paths converged again in 2025. While reviewing in different cities, father and daughter supported each other from afar, later studying under one roof in the final weeks before the exams.
When the results were announced, Joyce searched for her father’s name first. Seeing it on the list, she wept, relief and joy eclipsing even her own success.
Today, Ferdinand remains with DepEd, committed to giving voice to colleagues and communities, while keeping open the possibility of legal practice in their province.
Joyce, now working in private practice, is focused on learning, advocacy, and service.
Their shared victory is not simply about passing the bar. It is a story of patience rewarded, of dreams delayed but not denied, and of purpose passed from one generation to the next. Congratulations!
— Noel Ed Richards, The Summit Express