Faye Jennifer Secuya Cabrera, the Cebuana from Lahug who placed third in the recent dentistry licensure examination, comes from a family of dentists.
Her father, mother and eldest brother are also dentists.
The 30-year-old Cabrera finished the December 2014 examination with an average rating of 83.67 percent which was good enough to land her third overall nationwide.
The results were released by the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) last Thursday.
“A friend called and told me that I am one of the top examinees. It did not sink in immediately. All I wanted was to make sure that my name was included in the list of board passers,” Cabrera said.
Cabrera graduated with honors from Southwestern University (SWU) in March last year. She reviewed at home as she had to also care for her nine-year-old son, Matt Dominic.
“Sometimes, my examinations and my son’s examinations would fall on the same week. So there was a time that I had to enroll him in tutorial class in his school just to help me with his homework. I thank my parents for helping me,” Cabrera said.
Cabrera finished her elementary and secondary education at Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepcion.
While her parents and sibling were dentists, she initially deviated from their path and took up nursing at the University of the Visayas.
After earning her degree, she became a volunteer nurse at the Miller Hospital.
“I decided to take up dentistry because I wanted to have more opportunities, work and earn money,” she said.
The youngest of three siblings, Cabrera advised board examinees to focus on their studies.
“Don’t cave in to pressure and pray to God, trusting that everything will be fine,” she said.