2017 Bar Topnotcher Mark John Simondo from Bacolod City said he devotes most of his time studying to obtain the top spot in the bar exam.
BAR TOPNOTCHER – 2017 Bar Topnotcher Mark John Simondo said he studied 8 to 9 hours a day in preparation for the bar exams.
On April 26, thousands of law hopefuls around the country anticipated both online and in front of the Supreme Court for the most awaited results of the bar examinations.
In a previous report, it was stated that Mark John Simondo, a graduate from the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod capped 1,724 bar passers as he came out as the topnotcher in the 2017 Bar exams, garnering an average grade of 91.05 percent.
According to a report in ABS-CBN, the freshly-minted lawyer revealed in an interview with DZMM that he began preparing for the bar exams since his first year in law school, absorbing his dean’s advice.
“Starting first year I really hoped and really aimed to get into the top 10 that’s why I really studied hard,” he said.
Simondo further said that he shed sweat and tears and had allotted 8 to 9 hours of studying and reading cases. During ‘ber’ months, however, he extended his studying time by doing it for a maximum 12 hours.
During his college years, Simondo has proven his academic capabilities as he graduated as magna cum laude. However, despite his achievements, the topnotcher admitted that he is still in disbelief that he outdid thousands of aspiring lawyers in the bar exams.
According to Simondo, he just found out about the results when his friends sent him congratulatory text messages and screenshots of the list of the topnotchers.
In a separate interview, he said that he actually cried tears of joy since never in his wildest dreams did he expect the outcome.
Based on the report, Simondo said that prior to the announcement of the bar passers, he calculated his possible score based on his standards and estimated to obtain a score of at least 74 to 83 percent.
With his success, he expressed his utmost gratitude to those who took part and supported him throughout his whole journey.
“Ma, pa thank you so much for the support and to my special someone thank you so much. I would not have passed the bar without you. And above all thank you God,” he said.
When asked why he wanted to become a lawyer, Simondo revealed that he decided to took law so he could rationalize his reason of staying in the country as his parents wanted him to work abroad.
