Paolo Yap: Harvard bound

Only a handful of homegrown Filipino students make it to the most celebrated university in the world, and even fewer get there on a full scholarship. And when this does occur, it is a rare occasion that merits pride, hope, admiration, and certainly calls for a celebration.

Well, let the revelers come: Paolo John Aniceto Sy Yap, 19, has made it to Harvard this year.

Born and raised in Manila, to a mother from Northern Samar and a father from Capiz, this boy seems to have a sense of destiny about him, an uncanny maturity, depth and humility that grow more apparent as you hear him speak about life, himself, and his own personal history.

And what a personal history it is. As a fifth grader at Xavier School, he was informed by his aunt, an employee at the prestigious International School Manila, that he should apply for a scholarship at ISM. He was selected, and his tuition, one of the most prohibitive in the country, were waived for the next seven years until he graduated.

There Paolo flourished as an honor student, a student leader, and an award-winning public speaker; he represented his school and the country in various student conventions around Southeast Asia, China, Europe and the USA; he became fluent in German, Spanish and Mandarin, as well as proficient in Japanese, Russian, French, Dutch, Bahasa Indonesia and Hawaiian; and through all this still made time for badminton, bowling, chess and playing the piano.

At the end of his high school life he graduated salutatorian and had his pick of only the best colleges and universities, again for free: University of Pennsylvania, Yale, Brown, Amherst. But Harvard chose him, and he chose Harvard, where he shall study Government, Social Studies and Linguistics.

In his college application essay Paolo wrote about his climb up the Great Wall of China as a significant experience or achievement: "My body – was still begging me to stop, but another overwhelming feeling enveloped my entire body: the desire to reach the top – quitting became an impossible alternative – I felt an unmistakable lightness; I felt as if I had wings – from the top, life’s bigger picture stretches to the horizon – (and) the world we live in turns out to be a beautiful place."

This fall, Paolo will be at the top again, where, we are sure, the world will turn out to be a beautiful place, as he holds his own as a Bright Young Thing among the world’s brightest young things.

Tell us about your transition from local school to international school.

Oh, at first I really wanted to bomb the test so I wouldn’t have to move! I was already happy in Xavier, I had friends there, and I didn’t really feel like transferring.

But after I got in the most difficult part was speaking English all day long. We speak Tagalog or Taglish at home and at Xavier, so it took a while to get used to. It was hard work, but I had to do it in order to communicate.

When did you get the hang of it?

Quite soon after. After I got used to speaking English it got easier. The diversity of students in ISM helped a lot.

All my nervousness disappeared when I realized that I’m just like most of them. At ISM, everybody’s different, and it’s good to be different. We all try to get along, regardless of gender, religion, or race. It’s about adapting. That’s the only way things could work.

How about the academics?

I changed my favorite subject when I moved to IS. In Xavier we’re encouraged to do well in Math and Science, so Math was my favorite subject then. But at IS you really get the freedom to choose the subjects you like. Then it became Social Studies.

When did your love for learning all begin, you think?

When I was a kid I was given a set of World Book Encyclopedia, 1991 edition. I read it everyday, page after page. I think that was it.

What aspect of international education are you most proud of?

At ISM, academic work from ninth to 12th grade gets more difficult, but they also want you to be well-rounded. The system is such that it opens more opportunities for the student, compared to the usual exclusive private Catholic schools, where it’s more about conformity and uniformity. The IS system allows you to grow, with no set rules.

In such an environment, was it difficult to have basic values?

I got my basic values from my early years in Xavier and from my parents too. But that’s the risk of sending your kids to ISM. Giving kids more opportunities to grow and putting them in a multi-cultural environment means that there can’t really be strict moral rules. The student pretty much has to choose where he wants to go that early in life. But friends and teachers were there to guide me, and I’m thankful for that.

You were accepted at Ivy League schools, and you had the luxury of picking which one you wanted. What’s your secret?

I think it’s about taking a chance. Some don’t even want to try. You never really know what it takes to be accepted at these schools, since they take in thousands and thousands of applications each year. For example, Harvard accepted me, but Princeton didn’t. So you just have to give it a try.

What are your goals and ambitions?

My friends know that I want to be President of the Philippines one day! I like the idea of aiming high, higher than where you came from. But to be more realistic I’d really like to be a diplomat˜in international relations or foreign service.

I fully intend to come back home after graduation and apply what I’ve learned here.

What a blessed life you have. But was there any particular difficult experience you had to surmount which made you a better person eventually?

My parents separated when I was 12; I have no siblings. My mom raised me by herself. So I’m considered to be the product of a broken home.

The thing is, you can choose not to be the stereotype. It’s all up to you. It was a difficult experience, but it helped me focus, and made me elevate myself from my situation.

What books changed your life?

I love fiction; it brings me to another world. Among my favorites are Sophie’s World by Josttein Gaarder, Dubliners by James Joyce, and One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. For non-fiction I’m now reading Genius by Harold Bloom; it’s very inspiring.

With all you’ve achieved, you can be considered a role model for many young people. What would you like to share with your many admirers?

I really believe that the greatest thing that influences a person’s actions is his mind, his collective ideas, his mindset, his thoughts, his mentality. The world is just out there: move! If you think and feel that you can succeed, you will.

In addition to that, you must have honesty and integrity. Don’t forget where you came from.

No man is an island. You’ve got to give the world what you can, not just take from it.