I was born in the Philippines and lived there my entire life. When I got to high school, I decided to become a Pharmacist. This goal was reached at the age of 21 when I received my Bachelor's degree in Clinical Pharmacy. I then worked for 8 years as a pharmacist before I decided to come to the U.S.
     I came to the U.S. to become a licensed pharmacist here. When I first arrived I took the FPGEE (Foreign Pharmacy Graduate Equivalency Exam) and passed. I then returned to the Philippines until I had to return to take the TOEFL. This test is required for any international pharmacists who wished to get licensed to work in the U.S. After my third attempt to pass the TOEFL I decided to study english at UCR.

     When I finished studying at UCR I still needed to pass the TOEFL. At this point I decided to study at AEI. The director of the school, Sandra, was very accommodating and aside from my intensive courses, she offered me 1-on-1 TOEFL tutoring. I studied hard everyday working closely with Sandra, Carol, Sixta, and Brett. They each guided me academically and provided me with tactics for the test. The studying strategies along with meal suggestions, helped reduce my anxiety before the test. 

     In addition to the teachers at AEI, I would like to thank my wonderful classmates Skye, Nouf, Reem, and Harrison who helped motivate and encourage me.

     During my time at AEI my scores have improved greatly. The first time I took the TOEFL I recieved the following scores:

     15-Reading

     18-Listening

     23-Speaking

     22-Writing

During my most recent test I was able to achieve the scores necessary to pass the exam receiving:

     26-Reading

     25-Listening

     26-Speaking

     27-Writing

Thank you AEI teachers and students for helping me reach my goal!