VIA GRAPHIC PLUS — In accounting, a balance that cannot be settled in one period moves to the next, and it stays on the books until someone closes it. Robert C. Toledano Jr. grew up with a balance like that.
His mother dreamed of becoming a certified public accountant, but financial hardship kept her from taking the board exam. “As a kid, it became my personal goal to fulfill what my mother desired for herself before,” he said.
On November 3, that balance cleared.
Robert, an SM Scholar from the Class of 2025 and a magna cum laude graduate of the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R), placed eighth in the October 2026 Licensure for Certified Public Accountants with a rating of 90.50 percent. Only 3,988 of 10,746 examinees passed, and he was the lone graduate of a Cebu school in the Top 10.
The financial barrier that once halted his mother’s ambitions loomed large when Robert was choosing a college path during the height of the pandemic. Encouraged by high school mentors, he applied for the SM College Scholarship Program which he regarded was the decision that changed everything.
“If I had never been chosen as an SM Scholar, I would have hesitated to pursue college altogether,” he shared. Knowing he had a dedicated foundation backing him financially, academically, and emotionally provided the stability and motivation he needed to excel.
With the SM Foundation as his primary financial support, Robert’s struggles moved to the classroom. Accountancy was a field he had never explored, and it often felt counterintuitive. Help came from older SM Scholars at USJ-R, who had walked the same road and made a habit of guiding those behind them.
“SM scholars from my university had a heart for supporting one another,” he said. Their guidance sustained him through board review, while SM Foundation gatherings reinforced that his goal was within reach.
The news reached him while at work. When the call came, he initially assumed he had simply passed and offered a humble “thank you.” Upon hearing that he was actually one of the topnotchers, he was overwhelmed with emotion. “All prayers and all hopes came together, and all I can say is thank you, Lord,” he recalled.
Robert had planned to share the news with his family in person, but word had reached home ahead of him. When he arrived, his mother welcomed him with tears of joy and pride.
Robert hopes to explore public practice, commerce and industry, and the academe, helping local businesses and teaching future accountants. One day, he wants to build a business that creates jobs in his community.
He now joins the network of scholar-graduates whom the SM Foundation has proudly supported, adding to the count of successful professionals across the country.
To students facing obstacles of their own, his advice points back to the people who helped them along the way. “Be grateful in a way that those who helped you will be proud of what you have become,” he said.
What his mother could not finish, he completed. What his mentors and community gave him, he now prepares to pass on. And the balance, as it always does in accounting and in life, carries forward into a brighter future.
Started in 1927, the Philippines Graphic is the longest-running printed magazine of national circulation that provides relevant news and features and promotes Philippine literature.
