by Arbie Aurelio, PIChE JSLUC Pipeline Member
ChEckmate, the ChE Official Quiz Bee Team of Saint Louis University (SLU) won 5th place in the annual Asian Pacific Confederation of Chemical Engineers (APCChe) National Quiz bowl held in SMX Convention Center, MOA Complex, Pasay City last 4 September 2023.
Among 14 participating universities from the country, ChEckmate outscored 9 other universities. The team was led by Mark Angel P. Permato (4th year), as the team captain, Daryl Jayrick Valdez (4th Year) as assistant captain, along with two members, Ivan Arnobit (3rd year) and Aldrin Madriaga (2nd year), accompanied by their coach, Engr. Jonalyn A. Kimpay.
The contest consisted of two rounds. The team ranked 3rd in the first round and was 5th in the second round, affecting the final standing to land in the top 5.
In terms of the team’s strategies, according to him, the first thing they did was review the coverage of the competition guidelines. The topics were divided according to their strengths, then they did a simulation with their coach to assess the topics they needed and how they could answer the questions quickly.
“I can say that our strength is that we can assess on what topics we need to review and master. Another strength that we have is our capabilities in terms of calculator techniques,” said Permato.
Madriaga also stated that he felt the pressure considering it was his first time participating in a national level competition, but he still did his best to answer the questions correctly. “I don’t know what to expect from other universities especially since I have no idea of the extent to which they have prepared for such an event,” he added.
