At 81, former math teacher takes civil engineering board exam without a calculator

ASM, Philippine Canadian Inquirer
October 04, 2026

Photo courtesy: Inhinyerong Sibil

CAGAYAN DE ORO, Philippines – At 81 years old, Flaviano Jr. Verad Abragan walked into the September 2026 Civil Engineers Licensure Examination carrying something most examinees did not: decades of experience – and no calculator.

Abragan, who is set to turn 82 on December 24, took the two-day board exam in Cagayan de Oro on Sept. 26 and 27. Engineering publication Inhinyerong Sibil reported that he completed the examination without using a calculator, relying instead on manual computation, foundational mathematics and his own problem-solving skills. 

His story stood out in an examination dominated by much younger graduates and professionals preparing to enter the engineering field.

Abragan is a 1989 graduate of Liceo de Cagayan University and has also been identified in local coverage as a former high school mathematics teacher. 

The choice to take the board exam more than three decades after finishing college added another dimension to his attempt. Rather than returning simply to an academic setting, Abragan faced the same national licensure examination administered to thousands of civil engineering graduates across the country.

The Professional Regulation Commission said 17,062 examinees took the September CELE in 19 testing centers nationwide. Of that number, 6,337 passed, for a national passing rate of about 37.14 percent. The results were released on October 2, five working days after the exam. 

Abragan’s participation drew attention online because of both his age and the unusual decision to sit for a computation-heavy engineering exam without the aid of a calculator.

What makes the story notable is not that the standards were different for him – they were not. He took the same licensure examination under the same professional requirements as other candidates.

It is also important to separate his participation from the outcome. The reports highlighting Abragan focused on his decision to take the examination, but the sources reviewed do not establish that he was among the successful examinees announced by the PRC.

For that reason, his story is best understood as one of persistence rather than a licensing victory.

At 81, Abragan returned to an examination room decades after earning his engineering degree and tested himself against one of the profession’s national qualifying exams – a reminder that professional goals do not always follow a conventional timeline.