Culture & Entertainment · Philippines Bureau
UST graduate tops Philippines physician licensure exam with stellar performance
Maxine Francesco Gwyneth Baculo, a 25-year-old University of Santo Tomas graduate, led over 4,000 medical professionals who passed October's Physician Licensure Examination. Baculo completed his medical education at UST with summa cum laude honors after pursuing the institution's LeapMed premedical program.
LSN Philippines ·
MANILA — Maxine Francesco Gwyneth Baculo has distinguished himself as a top performer in the October 2026 Physician Licensure Examination, with 4,165 examinees passing out of 4,447 total test-takers.
The 25-year-old University of Santo Tomas alumnus completed his medical education through a rigorous academic pathway, beginning with UST's LeapMed premedical program before advancing to the UST Faculty of Medicine and Surgery.
Baculo's academic trajectory culminated in his graduation summa cum laude from the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, marking consistent excellence throughout his medical training.
His performance underscores the quality of medical education at UST and reflects the broader success of the examination, which saw a passage rate exceeding 93 percent among the nearly 4,500 candidates who sat for the licensing exam.
Photo: The University of Santo Tomas Main Building on España Boulevard, Manila, December 2023. Patrickroque01 via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).