He has been to the beautiful islands of  North America, chilled in Mexican Riviera, and basked under the Caribbean sun, but 29-year old Mechanical Technology graduate Jerson Sanchez confesses that home is the still where heart belongs.

It’s almost a year now since Jerson embarked on the biggest luxury cruise ship called the Diamond Princess as a member of the maintenance team and things have been smooth-sailing. “I decided to go abroad because I felt there was a need to raise the income for my family. I had to finance the studies of my two younger siblings,” said he.

Prior to this, Jerson worked at Makoto Metal as a technician for five years where he maintained a good working relationship with his Japanese employer. He became a mold technician and later on promoted to being a line leader. The job was rewarding he noted. “It was purely mechanical and I was molded morally. I also gained confidence speaking to people since I always work Mr. Yamaguchi (Makoto’s general manager).”

Now that the sails have directed him to other challenges, Jerson believes that one should not lose goodwill with his previous employer.

Working in a foreign country puts his values to the test, he said. “You need to listen to your conscience and have self-control. It’s a good thing that I got it from CITE. There are many temptations on board. That all depends on you.”

His financially rewarding job may have changed his lifestyle and put better food on his table, but he still longs to stay home for good and watch his three kids grow in the future. “I want to put up my own business and do something for myself. An engineering course perhaps,” he ended.