Manila, Sept. 4 -- She had always dreamed of becoming a flight attendant to see various countries and be immersed in different cultures.

However, a totally different field landed her on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) stage, despite withdrawing from college.

Hannah Krystelle Caintic enrolled in a Tourism course last year, but had to stop after one semester because of financial struggles.

New path

Inspired by the works of her uncle, who is a video editor, the 20-year-old Hannah decided to enroll in a free graphic design course at the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), which ran for several days.

Seeing her potential, TESDA entered Hannah into the Philippine National Skills Competition held...