UPDATE: Angara wants to ‘designate’ PUP as ‘National Polytechnic University’

The campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines. (File photo)

Updated (This version corrects the earlier report which misstated that Senator Angara wants to rename the university to National Polytechnic University.)

Sen. Sonny Angara is seeking to “designate” Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) as National Polytechnic University.

In his Senate Bill No. 2037, Angara said the university should be strengthened as an educational institution in the country.

“It is high time that we strengthen the PUP and officially designate it as the ‘National Polytechnic University,’ which will cater to educating and developing the country’s future industry leaders,” Angara said in a statement on Wednesday.

Under the bill, Angara said the university would be equipped with tools in providing technical and professional instruction and training its students in applied arts and sciences.

“In doing so, the PUP will be able to propagate more widely the ideals for which its core values are based — social justice, peace, freedom, academic excellence, ethical and moral standards, cultural identity, and respect for diversity, civil society engagement, and passion for learning,” Angara said.

The PUP will also enjoy “fiscal and institutional autonomy” which allows them to “exclusively determine their research, plans, policies, programs and standards.” Their annual budget will be recommended to the President and the Congress.

The senator lauded the university for “performing well in the licensure exams such as engineering, architecture and information technology.”

He also noted the surveys conducted by Jobstreet.com which showed that PUP graduates are a top choice for employment.

“On top of this, the results of annual surveys conducted by Jobstreet.com show that employers in the Philippines consider graduates of PUP as their top choice for employment—underscoring that a PUP education is competitive and relevant to society’s needs,” he said.

PUP has more than 20 campuses nationwide and served more than 70,000 students.