UP to become more accessible to poor, talented students

ILOILO CITY — The University of the Philippines (UP) is pushing for measures that will help make the state university more accessible to poor students who have the talent to meet its exacting academic standards.

UP president Alfredo Pascual said UP should continue to admit students from all sectors and regions to adhere to its mandate as the country’s national university.

“Admission to UP is very competitive and not all (students) enroll because of financial constraints or preference for other schools,” Pascual told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Pascual said the present composition of students in the UP system has been evenly split between those coming from relatively affluent and those from low income families.

The UP system has around 52,000 students with the bulk in its campus in Diliman, Quezon City. Yearly, around 70,000 graduating high school students take the UP College Admission Test (UPCAT) but only from 10,000 to 12,000 are admitted.

Pascual earlier assured support for incoming UP freshman Nikki Estrada who graduated a valedictorian at the Calasiao Comprehensive National High School in Pangasinan province but did not have the resources to enroll in the university.

Her high school teachers has started a fund drive to help her enroll in UP because her family is financially constrained. Her mother, a government employee, is suffering from renal failure and her father is an electrician with no permanent income.

A Philippine Daily Inquirer report of her predicament caught the attention of the UP administration, which offered her support available for students.

Pascual said the university would want easier and more access to the university for students like Estrada.

He said the university has asked the assistance of congressmen to identify top graduating students of public high schools in their districts and assist them in preparing for the UPCAT and enrolling in UP.

UP alumni can also help in the training and review classes for UPCAT examinees especially for students coming from public schools and remote areas. Bridge programs will also be offered to incoming freshmen to help them adjust to their stay in the university.

Pascual said the university could not increase the number of students it could accept because of budgetary constraints.

He said UP would need around P17 billion yearly “to bring the university into a respectable status as a national university.” But only around P7 billion was approved by the government.

The huge slash in the university budget will hinder the implementation of some programs including the rehabilitation of laboratories, modernization of infrastructure and increasing the student admission.

He said the high cost of subsidizing UP students has made it more imperative for graduates to serve their country.

In a speech at the 32nd commencement exercises of the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV) held at the Iloilo City campus on April 26, Pascual challenged 515 graduates to “serve as an agent of change” in their chosen fields because their education was funded by by the people.

“You are expected to effect changes that, with other UP graduates, will contribute to the achievement of a better life for our country and people. In short, you are expected to be of service to the nation,” Pascual said.

He reminded graduates that they should offer their knowledge, skills and resources for the greater good. The graduates are also expected “to serve in far-flung and needy communities, to speak up for those with no voices, often without monetary compensation or formal recognition,” according to Pascual.

Pascual who became UP’s 20th president in February, cited as models of heroism the university alumni, World War II resistance leader Wenceslao Vinzon, assassinated opposition figure Benigno “Ninoy” Aquino Jr. and slain New People’s Army (NPA) leader Melito Glor.

But Pascual pointed out that heroism could come in many forms. “Heroism, of course, need not always involve the ultimate sacrifice. You can be a living hero as well,” he said.