⌛ Silliman University

I personally believe in federalism, and that development should be spread out the whole country, not just in Manila. In Nursing, UP tops all the other schools in terms of percentage because they only have a little more or less 100 examinees, while Silliman lately has more than 300. When Silliman has that number it always has 100 percent passing percentage in the board exam, in addition to having several topnotchers. Silliman and UP were always neck to neck in the top. Sometimes Silliman is in the top, sometimes it was UP. The increasing number of examinees and enrollees is affecting the percentage rate. Nevertheless, Silliman still tops the schools with more than 300 examinees, followed by UST.

Lately Silliman has been topping UP in the field of research. Although maybe overall UP may be still on top, but I would like to see the day that in fields of education we will be offering programs on the same level, if not better, with what they are offering in the metro. I like to see this country not merely as a Manila-centered imperialist country, but rather as an archipelago where the opportunities and developments are evenly spread out.

And the fact that recent researches show that it is better to study in areas where there is less urban congestion is a good starting point. Good development and governance should be shown here in order to mitigate the bad effects of not so good governance and bad planning done in the past. And I believe we have the responsibility to change the mindset of the Filipinos that everything best is in Manila and surrounding areas.

 

I think in the field of nursing you could still trust Silliman, in Marine Sciences too. Accountancy and Business is also good. Its accountancy program is the first center of development in this field in the country. Its medicine program is showing promise with the 100 percent passing percentage of its pioneer batch.

Silliman also produced good journalism and mass communication graduates such as Domini Torrevillas and other top men and women in the field of journalism in the country and even abroad. Its mass communication program is the first outside Metro Manila. Its literature program produced the first writers workshop in Asia. It has been known because of the Tiempos. Its public governance program under the tutelage of former national treasurer Leonor Briones is also good.

In the end, I believe it is up to the student to make good use of what he/she has, and the teachers are only there to guide.

 

Silliman has recently been featured at CNN:

Peace Sign

 

Mr. or Ms. Echir (sorry, not sure of the gender). Thank you for your threads. As a foreigner I would like to offer support of Silliman in other areas as well. I have been working closely with an attorney, engineers, and a banker who are all proud Silliman alumni, and I am so impressed with their intelligence, knowledge and capabilities. If my wife goes back to school, she will enroll at Silliman.

 

Hi,

The students make all the difference!

UP is state funded and does not depend on tuition fees to survive, that's why they can have very stringent admission requirements.

Once you are in,competition is very steep a good number do not survive the freshman years, about 50% transfer to other universities.More flunk along the years and leave or are kicked out.

Only the smartest and a few lucky ones survive.

 

I started college at UP but finished it here in Silliman. Same with a batchmate who started in UP Rural High, started college in UP and finished it here in Silliman. We were both employed in one of the research institutes inside UP campus. He's still there, enjoying a high position, while I opted to pursue my own employment. I qualified for a masters degree program again at UP, but didn't get in. Maybe I'll pursue another degree instead of that degree which I qualified.

I am quite fairly satisfied with what we have at Silliman. You can have the smartest and the not so intelligent here. But when they take the board exams most of them pass. Quality of instruction is quite high.

Unlike in UP where you really have to strive hard and try to outdo other students.

As I said, it is what the student makes of the intelligence that he/she gained from college, not the college itself, that really matters.

 

I believe the point to be made in the Philippines is some kids are more fortunate than others, and some were raised in families with money who could afford to send them to better college prep high schools in the city. Kids raised in rural provinces may not, in some areas, have had the same level of high school and college prep training, I have seen that first hand. It doesn't matter which university is best, what matters if a student is lucky enough to get into any university they need to try and be the best they can be. In the U.S. not every student can go to a Harvard or a Yale and not every student in England can go to Oxford or Cambridge and here not everyone can go to UP or Ateneo or Silliman. The second key is for the graduate to then get a good job upon graduation, and there are not that many good jobs in the Philipines. In my former job in the Manila area my admin assistant (secretary) was an electrical engineer grad from a good university who could not find an engineering job in metro Manila but joined our company hoping to work his way into a high tech position.
Nursing is a great career and jobs are in demand domestically and internationally, but the country needs to improve the economy to take advantage of the intelligent college grads in other degrees as well to help build this country.
My point is, it is good to be proud of your alma mater but there are broader issues to focus on. There are many bright college grads in the country, many without jobs in their expertise. Taking a job in a call center may be a stable income but hopefully some smart people will your resources and create new opportunties like outsourcing engineering services like CAD-CAM design services or whatever. This input will hopefully be perceived as positive.

 

Very positive PatO from my pt of view as well. Thanks for stating these things succinctly. The chance to get into a university in the Philippines by any student for that matter is most important. And for those fortunate ones who get working student status in S.U., U.P. or other uni; these situations too are good future launchers. What matters really is how the student utilizes every learning resource accessible to him/her. We have a very respected figure in Dumaguete who was a working student in his college years--Dr. Sojor

 

Hello Echir! What was your course in Silliman U?