Jamayka Rhose Pascual

55% out of 17, 996 passers are from public high schools in this year's University of the Philippines College Admission Test (UPCAT), UP President Angelo Jimenez announced in a media briefing on April 22.

Photo Courtesy of University of the Philippines/GMA Network.

During his speech, Jimenez emphasized the growing number of UPCAT passers from public schools, who now comprise 55% of incoming UP students, while 45% were from private schools.

Jimenez says, “These are significant figures comparing the results from three years ago, where only 44% came from public schools and 56% were from private schools.

Almost 13% of applicants received their admissions notice, including those who qualified for degree programs and those who are waitlisted. 

Compared to last year’s results, an increase of 6.74% of students passed.

31% came from non-science public schools, an increase in non-science public schools from last year’s 29.88%.

“Many of our students came from the province this year. For example, Davao de Oro typically has less than 10 qualifiers. After [simply] opening a testing center in Abuntaran, we now have 31 qualifiers. [That’s] more than a 100% increase,” he said.

Other UP campuses apart from the main campus in Diliman, such as Manila, Los Banos, and Iloilo, also had an increase in student pass rates, showing dispersed enrollments. 

“We doubled the first-generation scholars from 6.6% last year to 13% this year. They are the first in their families to step into college. We are starting people inch by inch on a journey to stop the cycle of poverty and underprivilegeness.”

Jimenez also discusses the opportunities for non-qualifiers to transfer to the university along with promoting UP Open University for students who cannot attend residential and classroom mode, and their offers for undergraduate, PhD, and master's programs.

Speakers during the media briefing also emphasized the help of their program, Lingkap Scholar, to students who live in remote areas and lack the financial capabilities to continue in UP. The same program allows UP alumni to help and sponsor as a way of giving back to the system.

The results for this year’s UPCAT were released on April 22.