PUP OPINION March 1, 2005

From the Editor:

Between “Taga-PUP lang po” and “Taga-PUP po!”

I’m on my senior year in our University. It will be just months before I graduate and be weaned from the nurturing of our academic community, and hopefully, find an employment, which for now, seems nebulous. Have it not that I come at helm of this wonderful web blog, I could have easily attributed this cynical view of the outside world to my lack of confidence due to the fact that I come from a state university—not UP, but the other one. From the Polytechnic University of the Philippines.

PUP is not my personal choice for college. But then again, I did not have a choice. It’s either PUP or no where. I choose the latter, of course, but it felt as if I was just choosing the lesser evil. Surely, I’m not alone in this way of thinking. It’s not surprising that alot of PUP student either keep mum when ask where they study, or shyly say, “ Sa PUP lang po…”

But the thing is I had discovered so many reasons to rejoice over being a PUPian. It’s not an uncommon experience to have people exclaim, “ Ang galing mo naman!” once they learn your from PUP. PUPians, Astig! But what bothers me is our obvious negative perception of our being Scholars of the Nation (Iskolar ng Bayan). We could not change the fact that we study in PUP but what we could change is how people from the outside perceive us to be. If we want people to see as an epitome of academic excellence, then we must believe that we could be—that we are—as an institution, an epitome of academic excellence.

As a certain Tophe commented in our site, “its not the school guys it’s about what you learn on the school so be proud coz pupians are astig as well as our prof…” The College of Accountancy is proof enough that PUP could produce competent intellectual products—there are myriad of testaments to the brilliance of PUPians. Notable personalities inhabits—or once, inhabited—this blessed spot that is PUP, and hallowed its ground. Wikipedia had a list, see for yourself! Astig talaga ang mga taga-PUP! So next time when you’re asked where do you study, declare to the rest of the world: ” I AM FROM PUP!” (I’m not exaggerating, you should really say it loud in capital letters)

But we can not convince other people that we are Astig! If we don’t believe our own statement. That is why we launched this web blog to inspire fellow PUPians to strive, by chronicling the successes of alumni, organizations and individuals in our academic community. Browse the articles, read them and be inspired!

Now, as I look back, studying in PUP or not studying at all is not a matter of choosing the lesser evil, but that of choosing to be better, or not at all. PUP gave me a choice with its low tuition fee, excellent professors, and students who brave the challenges that life threw at them, and won. Writing this, I’m thinking, maybe someday I will be one of those notable alumni you read about here, or one of the thousands of alumni whose own personal successes we could have never heard of, but I’m sure they are in a better place, far from the time they first entered our university. And hey! That could be just months away!