VOLUME XCIV / NO. 6 · FEBRUARY 14, 2023 · THE OFFICIAL STUDENT PUBLICATION OF THE UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS · Manila, Philippines
► V TO 100: Communications scholar Crispin Maslog (the first Filipino Ph.D. in communications), former CBCP Monitor editor in chief Jesselyn Garcia-de la Cruz, former assistant publications adviser Sister Regina Kuizon (now the provincial of the Religious of the Good Shepherd in the Philippines and Japan), and publications adviser Joselito Zulueta lead the cake-cutting ceremony for the 95th anniversary of The Varsitarian on Jan. 14, 2023 at the Blessed Buenaventura Garcia Paredes, O.P. Building.
—PHOTO BY JANA FRANCESCA D. YAO/ THE VARSITARIAN
‘V’ CELEBRATES 95 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE VARSITARIAN alumni in the arts, letters, media, politics, business, sciences, education, and other fields returned to the University on Jan. 14, 2023 to celebrate the 95th anniversary of the official student publication of the University of Santo Tomas. The grand alumni homecoming, held at the lobby of the Blessed Buenaventura Garcia Paredes, O.P. Building, began with a Mass presided over by former UST rector Fr. Rolando de la Rosa, O.P. and concelebrated by fellow alumni-priests, Fr. Isidro Marinay of the Archdiocese of Manila and Fr. Nicanor Lalog II of
ON SOCIAL MEDIA
facebook/varsitarian
twitter@varsitarianust
the Diocese of Malolos. In his homily, de la Rosa, a former Varsitarian Witness editor, said he hoped the “V” would continue to be an avenue where truth is explored through writers who have the passion and courage to help the country move forward. “[W]e need writers whose love for writing matches their passionate commitment to improving our country that is suffering from many generations of nightmares and shattered dreams,” he said. Varsitarian editor in chief John Ezekiel Hirro lauded alumni of the publication for building a culture of excellence that helped it survive wars, dic-
youtube/TheVarsitarianUST
instagram varsitarian.ust
UST draws 43,000 applicants for AY 2023-2024 A TOTAL of 43,000 applicants took the UST Entrance Test (USTET) for the admission of new students in Academic Year (AY) 2023-2024, the Office for Admissions (OFAD) said. The number exceeded the 40,000 projected applicants this year as 21,000 applicants took the fourth and final USTET on Sunday, while 300 more are set to take the exam in international testing centers this month. The first three batches of the USTET held at the Sampaloc campus had 21,700 examinees. OFAD Director Assoc. Prof. Imelda Dakis said major adjustments were made to resume the USTET after a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. “OFAD closely coordinated with the
Health Service and the Facilities Management Office to ensure that the on-campus USTET will be safe not only for the examinees but for UST personnel as well,” Dakis told the Varsitarian. Only 20 to 35 examinees were assigned per room to ensure that health protocols were observed. This is half the 40 to 45 examinees per room in the pre-pandemic USTET setup. Health checks were conducted at the entrance of every testing building before examinees could go to their assigned rooms for the USTET. Although vaccinated and unvaccinated applicants were allowed to take the exam, the University set a policy that suspected Covid-19 positive examinees and those exhibiting symptoms on their
SPECIAL REPORTS ► PAGE 3
FEATURES ► PAGE 5
Academic units lay out varying Term 2 setups UST ACADEMIC units have laid out varying setups as they were authorized to determine the “best combination” of onsite and online hours for Term 2 of Academic Year (AY) 2022-2023.
Former AB dean reflects on pandemic-hit tenure
tatorships, storms, calamities, and most recently, a health crisis. “Thanks to them, not only did we survive, we continued excelling,” he said. “The Varsitarian is blessed that through all these years, a family spirit has sustained the publication. The younger staffers have learned from the older ones through their stories of past victories and losses. Older and younger generations share a connection that has become more and more filial as the years go by.” During the alumni homecoming, the publica-
exam date would be isolated and brought home. Aside from the Manila campus, the University administered the USTET at 25 provincial testing centers in Luzon, five testing centers in the Visayas, and four testing centers in Mindanao. The OFAD also opened testing centers in Doha, Qatar, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Manama, Bahrain, and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. USTET results will be released in the second quarter of 2023. Assoc. Prof. Ryan Francis Cayubit, the OFAD assistant director, told the Varsitarian that USTET would be here to stay following the successful conduct of the examinations. “We intend to hold it again next year,” he said. NILLICENT B. BAUTISTA
EDITORIAL ► PAGE 8
Still writing the ‘hurting word’
95 YEARS PAGE 10
►
BREAKING NEWS & REAL-TIME UPDATES at www.varsitarian.net
Licensure Examinations
UST alumna tops January 2023 architecture licensure exams By Joanne Christine P. Ramos
A THOMASIAN topped the January 2023 architecture licensure examinations, in which UST was the No. 2 top-performing school. Thomasian Bhing-bhing Ko led the country’s newest batch of architects after scoring 84.50 percent. Another Thomasian, Aliana Cadiang, ranked third with a score of 83.30 percent. UST recorded an 81.38-percent passing rate or 118 out of 145 examinees, results released by the Professional Regulation Commission showed. The passing rate dipped from 88.24 percent, or 255 out of 289, in
the June 2022 exams. Polytechnic University of the Philippines – Sta. Mesa was named the top-performing school with a 91.80-percent passing rate or 56 out of 61 examinees. The national passing rate for the January 2023 architecture exam declined to 57.01 percent (1,980 out of 3,473) from 63.72 percent in June 2022 (3,037 out of 4,766). The exams were held on Jan. 25 and 27.