About two weeks before the deadline of University of the Philippines Open University’s (UPOU) application for its graduate school programs, I decided to take a leap of faith and give it a try. To cut the long story short, I applied, forwarded the requirements to UPOU’s headquarters in Los Banos, Laguna, and waited for the results.
The results page began posting names of the successful applicants beginning the last week of June until first week of July. At first I thought I didn’t make the cut because I kept on visiting the UPOU website and my name wasn’t on the list. But come July 1, 2017, I received an email from UPOU Admissions:
Upon receiving this, I quickly checked the website if my name was really on the list and yes, it was!
Without second thoughts, I enrolled on the first day of enrollment and prepared myself to get back to school. The nerd (as what my boyfriend calls me) in me was really giddy that albeit it’s going to be two more years of juggling work, studies and social life, I know it’s going to be worth it in the end. Learning’s never a waste of time, isn’t it?
As I’ve mentioned, I’m enrolled at the University of the Philippines Open University. It’s the Distance Education / E-learning arm of the UP System. For more information about UPOU, you may visit their website here. UPOU is headquartered in Los Banos, Laguna but the different UP campuses across the country serve as the learning centers (LC). My LC is in UP Diliman. For students enrolled outside the Philippines, I believe the Philippine embassies in different countries serve as their LC.
I am currently taking up Post-graduate Diploma in Computer Science (PG-DCS). I didn’t take up masters because I wanted to add a new skill, and since I’m already a corporate finance & treasury professional, I thought having a post-baccalaureate degree majoring in Computer Science would be a great add-on (then I might as well take masters or finally pursue law afterwards).
Fast-forward to five weeks of extracting my time management skills, it’s really not easy. I need to sacrifice sleep every now and then because it’s hard to be behind the lessons. I have classmates in DCS who are already lawyers, professors and experienced IT professionals. As a newbie in the IT industry, I have to work really hard to meet the demands of graduate school. It’s fun to learn from my classmates though. Most of them are really eager in sharing what they know — especially the experienced ones.
I know this is just the beginning of the ups and downs of the whole graduate school journey. This path isn’t what I had originally planned, but I don’t regret taking it. I’m even more excited to where it’s gonna take me. 🙂
Hi. I just want to know how is the experience and level of difficulty taking up this course? I am considering to apply for this course.
LikeLike
Hello, I’m already in my second semester and so far, the “level of difficulty” can actually be learned through hard work and focus. The main challenge is actually squeezing in time for studying. For the whole course itself, things can be learned over time.
LikeLike
Hi! I am really interested in applying for this course. It might be a silly question since it’s under the distance education/ e-learning branch of UPOU, but are you required to come to your learning centers from time to time? Or everything’s done online?
Thanks!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi! Almost everything’s online. Some are just asked to come for exams that need proctors (which I haven’t experienced yet) and for some seminars (you have a choice not to attend but you might take an exam or something, for those who attend, usually a paper about the seminar is required). Hope I answered your question! 🙂
LikeLike
Hello,
Thanks for sharing this info. I am currently applying to their program as an adult learner – almost an empty nester but would like to do a career change. I am located in California and I am glad that UPOU is offering this diploma because education here is much more expensive. I was wondering how was your experience so far – did you already graduate? Did you pursue a master’s degree? Thanks again!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hello! I’m sorry for the late response. I am currently on my last semester. 🙂 So far it’s been good but mostly, it’s really self-study. Professors provide modules and instructional videos. Assignments or exams are to be done with specific and reasonable deadlines.
I am not going to pursue a Master’s degree since I am currently preparing for law school entrance exams. Really just took the diploma course for ComSci/IT credentials since such certifications are very useful now in marketing yourself in the business field. 🙂
LikeLike