Programs


Overview

Aquinas University of Legazpi’s academically rigorous curriculum enables students to combine serious theoretical study with meaningful real-time learning experiences. Whatever major the students choose, they acquire a solid foundation in the liberal arts and pursue in-depth study in their chosen fields.

The Graduate School serves as a resource for adults striving to enhance their personal and professional lives in a constantly changing world. Students who leave our classrooms are well prepared for the next step in their careers. The Graduate School offers numerous master’s and doctorate degree programs and broadly humanistic training for professions in law, finance and industry, government and public service, ecclesiastical leadership and education, nursing, psychology, social work, and academic scholarship.

The Aquinas University Integrated Schools has two curricula: PAASCU Level II accredited, the Science High School’s curriculum is suited to the Mathematics- and Science-inclined students. Offered in 2004, the Special Program in the Arts caters to the more artistically inclined.

All students meet with a student services counselor prior to enrollment and throughout the duration of the program. This counseling provides students with an understanding of their academic status and the requirements that must be satisfied for completion of their degree program.

All freshmen participate in the Freshman Advising Program that includes summer orientation activities and the Introduction to College Studies course in the first semester. Students are invited to one of three summer orientations. Two of the orientations are held in May, and the third orientation is held in June just before the beginning of the first semester.

The Essentials of Learning Program is for applicants for admission who do not meet standard admission criteria because they have a high school GPA below 2.00 in college preparatory classes and/or have recommendations from high school teachers or counselors. This program emphasizes effective study skills, academic counseling, and learning strategies appropriate for courses across the curriculum. The goal of the program is to optimize the opportunities of success for at-risk students.

In collaboration with the Department of Languages, Literature and Humanities, one of its members teaches a Basic Writing Skills course for developmental writers. This course helps to diagnose and remediate deficiencies in grammar, usage, sentence structure, and writing. Students are introduced to the writing process, encouraged to write based on readings, and helped to develop writing confidence.

 

AUL Cultural Exchange Program

The AQ Cultural Exchange Program is a seven- to ten-day visit to Aquinas University of Legazpi. The package provides an opportunity for students of partner schools to experience the AQ community and discover Bicolano hospitality.

The package also includes maximum exposure to local language, culture, and environment.

Main Objectives

Specific Objectives

After staying in Aquinas University, participating students are expected to:

Contents of the Program

Program Cost

PhP 25,000.00

The university shall make the necessary arrangement for a very affordable accommodation in campus. The package also includes three meals a day and transportation expenses during the students’ stay in Legazpi City.

Airfare (Example: Japan -Manila-Legazpi , Legazpi-Manila-Japan) and living expenses are shouldered by the visiting student/s.

Requirements

The APPLICANT must:

…be a bona fide student of the partner institution

…be endorsed by the sending institution

…be able to communicate in English

…have a valid passport

…have the enthusiasm to meet people and

   adventurous enough to learn a new culture

…bring enough clothes suited for a warm climate

…be able to document daily activities through a journal

 

High School

The Aquinas University Integrated Schools (AQUI) has two curricula: a full-fledged Science High School (Level II PAASCU accredited), which caters to students who are inclined in Science and Mathematics, and a Special Program in the Arts, for those whose interests are in music, drama, and dance.

 

College of Law

Since the start of the Aquinas University of Legazpi College of Law, it became the premier legal education in the region. As always, the vision of the College is anchored in providing excellent and service-oriented legal training to AQ students. The main reason why the College of Law is established is to produce top caliber lawyers that would improve the prevailing legal system in the country. It is also the hope of College of Law to develop Law graduates that would be responsive to the needs of the people and take part in social issues that confront the nation.

 

Undergraduate Programs

This page will help you choose and find out what Aquinas University of Legazpi has to offer to its undergraduate students. The university offers varied course selections that would best match the student’s preference. Take your first step in reaching for your dreams and choose the right course for you.

 

College of Business Management and Accountancy

Adhering to its vision of producing globally competitive graduates, the College of Business Administration truly has something to be proud of. Graduates of this college do not only prove their worth in the local arena but also showcased their skill and knowledge in the international scene. Also, the College of Business Administration produces CPA board passers through the years. Courses offered in this College are the following:

 

College of Arts, Sciences and Education

Aquinas University of Legazpi has produced two names that made a big impact in the academe. These two became Bicol University presidents. Dr. Susana Carretas-Cabredo was an AB English student and graduated cum laude in 1963. She became the president of Bicol University and was followed by Dr. Fay Lea Patria Mata-Lauraya, another AQ graduate. Lauraya majored in Economics and graduated magna cum laude. These two are just some of the AQ graduates that made remarkable contribution in the society. Because of the university’s many achievements, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has named Aquinas University of Legazpi as the Center of Excellence in Teacher Education. Other courses offered in this college are the following:

 

College of Nursing and Health Sciences

It is now considered a bandwagon for registered nurses to seek for greener pastures abroad. The escalating demand for proficient nurses is the primary reason why Aquinas University of Legazpi is also upgrading its curriculum to prepare future nurses in their quest for greater experience and of course, profit.

This university also makes sure that it meets the quality and standards of nursing education which is set by the Commission of Higher Education (CHED). To keep up with the high demand in nursing courses, Aquinas has revised its curriculum and offered the following:

 

College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts

The College of Engineering, Architecture and Fine Arts is composed of three courses: Engineering, Architecture, and the Fine Arts. The excellent quality of education in this department is manifested by the huge number of board passers. Just recently, Aquinas University of Legazpi is once again in the limelight as Mike Jay B. Bonto topped the Licensure Examination for Architecture. Other courses offered in this Institute are the following:

 

Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE)

Description

Civil Engineering is a profession that applies the basic principles of Science in conjunction with mathematical and computational tools to solve problems associated with developing and sustaining civilized life on our planet. It is one of the broadest engineering disciplines both in terms of the range of problems that fall within its preview and in the range of knowledge required to solve those problems.

 

Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering (BSIE)

Description

The Industrial Engineering (IE) program is designed to prepare the student for professional work in the design, improvement, installation, and maintenance of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment, and methods. The curriculum covers the engineering and social sciences, principles and methods of systems analysis and design, industrial management and human behavior. Industrial Engineers design solutions to improve the performance of complex systems of people, technology, and information.

 

Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering (BSCpE)

Description

Computer Engineering program combines theoretical foundations in physical and computer science with the system, software and hardware engineering concepts needed to develop reliable and effective computer based devices and systems. The Computer Engineering program teaches both software and hardware development. Software development concentrates on the application of engineering design principles to the development of effective, efficient and functionally correct computer software.

 

Bachelor of Science in Electronics Engineering (BSECE)

Description

The Electronics and Communications Engineering program focuses on teaching students how to design, construct, integrate, operate, and maintain electronic equipment, electronic devices and circuits used in the transmission and processing of information. The program includes subjects in electronics, electromagnetic fields, circuits, analog and digital signals, transducers, semi-conductors, electronic systems, microprocessors, computer organizations, communications engineering, and systems integration.

 

Bachelor of Science in Architecture (BS Arch)

Description

Architectural education is concerned with providing the students with comprehensive knowledge, skill and competence in architecture and their total growth and development within the framework of democratic ideals and values; and the preservation, conservation, and promotion of the Filipino Architecture heritage within the global context , thus making the architecture curriculum relevant to the present needs and latest international trends.

 

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA)

Description

The Fine Arts program major in Advertising Arts is an overview and application of advertising principles introducing concepts of advertising, research, artistic, creative, and psychological aspects to advertising and sales promotional activities. It introduces the basic and advance principles of design and drawing, with emphasis on the communicative aspects of the arts.

 

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS)

Description

Computer Science program prepares students for skills in applying, designing, and implementing computer systems. Graduates of the Computer Science program are prepared to seek a wide variety of technical positions, including systems programmer, systems analyst, software engineer, database administrator, webmaster, and networking engineer, or admission to graduate school. The Computer Science curriculum provides all graduates with a foundation in programming, algorithm development, computer architecture, operating systems, and networks through a set of core courses.

 

Bachelor of Library and Information Science (BLIS)

 

 

Graduate Degree Programs

One of the six departments of Aquinas University of Legazpi, the Professional Schools offer College of Law, Graduate Schools, and the Center for Continuing Education.

The school’s College of Law (Ll.B.) boasts of highly competent professors who serve as the students’ guiding light in pursuing their chosen path. Through the years, Aquinas University College of Law has produced constant and great number of bar passers which later on became prosecutors, fiscals, judges, and justices.

The Graduate School on the other hand has churned out a number of professionals who are now great contributors in making this society a better place to live in for future generations. Many graduates have made a name and are now successful in their chosen field. Graduate School programs include:

 

Academic Research Program

The University Academic Research under the Office of Academic Affairs gears toward the institution’s strategic development in the context of a dynamically changing multi-layered cultural environment to promote the enhancement of Aquinian Culture, operationalization of Dominican empowerment, and deepening of Dominican charism. It designs, implements, and processes research systems and procedures that bring out results which serve as inputs to the various activities of the University. This makes Aquinas University a proficient center of education.

 

Guiding Philosophy

The Academic Research Program is guided basically by the vision that “Aquinas University is a reflective community striving for excellence and creativity in the service of God and humanity”. It works toward the development of the Filipino nation and the Bikol region through enriching both the Filipino and Bikol cultures, promoting human values, and advocating the social uplift of our people. The Program is guided by the research philosophy framed by the DOMNET Research Committee, to wit: “Research should involve the systematic and continuing search for truth based on reason illumined by faith and permeated with Christian values to increase human knowledge and contribute to the development of the human person in harmony with nature”.

 

Conceptual Framework

Culture is a way of life. All efforts, actions, endeavors, fields, creations, programs, and thoughts of man define culture. As a matter of case, these things make culture comprehensive and historical. It can be said that culture is the human spirit. There is a parallel significance between human culture and human nature. Given such connotation, we need to extrapolate on the different perspectives of culture. It can be argued that, 1) Culture is a universal and objective consciousness of a certain collectivity; 2) Culture is but a progressive development of a collective consciousness; 3) Culture is static yet dynamic; 4) Culture is a series of reconstruction and deconstruction; and 5) Culture is both influential and influenced. These views present culture as totality.

Culture is the “mind” (Grecian) that guides and the “spirit” (Romanticist) that moves people. It serves as a principle from which all human actions are directed to and pointed towards a certain level of normativity (Kantian) in order to establish similarity and promote collectivity. Culture becomes a universal and objective consciousness. It is universal because it transcends particularity and elevates sense of humanity. It is something from which we share and from which we proceed. It is objective because it becomes a fusion of horizons. There arises a common and creative sense of human identity. Regardless of the level of significance and degree of rightness culture brings to people, there is an inescapable point that culture, however good or evil it becomes, is the foundation of human life, and in effect, defines man and his humanity.

If culture is the universal, objective, collective consciousness of people, then culture itself is but a progressive development of such collective consciousness. Human world is but a continuous becoming, a dialectical process, the interplay of the unity and conflict of thesis and antithesis to progressively generate synthesis. Culture pushes man to achieve being and becoming at the same time. It tries to supply man his essence as it continues existence. Hence, culture is the Geist (Hegelian) that moves reality. It can happen through three ultimate forces of culture: religion, aesthetics, and philosophy. These three make culture a progressive development of collectivity.

Culture is static in a certain period to instill order, appreciate development, and acquire sense of well being. It is where people try to ‘romanticize’ life given its simplicity and complexity. But culture must be dynamic in order to progress significantly. People need to have paradigm shifts (Kuhnian) to instill more order, appreciate more development, and acquire more sense of well being. The collective needs to change views, systems, and processes to live more and live better. This contributes powerfully in the progressive development of collective consciousness to get hold of universality and objectivity.

Because culture is dynamic, it subjects itself to a series of reconstruction and deconstruction. We need to reconstruct to adapt and deconstruct to unlearn. Shifting paradigms suggest human retooling and advancing. Unlearning equips ‘traces’ (Derridean) and fixes differences. Culture evokes effective historical consciousness (Gadamerian).

Culture is ‘influencial’ on human actions. It tries to grapple with motives and goals of certain human activities. But at the same time, it is ‘influenced’ to understand such motives and goals. Taken generally or universally, people need to’re-view’ culture. They have to identify for themselves, as a group, their purpose and meaning to define what they are and who they are as collectivity.

Based on these ideas, culture is indeed a totality. It works towards a certain ‘telos’ of and for the entire humanity. Taken on the grand scale, culture is humanity. Man is what he makes of his culture.

To contextualize culture based on AQuinian experience is the development of AQuinian culture. The AQuinian experience of AQuinian Culture can be seen as (1) as a culture that defines our identity as AQuinian, (2) as a description of AQ’s continuous becoming, (3) as a primordial development of AQ Vision and Mission, (4) as a principle of AQ Community, and (5) as the AQ way of expression of solidarity.

 

Goal

 

Certificate Program

Certificate Programs are groups of classes that provide in-depth study in particular subject areas. Each program undergoes continuous review to ensure that it teaches the knowledge and skills required by the workplace or industry.

Some certificate programs are offered solely by the AQ Center for Continuing Education; others are offered in coordination with academic units on campus or in partnership with duly recognized organizations, professionals or Local Government Units.

 

What is ETEEAP?

The Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) is an assessment scheme, which recognizes knowledge, skills and prior learning experiences acquired by individuals from non-formal and informal education.

By establishing equivalency competence standards and comprehensive assessment system employing written test, interview, skills demonstration and other creative assessment methodologies, higher education institutions may administer competency-based evaluation.

 

Contact Information

Dr. Susana C. Cabredo

Director, Center for Continuing Education

Executive Director, Office of External Affairs

G/F St. Dominic de Guzman Building

Aquinas University of Legazpi

Rawis, Legazpi City 4500

Tel Nos: (052) 435-3585

Office Hours

Mondays – Fridays: 8:00 am – 12 noon; 1:00 pm – 5 pm

Saturdays: 8:00 am – 12 noon only

 

Extension

AQ Extension offers a wide variety of programs for personal and professional development; programs that are taught in convenient area locations. Our flexible yet comprehensive curricula are available in many formats to meet a variety of needs.

AQ Extension to Community leadership development includes programs and skills development for emerging leaders, experienced leaders and citizens who care about their community.

AQ leaders need data on their communities, skills in analysis, interpretation and information management as well as strategies for group visioning in order to plan and prepare their communities for the future.

Celebrate Families is a parent, child, and family skills-building curriculum designed to help parents with children connect with each other; build skills and positive attitudes; and celebrate family strengths.

A violence prevention program for your children ages four to six years, their parents, and early childhood teachers is designed to teach appropriate and inappropriate responses to anger, teach basic conflict resolution skills, and strengthen parents’ guidance and discipline knowledge.

For adults in stepfamily relationships with children still living at home (young children, school-age children, and/or teens), grandparents, teachers, counselors, ministers, or other related members, a six-part home-study program and workshop series is offered to build a strong couple relationship, strengthen and enrich parent-child relationships, and understand and resolve important family financial and legal matters.

For parents and youth (ages 10 to 14 years), the Strengthening Families Program is a parent, youth, and family skills-building curriculum designed to prevent teen substance abuse and other behavior problems, strengthen parenting skills, and build family strengths.

Students are invited to one of three summer orientations. Two of the orientations are held in May, and the third orientation is held in June just before the beginning of the first semester.

The Essentials of Learning Program is for applicants for admission who do not meet standard admission criteria because they have a high school GPA below 2.00 in college preparatory classes and/or have recommendations from high school teachers or counselors. This program emphasizes effective study skills, academic counseling, and learning strategies appropriate for courses across the curriculum. The goal of the program is to optimize the opportunities of success for at-risk students.

One of the faculty members of the Department of Languages, Literature and Humanities teaches a Basic Writing Skills course for developmental writers. This course helps to diagnose and remediate deficiencies in grammar, usage, sentence structure, and writing. Students are introduced to the writing process, encouraged to write based on readings, and helped to develop writing confidence.

 

Faculty Research Development Program

Research is central to Aquinas University’s mission for it is widely accepted as an integral part of AQ transformative education. The purpose of research is to advance existing knowledge in a discipline, to fill significant gaps in such knowledge, to devise new modes or means of expression, and to develop new paradigms in arts, sciences, and the humanities.

One crucial factor in order to establish and instill AQ Research Culture and thereby ascertain the level of achievement in research development activities is the conception of a faculty research development program.

The Faculty Research Development Program is designed to respond to the need of the University and Faculty to conduct researches relevant and contributory to AQ Transformative Education.  It aims to provide resources, systems, procedures, and techniques for the research and publication of information necessary for the continuous development of the faculty’s instructional and extension-based competencies.

The AQ Office of Academic Affairs seeks to fulfill the university’s commitment to academic excellence by developing faculty-scholars at all academic levels. The University Academic Research depends on faculty cooperation, program planning, and judicious use of limited funds. They should recognize research activities as a normal part of a productive faculty member’s academic work that enhances instruction, extension, and general academic effectiveness. Faculty development activities presume a commitment on the part of all faculty and departments to coordinate their instructional, extension-based, and developmental programs and activities to optimize the provision of university resources.

The Faculty Research Development Program benefits not only the University and the individual faculty-scholar but most importantly the students and society. When they are engaged in research, our faculty model for our students the pleasure and passion of continuous learning.

The activities of the Faculty Research Development Program are:

  1. Faculty Training and Exposure Both on Quantitative and Qualitative Researches
  2. Re-Alignment of All Faculty Research Activities to the AQ Research Theme and Agenda
  3. Identification and Empowerment of Research Teams to Conduct Prioritized Research Topics
  4. Prioritization of Academic Researches Along the Integration of Research, Instruction, and Extension
  5. Provision of Research Opportunities to Faculty with Reasonable Incentives in forms of such as Institutional Grants, Thesis/Dissertation Grants, Fellowship Grants, Extension Research Grants, and Grants from External Agencies
  6. Establishment of a Pool for Advisers, Panel Chairpersons, Panel Members, Statisticians, and Editors
  7. Regular Conduct of Series of Paper Presentations Sponsored by Office of Academic Affairs
  8. Re-Activation of TAGBA, now as the official academic research journal of the university, a publication for the researches done by administrators and faculty
  9. Re-view and Adoption of University Academic Research Program
  10. Optimization of AQ Research Fund

 

Classifications of Academic Researches In The University

The academic researches in the university are classified in terms of the nature and duration of research. Based on the nature of research are the following kinds:

  1. Project-Based Research
    • Description
      • Time frame of research project depends on the target of the project; it could be short term, medium term, or long term research
      • Usually extension-based research
    • Involved Persons
      • There could be a research team composed of leading faculty researchers and may also consist of faculty research assistants; the exact number would actually depend on the research design as set by the research project
    • Benefits
      • Faculty researchers will have cash incentive as set or determined by the demands of the research project
      • Faculty Researchers will still have teaching loads but they may be deloaded depending on the merit of the research project and with consultation with the concerned departments
    • Fund Support
      • Funding support of the research project may depend on the nature of the research and research design
  2. Institutional Research
    • Description
      • Research could be short term, medium term, or long term
      • Must be aligned with the university research theme and agenda along the university advocacies
      • Institutional research may be an intercollegiate research or a research showing integration of research, instruction, and extension, or a college research deemed by the university as institutional research
    • Involved Persons
      • Faculty Researchers with the required expertise and master’s degrees are qualified to avail or to be given research projects
      • Students may be part in the research project (i.e. data gathering, data preparation, etcetera)
    • Benefits
      • Involved Faculty Researchers will have cash incentive
    • Fund Support
      • Funding support can come from the university research fund or from external agencies or linkage partners
  3. Instructional Research
    • Description
      • Research related to instruction
      • Sponsored and prioritized by a certain college through the College Research Council
      • Research could be short term or medium term depending on the research design
    • Involved Persons
      • Faculty Researchers with the required expertise and master’s degrees are qualified to avail or to be given research projects
      • Students may be part in the research project (i.e. data gathering, data preparation, etcetera)
    • Benefits
      • Faculty Researcher will only have 15-unit load with a maximum of three preparations in the covered one-semester period of the research project
      • Faculty Researcher will have cash incentive equivalent to 20% of the research project cost to be added to the original research project cost
    • Fund Support
      • Funding support will come from the university research fund or college research fund or from external agencies or linkage partners
  4. Extension Research
    • Description
      • Research related to extension
      • Sponsored and prioritized by the Center of Community Extension Services (CCES)
      • Usually a project-based research
  5. Basic Research
    • Description
      • Theoretical or pure research
      • It can be in a form of philosophical thesis, literary criticism, professional article, synthesis document, analytical paper, term paper, expert essay, and the like
      • The goal of the basic research paper is to contribute as a new knowledge to the given discipline or specialization or field of study
      • Sponsored and prioritized by a certain college through the College Research Council
      • The basic research must possess the following characteristics:
        1. Substantial: This criterion is the most important among all criteria given. This refers to the concepts and principles treated, expounded, founded, created, evaluated, and synthesized in the research. It has to do with the extent these concepts and principles were utilized and shown in the study given the discipline covering the research.
        2. Worthwhile: The relevance of a research study is of paramount importance in any attempt to judge its quality. It has to do with the potential of a research study for adding to and deepening our understanding of issues associated with a discipline. Also, research that leads the field in new directions is often more worthwhile than replications of existing research studies.
        3. Coherent: Among the weaknesses most often cited by reviewers of manuscripts is the mismatch between the research question and the research methods and analysis techniques employed to answer the question. Thoughtful researchers first give serious attention to identifying interesting and worthwhile research questions and then to selecting the research methods and techniques that best fit the nature of those questions.
        4. Competent: It is not enough that a research study involve relevant, interesting questions and be carefully conceptualized, designed, and reported. In addition, the conduct of the study itself must include the effective application of analysis and interpretation techniques. Principles have been developed within various disciplines to guide researchers in carrying out their studies. Although these principles should not be followed slavishly, competent researchers always consider them in order to ensure that every aspect of their studies is appropriately and carefully carried out.
        5. Open: Openness involves two qualities. First, in planning and conducting their investigations, good researchers are cognizant of the personal biases and assumptions that underlie their inquiry and, to the extent that it is possible to do so, they make these biases and assumptions public. Second, the conceptual/theoretical bases for a study and the research methods and techniques used should be described in sufficient detail to allow the research community to scrutinize them thoroughly.
        6. Ethical: Considerations of ethics have been all but ignored in previous efforts to establish criteria for judging research. These considerations have to do with two concerns: (a) the manner in which the research has been conducted in relation to the research subjects, and (b) acknowledgment of the contributions of others. The first concern involves matters such as informed consent, confidentiality, and accurate portrayal of situations and persons involved in the research. The second concern includes acknowledgment of the contributions of all persons who contributed to the research project, as well as open recognition of individuals whose research has influenced the present research.
        7. Credible: This criterion has to do with the extent to which sensible, thoughtful, and open-minded readers find the claims and conclusions made in a research report believable. That is, the claims made and conclusions drawn should be justified in some acceptable way. Moreover, the arguments and interpretations provided in a research report should be presented in a manner that makes it possible to verify or refute the conclusions drawn.
    • Involved Persons
      • Faculty Researchers with the required expertise and master’s degrees are qualified to avail or to be given research projects
    • Benefits
      • The honorarium in the amount range of Six Thousand Pesos to Twelve Thousand Pesos (Php 6, 000.00 – Php 12, 000.00) shall be given to the faculty researcher after submitting the final copy of the research report.
    • Fund Support
      • Funding support will come from the university research fund or college research fund


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