Among the various colleges of the University of the Philippines Manila, the College of Arts and Sciences is unique in being a multidisciplinal college. It provides the liberal arts and basic sciences foundation to all UP Manila students. Being a provider of a general curriculum aimed at producing holistic individuals, it had always emphasized on teaching, with research and extension as secondary functions.
The College consists of six departments that offer various degree programs as well as service courses for the health sciences curricula of the different colleges of UP Manila. These are the Department of Behavioral Sciences, Department of Social Sciences, Department of Biology, Department of Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Department of Arts and Communication, and the Department of Physical Education.
Undergraduate Programs
BA Behavioral Sciences. The program uses an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach, integrating the fields of Anthropology, Psychology, and Sociology to equip students with the knowledge and skills to understand the dynamics of human behavior and related issues in the context of the Filipino psyche, society and culture.
BA Development Studies. BA Development Studies was instituted in 1980. It is a multi-disciplinary social science program, combining economics, political science and cultural studies. Its objective is to provide the students with the theories and skills in the social, economic, political and cultural development of people. The program places emphasis on the Philippine situation, though it has subject on the problems of development of other countries, particularly in the Third World.
The graduates of Development Studies easily find careers in the undertaking and supervision of socio-economic projects both in the local and international scenes, in government institutions, in the Foreign Service, non-government organizations and in the academe. The course also offers opportunities in business particularly in the fields of economic and financial analysis and managerial work. It could also serve as a preparatory course for taking up law studies.
BA Organizational Communication. BA Organizational Communication seeks to address the ever-increasing demand for expertise in modern communication as related to organizations in the Philippines. The program aims to present a holistic perspective of organizational dynamics in the modern-century by focusing on organizational-related communication skills.
Because communication is a complex process in itself and a vital factor in the shaping of human ecologies, the importance of strengthening efficiency and effectiveness in communication cannot be overemphasized especially in organization structures where needs are highly technical. Thus, the entire program concentrates on an integration of written-oral skills and just not the mastery of either oral delivery or writing style as separate abilities. Furthermore, the audio-visual component in the curriculum aims to encourage the students to employ all the modern persuasive tools that make for effective communication.
The program is specifically geared to serving organizations where English and Filipino languages are used as major instruments of communication thus, a bilingual approach shall be adopted for classroom dynamics. This is to train the students to be articulate not only in English but also in Filipino for them to be truly effective in the Philippine organizational setting.
BA Philippine Arts. BA in Philippine Arts focuses on the study of Philippine art within the context of national culture and history, with special attention to its contribution to the definition and formation of a national identity and the role it plays in social transformation. The program provides rich sources of information and insights into Filipino consciousness and values that are essential to the student’s appreciation of his/her cultural heritage and understanding of himself/herself and his/her relationship with society.
The program has two (2) areas of concentration Program A prepares a student for a career in teaching and research; Program B prepares a student for career in arts management.
The courses allow the student a comprehensive view as well as a detailed analysis of Philippine art in its various forms – literary, visual and performing arts, and aspects of production, and consumption. They emphasize the intrinsic value, content and history of Philippine art as well as the dynamic processes involved in their creation, reception and development.
The approach is multi-disciplinary and emphasizes a balance between theory and practice. The program also uses the experimental approaches particularly in its workshop and internship courses.
BA Political Science. The BA Political Science program is multidisciplinary and covers the traditional study of politics, emerging issues on health social science, Islamic and other religious movements, peace and conflict resolution, human rights, gender studies, sustainable development and the environment, community development and organizing, ethics to people’s diplomacy, from the statist approach to the civil society approach.
The BA Political Science program has been a course offering since the UP extension division days, before UP Manila was granted full autonomy as an academic unit.
The program offers career opportunities in law, teaching, research, advocacy, and Foreign Service and international affairs.
BA Social Sciences (Area Studies). The Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences (Area Studies) is a multi and trans-disciplinary program that studies specific geographical and cultural areas, in particular the Philippines and Asia, utilizing the different social science disciplines of history, politics, economics, geography, anthropology and sociology. It employs a multidisciplinary approach using the various theories, methodologies and approaches to the study of the social sciences. It requires a comprehensive but integrative perspective in the study of the history, geography, politics, economy, culture and society of the Philippines and Asia within the context of current world developments.
The program prepares the students for careers in teaching, research, policy studies, advocacy works, and employment in NGO, government and private offices, and in civil society sector. It is also a very good preparation for law school and graduate in any field of the social sciences. With its extensive social science preparation and basic knowledge of a non-English foreign language, the degree also serves as an excellent preparation for a career in the diplomatic service or in a multi-cultural work environment.
A minimum of 145 units is required to graduate in the program.
BS Applied Physics (Health Physics Concentration). The Bachelor of Science in Applied Physics (Health Physics Concentration) will be a four-year undergraduate program that provides a basic science curriculum with emphasis on the fundamental concepts and principles of physics and their applications in health and medicine.
BS Biochemistry. BS Biochemistry is a degree program which provides students understanding of physiological processes at the molecular level. It is offered as a 4-year course with 2 summers. Graduates of the program may option to:
- Pursue a career in industry, specifically in the research and development (R and D) of the departments of pharmaceutical, food, and manufacturing companies as licensed Chemist. BS Biochemistry graduates can take the licensure examination for Chemistry and become licensed chemists.
- Pursue graduate programs (M.S., Ph.D.) leading to a career in research;
- Join research institutions;
- Join the teaching staff of institutions of learning;
- Pursue a medical career.
BS Biology. The BS Biology program aims to develop individuals equipped with scientific competence for future professional study and the social conscience that will motivate them to continuously seek ways and means to improve the living conditions of the Filipino people through science and technology.
The program allows diversified exposure to Biology based on the different aspects of the biological organization - - biochemical, cellular, physiological, and ecological. Aside from the prescribed basic courses in botany, zoology, cell and molecular biology, and biostatistics, the curriculum requires the student to pass the five core areas namely genetics, morphology, physiology, systematic, and ecology, prior to undertaking research methods for the undergraduate thesis. The thesis is designed to expose and teach the students methods necessary to solve problems in biology and to train them to conduct independent research. The student has the option of taking elective courses from specialized fields such as microbiology, embryology, histology, phycology, mycology, biogeography, radiation biology and others. Course strategies emphasize environment concerns as well as awareness of the impact of biomedical services on social order and Filipino values and attitudes.
Graduates of the program have been adequately prepared to pursue careers and/or specialized studies and research in botany, zoology, marine biology, microbiology, biochemistry, biophysics and physiology. The program is also applicable to health-related professions such as medicine, dentistry, physical therapy and medical technology including other fields such as agriculture and wildlife management.
BS Computer Science. The BS Computer Science is a degree program that provides a solid technical background and experience in real systems to enable the students to handle various aspects of systems development, data management and scientific computing. In UP Manila, the BS Computer Science curriculum is geared towards development of software packages for the needs of the health sciences. It is offered as a 4-year course with one practicum taken during summer of the junior year. It further aims to produce highly capable graduates who will:
- Provide manpower expertise in developing software systems and databases for health institutions, biomedical researches, health statistics, medical computing, health informatics, and other computer industries and businesses;
- Pursue graduate studies in computer science or related fields.
Graduate Programs
Master of Arts in Health Policy Studies with concentration on Health Social Sciences (MA HPS-HSS). Offered by the Department of Behavioral Sciences (Approved by the UP Board of Regents on 15 April 1999 during its 1130th meeting).
The improvement of the health status of their population is a major priority goal of all governments. Through the application of appropriate health technology and the use of sound management principles, health care systems aim to combat diseases, prevent premature death and disability, and improve the quality of life. However, despite considerable progress in terms of new theories and advance technology in the past decades, old problems continue to persist. In the Philippines, tuberculosis and other communicable diseases together with cardio-vascular diseases and new problems like the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), remain the major threats to the health of the population. But poverty and limited resources constrain government efforts from achieving desirable health objectives. Insufficient budget allocation for health services result in an unhealthy workforce with low productivity. Poverty also limits access to health services and quality case. The reliance on imported, sophisticated and costly technology and the low regard for traditional medicine cause further strain on limited resources.
Health professionals and practitioners involved in the health delivery systems find their efforts frustrated by the socio-economic and politico-administrative conditions in the environment. In the Philippines, the devolution of the health function to the local government units has decentralized the health policy process. At this point, more and more health specialists are beginning to realize the need for a broader understanding of the social context within which they operate. Health technology alone is not sufficient to address these multifarious concerns. These issues are best tackled at the level of policy. Health policy is concerned with the allocation of scarce resources, the structures and processes of governance which allocate these resources, and the tradition and culture of the people who are the ultimate beneficiaries of health care.
The contribution of sound policies in the pursuit of better health is well recognized. For this reason, a number of countries like Great Britain, the United States, and Thailand have instituted research and academic programs on health policy. They recognize the need for leaders and managers in health to be supported by appropriate management skills and research-based knowledge to arrive at rational decision making.
Master of Management. The Master of Management (MM) degree program currently being offered has three areas of competencies: Public Administration, Business Management, and Educational Management. Approved during the 1131st meeting of the U.P. Board of Regents held on 27 May 1999, the MM serves as an umbrella program to highlight the varied specialism of the faculty of the Department of Social Sciences.
Master of Science in Health Informatics. Health informatics covers the organization and management of information in the areas of patient care, research and administration. It focuses on the structuring of health data and knowledge to support data analysis and decision making in medicine and health care with the use of information systems. It covers a wide spectrum of applications, from computer-based patient records in general practices and hospitals to electronic communication between health care providers, from signal analysis and image processing to decision support systems. Effective delivery of health care requires correct decision making on proper management of health information.
The MSHI program has two tracks: bioinformatics (handled by the Department of Physical Sciences and Mathematics) and medical informatics (handled by Medical Informatics Unit).
Objectives:
The program is designed to endow prospective leaders in health informatics with solid competencies in health informatics such that the at the end of the program, the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate the application of informatics concepts, skills and principles for the efficient solution of health informatics problems;
- Introduce perspectives in health informatics that can be used in the critical study of all levels of health information systems;
- Plan, undertake, evaluate, and monitor health informatics research projects; and
- Deliver technical services to health professionals and agencies for both public and private sectors concerned with management of information which could be the bases for health policy formulation, thereby providing leadership and excellence in health informatics
Contact
 |
College of Arts & Sciences (CAS) Rizal Hall, UP Manila campus |
 |
Trunkline: (632) 516-3228 |
 |
|
 |
|
 |