Industry partners during the roundtable discussion
The School of Management invited alumni who were working in the industry and government for a roundtable discussion (RTD). The goal of the discussion was to evaluate the employability of fresh graduates (within three years), and the overall performance of UP graduates in the workplace. The SoM invited 3 groups of guests – young alumni, industry, and government.
SoM Dean, Prof. Tiffany Adelaine G. Tan giving the opening remarks.
According to young alumni, on average, it took them around two months to find their first job. Their monthly salary ranged from 22,000 to 30,000 for a non-sales position, and 15,000 to 20,000 a month plus commission for those who were in sales. From their experience, UP graduates were prioritized when it comes to the selection of new hires and within 3 years of employment were promoted to a higher position up to 3 times or had their salaries adjusted higher from when they started.
From 7 young alumni participants, they gave the college an average rate of 7.71.
The positive attributes that a UP undergraduate possesses functions as a double-edged sword as they have discussed. While being a UP graduate confers high prestige and sets them apart from everyone else, this prestige also brings one to see themselves as better than their peers. While a graduate is viewed as a well-rounded individual who can adapt well to their environment that requires either or both practical and intellectual capacities, they seem to lack the ability to implement their ideas.
Whereas UP MBA graduates are viewed in a high regard versus their peers who took their masters from elsewhere. They’re seen as individuals who have significant knowledge; their network and friendship viewed as valuable. UP MBA graduates also shared areas their sentiments of the program in the sense that it lacked the resources other universities had (i.e. dilapidated government buildings, and equipment). The program is also seen to target singles due to the workload and their time as students were always faced with the decision to miss out on other responsibilities (i.e. spending time with family and friends) or comply with the program without taking breaks.
One participant rates SoM graduates at 3.5, Fine Arts at 4, and overall quality of UP graduates garnered a favorable rating of 4.149 out of 5. All industry guests are highly satisfied with UP education and gave the University a 5 out of 5 rating.
Awarding of Certification of Appreciation to the participants