PhD Graduation in the University of the Philippines: Trends, Challenges, and Policy Implications

Caesar Saloma, PhD
Professor Emeritus, National Institute of Physics
University of the Philippines

2025

Full-Length Peer-Reviewed Article

The following are the yearly PhD graduation rates of the three leading constituent units of the University of the Philippines: UP Diliman (65.91 ± 15.48, with 70 doctoral programs in 2025; sampling period: 1990-2025), UP Los Baños (58.46 ± 14.26, with 33; 1999-2025), and UP Manila (4.22 ± 4.23, with 11; 1993-2025). The rates are low with no apparent tendency to improve despite escalated allocations of resources to hire more PhD faculty and to establish new research laboratories and PhD programs. The number of regular PhD faculty in June 2023 was 614 for UP Diliman, 211 for UP Los Baños, and 110 for UP Manila. A total of 202 UP professor emeriti were also appointed (65.84% since 2012) from 2000 to 2024. To increase the PhD graduation rate, data-driven policy recommendations are proposed in the grant of faculty tenure, and cross-rank promotion to full professor and professor emeritus. They are formulated with reference to the performance of the UP Diliman College of Science (CS, 13.14 ± 4.26 per year; with 11 programs) and the College of Engineering (CoE, 6.06 ± 5.4; 12 programs). Both accounted for 29.19% of the total UP Diliman PhD output from 1990 to 2025. The primary reason for the low PhD graduation rate is the lack of committed dissertation research supervisors who were able to guide students immediately upon entering their respective programs. From 2010 to 2025, UP Diliman yearly admitted 239.6 ± 33.41 (31.14% in the CS and CoE) new PhD students while graduating only 71.47 ± 10.82 (33.93% with CS and CoE degrees). Sustained student interest is not matched by a likelihood of success which is only at 29.83%. In contrast, UP Diliman graduated a total of 49,721 bachelor students while admitting 59,085 UPCAT applicants indicating an efficiency of 84.15%. The purpose of UP as the national university is best accomplished by it becoming a successful graduate university since PhD degrees are research degrees where dissertation research problems are solved to promote the common good and bring tangible improvements in the quality of life of Filipinos.

University of the Philippines, PhD Degree Programs, Faculty Tenure, Philippine Higher Education Institutions

Saloma, Caesar. 2025.  “PhD Graduation in the University of the Philippines: Trends, Challenges, and Policy Implications.” Philippine Journal of Public Policy: Interdisciplinary Development Perspectives 2025: 1-30.