College Life

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Hey NT, I really need some advice....my parents are trying to push me to go live and attend college in philippines after the end of my sophomore year in college. I dont really know much about life in the PI because I've never been there (smh at me). So if anybody can give me firsthand advice or experiences about the goods and bads about uprooting from america to the motherland? Thanks in advance. Oh yeah atineo, aiu, or university of phil at manila are either of the three I'm lookn at.
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^College life here is great and safe! Well, except probably in University of the Philippines.
The worst disability, is the disability to understand.
 
Hey man. I can understand the situation that you're going through right now. I also grew up outside the PI and then decided to go to college "in the motherland," so to speak.

What major are you planning to take up once you enter over here? =)
(and btw, to the others, what's AIU? Never heard that before).

(This might end up being a long read)...

I go to De La Salle University, a private catholic institution on Taft Avenue (not far from UP Manila - your third choice)

The first thing that kinda got to me is the language. You have to get used to hearing Taglish/Tagalog everywhere you go around the University. It took me a while to get used to this, but it's not that bad.
If you're sensitive about you're "label" on campus, try not to over-emphasize the fact that you're more of an English-speaker (especially if you're a Filipino) since you're gonna get labeled as a so-called 'nosebleed" or "conyo" or whatnot - and yes, I did have this label until I got used to speaking Tagalog (I was kinda ashamed since my tagalog was all effed up...)

Second, classrooms (well at least in DLSU) are small...end it's not a lecture hall at all. You're in a classrooms of 40 students max.

Another thing, especially since I go to De La Salle University, is that there were prayers before and after class. Took a while to get used to but it's no biggie.

Just reply back if you got more questions. I'd be happy to help you out :wink:
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And sadikmac is right about UP (Diliman, the bigger campus) since there are a lot of stories about people getting raped and harassed over there...(and a bunch of people got killed too)
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^ co-sign.

I'm in Ateneo and it's not bad... best campus IMO... :lol:
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Hmmm, if you're somewhere in the design industry, come to my school - De La Salle - College of Saint Benilde. Our new School of Design and Arts building will open on the 28th of May. It's fully-rigged.

CSB always gets the top-of-the-line gadgets for all their learners to use. At least in my course, we're talking about Mac Pros, Xeon computers, HD cameras, fully-equipped laboratories and some old gadgets that are still above par. LOL.

I also heard from friends that the Ateneo campus is really great! Plus, you get to ride with the social hype that you're this smart rich kid (no hate meant, but c'mon, don't tell me it's not true). :-D
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Go to Ateneo or La Salle then your third choice would be UP. It really depends on what your major is.

I'm in Ateneo but Ateneo isn't the best in every course that they offer. Each school have their own strengths so decide on what your majoring in.
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^ Real talk guys. It's true. It would really have to depend on what major you're gonna take. For example, DLSU has great Engineering and Computer Science colleges but it has one of the best Business and Economics college.
Ateneo is also a very good university. From what I know, they have the one of the best humanities college and their business is also very good
(guys...no bias here. My dad's an Atenean, my mom's from UP while I go to DLSU...)

Campus wise, DLSU has a compact college in the middle of the city. But don't get me wrong, the surroundings w/in its walls are nice, clean and green. Ateneo, imo, has the best campus. Nice and green. Lots of grassy knolls and trees (hence, it has fresh air!!!). I love their High School gym as well (Moro)

As sadikmac said, CSB (College of Saint Benilde) is good in those kinds of majors (Design, Arts, etc.)

(sadik...you guys have a wicked college building!! It's huge!!!)

That's as far as the universities go.
__________________
"From North Carolina...At Guard...6'6"...Michael Jordan"
Los Angeles Lakers for life!!!
I'm proud to be a Filipino!!!!!
 
To add to what I said earlier...

I am a BS Computer Science student at the Ateneo de Manila University

^ Yeah... like what psx0529 said, the Ateneo nowadays is more known for the Management courses. The School of Management, I believe has the most graduates.

The teachers for the Humanities and Social Sciences are good as well...

The School of Science and Engineering is all right... if you are going for Comp Sci, I would not likely recommend taking it up here if you hate a lot of self-studying... probably around 75% of what you need might not be taught to you... Me and my classmates usually hit the Web to find resources to suffice for this lack of instruction... but, if you are one of those gifted types, you'll do fine. :lol:
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As I mentioned earlier, the facilities are not bad. New buildings are being built all over the place. Constant renovation is always going on. I'm glad to see where my tuition's going. Laptops are more advisable to use than most of the computers in the open labs (unless if you're Comp Sci, we have our own lab... :smile:
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).

The Sports facilities are very nice. Some dudes can play decent ball... The courts in the College Covered Courts are WAY shorter than regulation, though. There are two soccer fields in the Loyola Schools campus. There are a lot of foreign dudes playing soccer in the afternoon (from all over the place). The campus is also nice to go running as well. One lap around the campus is about 5 kilometers.

The weather here is quite hot, but the campus is noticeably cooler than the stretch along Katipunan Avenue since there are a lot of trees.

All in all, Ateneo has high standards. Slack off and you're dead. (NT's not making studying any easier) :lol:
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IMO if you're more into the Humanities/Business/Social Sciences, go to Ateneo. If you're more into science and engineering, DLSU's better (I think, but it really depends on the course). Like what dtorch3 said, Ateneo's not the best in every course.

These are only the things I could think of for now...

EDIT: As for UP... my sister is going to attend law school there... much, much more competitive there, I guess... the campus there leaves much to be desired. Their campus is around 3-5x the size of Ateneo (correct me if I'm wrong, Ateneo's land area is around 2 square kilometers :nerd:
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all i can say is that the schools,students and people here in the philippines still has a high regard for the right values and principles in life like honesty,integrity,sincerity,humility and respect to one another and that i believe will shape a student to become successful in the corporate scene or business scene

the best schools are most in manila like ateneo,u.p. and la salle but there are also very good schools in visayas and mindanao region like university of san carlos (cebu city),university of the philipines cebu (cebu city),silliman university (dumaguete city),divine word (tacloban), ateneo de davao (davao city) and xavier university (cagayan de oro city) just to name a few of them.

anyway,the good thing about studying in the philippines for you is you will be away from your parents and will be learning to become an independent.and regarless if you are gifted or not,most of the teachers here are very patient with students because it is filipino nature to be patient (and they pretty much don't have a choice really since there aren't a lot of jobs available in the philippines lol) so it will be a better atmosphere to learn unlike in the u.s.lastly,i believe college here in the philippines will be very much cheaper than in universities in the u.s.

hope you make the right decision for yourself.just ask yourself,with everything that you know now regarding life in the philippines,if you study here will it make you a better person? that,i believe,should be the deciding factor for you

see you in the philippines soon :smile:
 
I got to DLSU as well. and basically it all boils down to what course you're taking. For example University of Asia & the Pacific has good business courses, so does DLSU and ADMU. Architecture and medicine you can go to University of Santo Tomas the oldest school in the Phils.

Basically you'll have to deal with the language here. Admittedly some of the professors sometimes forget that they have foreigners in their class and tend to use tagalog a lot. Also not everyone speaks english but for sure they'll understand you. You'll have to live with the jokes and name calling but give it time you'll get used to it.

Good thing about education here. ITS CHEAP. I remember when i was applying for college community college in SFO was charging like $55 a unit. In DLSU its about $30/unit on the average. And a little over $1K for a sem with 18 or more units
 
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You're gonna have to adjust to life in a different country, with a different environment (it's not like just going to a dorm in different state). What I stated before were just examples of what I had to go through. Of course, mentalities are different and you're going to have to adjust to that. You're going to have to restrain yourself especially if you're planning on answerin back someone, cos that is something that you just don't do (among others).
I would suggest joining a student organization in order for you to be able to work with people, meet more people who will be willing to help you, and make that adjustment easier (that's what I did :D
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hey guys, thanks for all the info i really appreciate it. From what im hearing ateneo is probably the best school for me (majoring in business). And i am not rich btw. And plus i wanted to stay as close to the city as possible, mainly manila seeing that i have aunts and cousins living there (whom ive never met btw) smh at me.
But still may main concerns are:
1. not being able to speak a lick of tagalog,,but kinda understand it
2. homesicknesss
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^ Don't worry about the Tagalog part man. If you don't speak, then you're gonna learn it easily. Imo, it's part of the fun (and the adventure of living in the PI) :smile:
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belonging to something over here, makes you less homesick, in a way.
Don't worry, you get almost everything you have in the US over here (except maybe for...well, if you're from CA...e.g. In 'n' Out or, in my case, Tommy's Burger, or something).

LOL, Mr Kc :rofl:
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__________________
"From North Carolina...At Guard...6'6"...Michael Jordan"
Los Angeles Lakers for life!!!
I'm proud to be a Filipino!!!!!
 
education-wise, you are going to run into good and bad teachers no matter where you go. In your first 2 years of college you've probably realized that. make sure you study a course that you can realistically apply towards a job here when you move back. a degree in law, for example, can be one of the most flexible degrees when used correctly, or it can turn out to be a wasted $100,000. i'm not particularly sure about a business degree, but start really planning on your career paths when you finish, now.

now the biggest thing you'll encounter is social assimilation. although you may be 100% filipino, you differ by nationaly, ethnicity, and culture. initially, try and reserve yourself a little bit. it is instinctual to always want to compare things to the states. it's ok to do these things in your mind, but don't make it a verbal habit. you seem pretty humble, so I don't think you will have any problems. Try and go there with the idea that you are not a visitor/tourist, you're a Filipino. When your cousins drink the tapwater and play bball in tsinelas, do the same. And if you still feel you stand out, try harder.

all in all, you will meet some of the greatest people in your life. You will experience a different people and mindset. Who knows, you might even miss it when you come back.

ps...don't forget to bring your family chocolate. as simple as it is, they'll love it.
 
Another thing I was wondering...does an undergrad degree in business translate equally to the US?
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^ How can you be so sure about that?? :\
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__________________
"From North Carolina...At Guard...6'6"...Michael Jordan"
Los Angeles Lakers for life!!!
I'm proud to be a Filipino!!!!!
 
Well that I am not entirely sure. Ofcourse comparing a degree from here to a big school in the US wouldnt actually be fair. But a degree is a degree. And i guess it is better than not having one.
 
anybody ever hear anything about/go to asian institute of management in manila?
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Quote:
anybody ever hear anything about/go to asian institute of management in manila?


It's for graduate studies. Excellent school. A lot of foreign nationals take their MBA's in AIM. In fact, my company was invited for a talk there last year. About 85% of the student population were non-filipinos.
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