The influx of contemporaneous challenges in the maritime arena is sending a strong signal that modern day students must be accorded the best of maritime education and training especially when it comes to building the very foundation of their future. And if one chooses the path of becoming a maritime professional, the matter of deciding where to jumpstart his career is one of the struggles of every hopeful captain, chief engineer, and naval architect in the making. The good news is, there is no need for aspiring maritime students to go far from home because over the years, the University of Perpetual Help (UPH) has developed its maritime education and training institutions very well.
With an integrated system that upholds the time-honored guiding principle of “Character Building is Nation Building”, the University of Perpetual Help offers more than the basics of teaching and training. Among others, the development of the necessary attributes of a well-rounded seafarer is a top priority that should make each and every Perpetualite mariner count. In making every Filipino seafarer count, there’s no doubt that the Philippines will continue to be the crewing capital of the world.
With the pillars of education, training, and deployment steering the way of our combined institutions’ vision and mission, the students must know what to expect aside from the traditional well-wishes of fair winds, clear skies, and following seas.
Commitment to Quality Maritime Education
The University of Perpetual Help currently offers, among its many accredited programs, three maritime programs, namely Marine Transportation, Marine Engineering, and Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, which are available in two accessible campuses – one in Las Piñas City and the other in Biñan, Laguna. Both campuses are equipped with state-of-the art instructional facilities such as the Kongsberg Full-Mission Bridge and Engine Room Simulators and other technical laboratories. Dedicated UPH maritime professionals are always ready to mold students to the best of their abilities while instilling in them the core values of professionalism, teamwork, and excellence which are essential to the students’ pursuit of a dignified maritime profession. Recently, Senior High School with Pre-Baccalaureate Maritime Specialization has likewise been introduced into the system.
To attest to UPH’s long-standing commitment to excellence, Perpetualite maritime institutions have achieved several recognitions, from Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) to Bureau Veritas ISO 9001:2015 Certification, and even the much sought after MARINA’s list of recognized schools. UPH has been making a name for itself when it comes to quality education and training. The Philipine Association of Colleges and Universities Commission On Accreditation (PACUCOA) has ranked the UPH Las Piñas campus as the second university with the highest number of accredited programs in the Philippines. The University of Perpetual Help Las Piñas and Biñan campuses which are offering medical, health, business, engineering, computer studies, international hospitality management, education, law, maritime education, aviation, criminology, and graduate programs have already been granted Autonomous Status by CHED.
The Bachelor of Science in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (BSNAME) program is also being upgraded through enhanced learning techniques in the classrooms, and related works on the testing tank and mold lofting facility. BSNAME students also undergo summer On-the-Job Training (OJT) in the shipyards where their individual performances are assessed. Most of the UPH BSNAME graduates are now practicing their profession in local and international shipyards, classification societies, surveying and marine insurance companies, government agencies, uniformed services, and the academe.
Proficiency and Teamwork in Training
The University of Perpetual Help has its own training center located in Marinig, Cabuyao, Laguna which is also known as the University of Perpetual Help System Laguna – Maritime Training Center, Inc (UPHSL-MTCI).
Unlike most of the other centers, UPHSL-MTCI offers in-house training programs to provide quality maritime training instructions and services to students, seafarers, and would-be seafarers in order for them to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge to be globally competent and competitive in the industry without all the hassle of travelling back and forth from their home. In-house trainees likewise develop camaraderie and teamwork while learning as they stay 24/7 inside the training site for the duration of the course.
UPHSL-MTCI is also equipped with up-to-date and well-maintained facilities and equipment vital to the students’ learning. It has been accredited by the MARINA to offer Basic Training (BT), Advanced Firefighting (AFF), Proficiency in Survival Craft and Rescue Boat (PSCRB), Medical Emergency First Aid (MEFA), Consolidated Marine Pollution Annexes I-VI (Conso MARPOL I-VI) and Ship Security Awareness Training and Seafarers with Designated Security Duties (SSAT-SDSD). Moreover, the training center has met all the requirements for certification to guarantee to its trainees that its top priority is to help them optimize their learning potentials from the classrooms and practicum. UPHSL-MTCI is also ISO 9001:2015 Certified.
Preparedness for Deployment
The two UPH maritime colleges’ Shipboard Training Offices have been strengthened to further assist the students in the fulfillment of their shipboard training (SBT) pursuant to CMO No. 70, series of 2017. Partnership with various shipping companies engaged in international and domestic trade has been enhanced, thus providing more cadet berths for the students. Enrichment programs are likewise conducted to further ascertain the students’ preparedness with the full understanding and support of their parents for SBT deployment.
The knowledge, skills, and attitude acquired by the cadets during the conduct of their SBT on board numerous inter-island vessels will definitely help enable the Philippines to sustain its global maritime manpower dominance. The combined SBT experience gained from international and inter-island vessels will better prepare them for deployment and thus, continue to make the Filipinos the world’s maritime professionals and seafarers of choice.
Dr./BGen Antonio L. Tamayo AFP (Res), Chairman of the Board and CEO, and Founder of UPH is very proud that the University has already produced and deployed not only a significant number of maritime professionals and seafarers but also many other professionals for our country and the international community.
Admiral Wilfredo D. Tamayo, former Commandant of the Philippine Coast Guard, and presently the Senior Executive Vice President for Maritime Affairs of UPH added, “along with the other maritime schools in the country, our primary goal is to produce more competent seafarers and maritime officers for both the global fleet, and the shipping industry, maritime services, and cognizant government agencies of the country”.
Here at the University of Perpetual Help, students are trained to serve and learn with a heart, mind, and hand. With the heart means to do things not just by the book but with great passion for the profession; with the mind means being mentally, socially, and spiritually prepared for whatever hardships life has to throw whether in school or onboard which would eventually make the cadet a seasoned seafarer, and lastly, with the hand means to pursue a colorful career not just for the student’s personal growth, nor for his family’s, but more so, for the betterment of our seafaring nation, guided by the very principle that every Perpetualite has known, and that is “Character Building is Nation Building”.