Oct. 13, 2016, 4:19 p.m. – TWENTY-SIX programs of the UST Graduate School have been granted Level IV accreditation status, the highest level of accreditation given by the Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities’ Commission on Accreditation (Pacucoa) to private higher educational institutions.
Pacucoa gave the Level IV status to 15 master of arts programs and 11 master of science programs.
Master’s programs in development studies, economics, educational management and leadership, English language studies, guidance and counseling, history, hospital administration, literature, philosophy, political science, psychology and public administration retained the status. The master of arts in curriculum and instruction program was added to the list.
The master’s programs in biology, biology education, chemistry, microbiology, pharmacy, chemistry education, food science, mathematics education, entrepreneurship, nursing and medical technology also obtained the Level IV status.
According to the Pacucoa website, Level IV accreditation grants full autonomy to each program for five years.
It also enables school administrators to offer new graduate programs and open learning or distance education and extension classes related to existing Level IV courses, without the need for prior approval of the Commission on Higher Education.
The Level IV status for the 26 programs is valid until 2021.