The UP Diliman Quality Assurance Office (UPD QAO) brought together 24 Quality Assurance Officers from various degree-granting units (DGUs) of UP Diliman at the recently held QA Clinic at the Institute for Small-Scale Industries (ISSI) last October 28, 2024. For the 4th quarter of the year, the QA Clinic aimed to provide guidelines on year-end reviews and strategic planning, updates on rankings data collection, IAADS, Self Assessment Report, answer budget-related questions, and give tips on how to conduct resource planning for strategic initiatives.
For guidelines on year-end reviews and strategic planning, UPD QAO Director Aura C. Matias started with likening QA to a Physical Exam, wherein it is a “checkup” on how well our units are functioning. She reminded QA Officers that QA initiatives are anchored on the Deming Cycle (PDCA/Plan-Do-Check-Act) and to use the information or feedback from our Check instruments like the iAADS report, assessment findings, and ARTA Client Satisfaction Survey in planning.
Director Matias also emphasized the role of QA Officers to quality-assure their respective DGUs, especially in the alignment of strategic plans to the 10 flagship programs of the UP System (Quality Assurance and Quality Management System are under the 9th flagship program) and the 3-point agenda of UP Diliman – mainstreaming of a culture of honor and excellence, pursuing sustainable development more aggressively, and developing the campus as a cultural haven. Director Matias reminded QA Officers to look beyond plans and be able to anticipate and calibrate change.
Following Director Matias’ presentation, Mr. Efren Baccay, Jr. from the UP Diliman Budget Office shared the budget process and gave tips on how to secure resources for strategic initiatives. In addition, he shared significant circulars pertaining to government expenditure.
For UPD QAO Knowledge Management updates, Mr. Mic Baguisa shared the current status of UP Diliman vis-a-vis the QS World University Rankings (336th for 2025), THE World University Rankings (1201-1500 for 2025), and THE Impact Rankings (401-600 for 2025) and their respective foci – numbers and ratios, reputation, citations, and alignment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, among others. He reminded QA Officers of their role in ensuring that data are submitted within the requested reckoning period and policies are reviewed every three (3) to five (5) years. In addition, he emphasized that accurate and timely data submissions directly impact how universities are evaluated and ranked globally.
Prior to the Q4 QA Clinic, a survey was conducted on the status of IAADS and SAR (both undergraduate and graduate programs) submissions. Mr. Kelvin Mendoza highlighted some insights and the importance of conducting post-IAADS or post-assessment activities, following the Deming Cycle, to address the weaknesses and sustain the good practices of the QA officers’ respective units. The QA Officers were then reminded of the submission deadline of SAR and IAADS reports on December 31, 2024.
The QA Clinic is a venue for the QA Office to provide directions, gather feedback, check on the implementation of QA activities in the respective DGUs, and identify action plans to ensure that the University can deliver the QA strategic goals set at the start of the year.
The UP Diliman Quality Assurance Office (UPD QAO) formally launched its third anniversary last August 2, 2023 with a lineup of virtual and face-to-face activities anchored on the concepts of Kasanayan, Kaisahan, at Kahusayan which aims to capture the state of quality assurance in the University and its initiatives.
The UP Diliman Quality Assurance Office (UPD QAO) organized a two-day benchmarking activity with Pangasinan State University (PSU) in Lingayen, Pangasinan last July 19-20, 2023 as part of its efforts to initiate the preparations of the University of the Philippines Diliman for institutional assessment through the Philippine Quality Award (PQA).
Throughout the different training programs and communications related to quality assurance (QA), the UPD Quality Assurance Office (UPD-QAO) has always emphasized the importance of aligning stakeholders and working together to achieve its strategic objectives.
The Administrative Staff Program for Institutional Resiliency and Excellence (ASPIRE) program returned for its eighth run, debuting in another campus after successful iterations for the OVPAA, Diliman, Los Baños, and Visayas.
Quality Assurance Officers (QAOs) from the College of Engineering (CoE) teamed up with the UP Diliman Quality Assurance Office (UPD QAO) for their Self-Study Report (SSR) preparations in an SSR Writeshop last May 18-19, 2023 at the UP National Engineering Center.
Officials and program representatives from the Naresuan University in Thailand visited the University of the Philippines Diliman on May 5, 2023 to learn about the accreditation process through the ASEAN University Network-Quality Assurance (AUN-QA).
