Bachelor of Science in Development Communication

The current curriculum of the BS Development Communication is in accordance with the Commission on Higher Education Memorandum Order (CMO) No. 36 series of 2017. CMO 36, series of 2017 pertains to the Policies, Standards and Guidelines (PSG) for Bachelor of Science in Development Communication (BS DevCom) Program. The current curriculum of the program strictly adhered to the provisions of the CMO. The curriculum includes general education courses, core courses, required courses, electives, internship, and thesis that are necessary for the students’ outcomes-based education.

General education courses are essentially included to prepare the students for the study of communication with exposure to multidisciplinary courses based on the new General Education curriculum. Core courses of BS DevCom provide an overview of the Development Communication discipline. The required courses introduce the students to the subfields of communication. There are two types of required courses in the DevCom curriculum: CHEd-required courses which are non-negotiable; and required courses which were identified by the department based on Institutional and Program Outcomes.

Furthermore, the elective courses expose students to various fields of inquiry in the field of communication as well as in the social sciences (such as Psychology, Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science) and natural sciences (such as Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Agriculture, and Forestry). Nine units of elective courses cover the following knowledge domains: Mathematics, Science, and Technology; Social Sciences and Philosophy; and Arts and Humanities. As for the Development Communication Internship, it provides the students hands-on experience in the use of communication in the industry. The Thesis enables students to apply research skills, from conceptualization of a research topic to data gathering, report writing, and presentation of findings or production of a creative work. It is offered in the final year of the program. Communication Research, as a distinct subject during the third year includes the basic concepts, traditions of inquiry, methods and processes of communication research.

The Bachelor of Science in Development Communication program is under the Department of Development Communication. Currently, there are five faculty members in the department with Development Communication as their specialization.

Currently, two out of five of the faculty members are with permanent status, while the remaining faculty members are currently finishing their Master’s degree. With the number of faculty members, each faculty handles a plethora of major DevCom subjects along with other general education subjects. These general education subjects would range from subjects that focus on development concepts, art to history subjects and

even logic and ethics.

Other than the usual teaching workload, as the only department that focuses on communication and development, they are also given other assignments that not only focus on media and extension, but other designations as well. Other designations of the faculty members do not only focus on the department and college level, but also on the university-wide level.

The faculty members and students in the Department of Development Communication program are all involved in the research and extension programs and activities of the University. The researches conducted are focused on the Sustainable Development Goals recognized internationally which are also aligned with the PSAU Research Agenda. In this case, all of the DevCom faculty members have locally and externally funded research which are multidisciplinary in nature as evidenced by

collaborations with other colleges and universities as well as agencies. For the students, as they are required to conduct individual research, there are also collaborations with government agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Agriculture and others. Research of the department also focuses on basic research targeted to craft policy recommendations and program improvement of concerned institutions and agencies.

On the other hand, the Extension activities conducted by the Development Communication Program is anchored on the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) programs for performance excellence in extension namely:

1. Extension in Food Production and Security

2. Extension in Environment, Disaster and Prevention, Preparedness and Resiliency

3. Extension in Biodiversity and Conservation

4. Extension in Smart Analytics and Engineering Innovations

5. Extension in Translational Health

6. Extension in Education

The program also supports the sustainable development goal or SDG of the United Nations focusing on food security, poverty alleviation, good health and well-being.

Its framework is under the Barangay Integrated Development Approach for Nutrition Improvement (BIDANI) Program of the university which is funded locally by the university through Fund 101. This serves as the catalyst to carry out the CHED mandate

of the extension program of the University. The beneficiaries being served by the extension program of the Department of Development Communication are students, farmers, women, and communities residing in Magalang, Pampanga and neighbouring municipalities.

Funded by the University, the Department of Development Communication operates and manages the new and improved DWEE 107.1 FM D’ Ani Kita Radio Facility. Making the most of the radio station’s potential in extension and training services, the Utilization of of DWEE 107.1FM became the flagship extension program of the Department of Development Communication maximizing on-the-air broadcast opportunities to capacitate the farmers, fisher-folks, empower women, uplift the youth, and educate the communities that are reached by the radio station.

DWEE 107.1 FM D’ Ani Kita Radio station, in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture is a 300 watts community radio station and is established to serve as a platform of disseminating technology information, services and livelihood practices to

the community. It is also home to serve as a training ground for PSAU’s Development Communication students to further develop and enhance their communication skills. The radio station is under the management of the Department of Development Communication, continuously operates as a medium of information dissemination to the community.

Information Communication Technology Research and Development Facility

The Establishment of Information Communications Technology Research and Development Facility is an externally funded project facility under the Infrastructure Development Grant of the Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Agricultural Research. ICT-RD aims to serve as a link between the technologies and communities by translating and enhancing information dissemination through different communication

platforms such as print broadcast, social media communication, video production, and documentation of agricultural technologies. Through this innovation, there will be increased appreciation of how researches and technologies have significant impact towards communities.

In the field of Development Communication, the practice of information dissemination is an effective way to promote, propagate, and transform the lives of Filipino farmers in the country. Moreover, Information and Communications Technology Research and Development Facility will produce new generation and trained communication/media practitioners (specifically, Development Communication Practitioners) following and supporting the agenda in advancing the agriculture and fisheries productivity, high profitability and new technologies for our farmers. This establishment will also be the home for our Development Communication students in Pampanga State Agricultural University to practice different communication platforms and to widen their horizons in the field of communication/media.

All the 53 DevCom graduates from four batches of graduates answered the tracer study. Of these 53, the majority (96.23%) are employed. Only 3.77% of the respondents said that they are not currently working. This implies that the BS DevCom graduates are highly employable. The table below presents the number of the graduates, respondents per batch, and the number of the employed graduates.

Based on the data from 2018 graduates, the majority (93.33%) of them are employed and there are two graduates (6.67%) who reported that they are not currently working. Additionally, out of the 28 graduates who are currently employed during the conduct of the survey, 19 (67.86%) are in the various private companies, six (21.43%) are working in the government institutions, two (7.14%) are self-employed, and one (3.57%) of the graduates is working on a private company overseas.

As to the 2019 graduates, all (100%) of the 18 graduates have responded to the tracer study questionnaire and based on the data collected, all (100%) are employed. Of these 18 graduates, 13 (70.37%) are working in the various private companies and the other five (18.52%) are employees of government institutions. 

In the year 2020, due to the transition in the education system (K to 12 Education Program), only continuing students enrolled in the BS DevCom program. Among the enrolled graduating students one has completed the program in 2020, hence there is one graduate during the particular batch. Based on the data provided of the 2020 graduate, she is currently employed in a government institution, thus making the percentage of the employed graduates in the particular batch a 100%.

Moreover, in the year 2021, there are four BS DevCom graduates and all (100%) of them have responded in the survey. According to the data collected, all (100%) the four graduates are currently employed. Of these four, three (75%) are working in private companies and the other one (25%) is self-employed (managing her own micro-enterprise business).

Level I Accredited - July 16, 2015 - July 15, 2018

Level II Re-accredited - July 16, 2018 - July 15, 2022

Level III Re-accredited