Our journey through the years

The AA program was instituted in 1998 with the general objective to offer undergraduate education by distance mode to qualified students.

As an undergraduate program in the UP system, it also offered a General Education (GE) component that aimed to:

1. broaden the students' intellectual and cultural horizons

2. foster a commitment of nationalism balanced by a sense of internationalism

3. cultivate a capacity for independent, critical and creative thinking

4. infuse a passion for learning with a high sense of moral and intellectual integrity

Along with these objectives that guided the GE in the UP system, the AA program added the following objectives:

5. to develop self-motivated learners with independent learning skills that will enable them to successfully complete their undergraduate education via the distance mode.

6. to provide a generalist type of basic tertiary education that will also develop competencies in communication and computer use.

During this time, the AA program was composed of 72 units of course work, 42 units of which consisted of the current GE courses in the residential program. In addition, students were required to take (8) units of Physical Education (PE) courses and (6) units of National Service Training Program (NSTP) courses. Furthermore, all courses were offered by distance mode.

In 2005, the AA program was revised for the first time, which coincided with the entry of UPOU to online learning and the program's institution of the course COMP ED 2. 

During this time, the AA program was composed of 60 units of course work, which consisted of 15 units of Required courses, 15 units of Language and Humanities courses, 15 units of Social Sciences and Philosophy courses, and 15 units of Mathematics, Science and Technology courses. In addition, students were required to take (8) units of PE courses and (6) units of NSTP courses.

In 2011, the AA program was revised for the second time, which coincided with the Revised General Education Program (RGEP) of the whole UP system. This revision had the AA curriculum structure reflect 45 units of GE. Furthermore, UPOU submitted its list of RGEP-compliant GE courses with 6 units of prescribed GE courses per domain and adopted additional GE courses from other Constituent Universities (CUs).

During this time, the AA program was composed of 60 units of course work, which consisted of 45 units of GE courses with 15 units of Arts and Humanities courses, 15 units of Social Sciences and Philosophy courses, and 15 units of Mathematics, Science, and Technology courses. This also had 3 units of the Mandated course, PI 100, as well as 12 units of Required courses. In addition, students were required to take (8) units of PE courses and (6) units of NSTP courses.

In 2018, the AA program was revised for the third time in line with the UP system's implementation of the new GE program and in order to provide students with a strong foundation in the Arts and Humanities. 

With this, the program objectives were also revised to the following:

1. Cultivate appreciation of the Arts and Humanities as a field of study and practice;

2. Hone skills in humanistic inquiry, including critical thinking, scholarship, effective communication, collaboration, and creativity; and

3. Develop competencies in the study of the Arts and Humanities in a rapidly changing digital world.

During this time, the AA program was restructured and is now composed of 72 units of course work, which consists of 30 units of GE courses, 12 units of Common courses, 27 units of Concentration courses, and a 3-unit Mandated course (PI 100), with (8) units of PE and (6) units of NSTP courses.