The UP Board of Regents (BOR) approved two new programs “to enhance the artistic engagements” of UP Diliman (UPD) students at its 1323rd meeting on Dec. 16.
The UPD Visual Arts and Cultural Studies Scholarship Program and UPD Creative/Critical Thesis Grant in the Arts, Culture and the Humanities aim to benefit student artists and student-critics in the visual arts, arts criticism and cultural studies.
These programs will be implemented by the Office for Initiatives in Culture and the Arts (OICA).
The Scholarship Program is a tuition waiver for deserving students in the visual arts or any field of arts criticism and cultural studies. The waiver is good only for the semester following the time of application but is renewable for a maximum of eight semesters.
To qualify, an applicant must be: enrolled in any visual arts related program or any arts and cultural criticism program; enrolled in at least 15 units of academic courses during the application period; have a weighted average grade (WAG) of 2.00 or higher during the preceding semester; and have the potential to be an exemplary artist or scholar as proven by a faculty-artist, or an established artist in a recommendation letter during the first semester of application.
Awarded by the UPD chancellor, an applicant must be recommended by his/her department chair and endorsed by the college dean to the OICA Advisory Council for evaluation. The Council then submits the list of perspective recipients to the Chancellor for approval.
Meanwhile, the Thesis Grant is a competitive research and/or creative work subsidy in the form of an outright grant of P50,000 for undergraduate, P75,000 for graduate and P100,000 for post-graduate students in the visual arts and programs related to the critical study of arts and culture.
Envisioned to defray some of the research expenses, the grant covers a semester for an undergraduate student and a year for graduate and post- graduate students.
To qualify, an applicant must have passed his/her program’s research methods subject (i.e. 199 course number for undergraduate, 299 for graduate and 399 for post-graduate) and a faculty member has agreed to be his/her adviser. Undergraduate applicants must be on their final semester of study or enrolled in the thesis subject (200 course number) with a WAG not lower than 2.00 during the semester prior to application. Graduate or post-graduate applicants must be enrolled in the thesis or dissertation subject (300 or 400 course number).
Applicants must be in the following disciplines but not limited to: painting, sculpture, visual communication, industrial design, architecture, landscape architecture, heritage studies, theatre studies, art studies, comparative literature, Philippine studies, anthropology, cultural studies, Asian studies, clothing technology, interior design, tourism and language studies.
Undergraduate applicants are evaluated according to their WAG while graduate and post-graduate students on the basis of arts credentials, published works, conference participations and research projects, merits of the project proposal and recommendations from authorities. The Council makes an evaluation based on the recommendation of the applicants’ chair and endorsement of the applicant’s dean. The Council then forwards a list of prospective recipients to the UPD chancellor for approval.
Three recipients for each level will be awarded annually; however, the Council may opt not to award the grant should the applicants be deemed underserving of the grant.
The thesis grant will be given in three tranches: 70 percent after the recipient signed the contract and defended his/her thesis proposal, 20 percent after the recipient has defended his/her thesis and the final 10 percent after the recipient submits to OICA the final report.
They are required to submit a copy (printed and electronic) of the thesis after successfully obtaining the desired degree and must duly recognize OICA as a subsidizing agency.
In October, the BOR approved the UPD Performing Arts Scholarship Program and the Honorific Award for Student Performing Arts Group.