General Admission Requirements
Graduates of foreign and Philippine high schools accredited by the Department of Education (DepEd) may be admitted as freshmen into the University based on the following:
- Performance in the UP College Admission Test (UPCAT); and
- Weighted average of final grades obtained in high school.
A total combined score of 1,200 for the verbal and mathematics subtests in the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) will also qualify an applicant for automatic admission as freshman to the University.
The UPCAT
Those who wish to study at the university take the UP College Admission Test (UPCAT). It is administered on the first weekend of August every year. The UPCAT is a four-hour long examination consisting of subtests on language proficiency, reading comprehension, mathematics and science. The UPCAT is in English and Filipino.
Standardized scores on these subtests are combined with the weighted average of final grades in the first three (3) years of high school to determine qualification into UP. Moreover, to implement the policy of democratization to make the UP studentry more representative of the nation’s population, socio-economic and geographic considerations are factored in the selection of campus qualifiers.
UPCAT applicants are ranked based on their admission grades which are the combinedUPCAT scores, high school grades, and equity factors where applicable. Admission grades like the University Predicted Grade (UPG) measure the applicant’s potential to do well in the University.
Every year, thousands of senior high school students take the UPCAT exam at UP constituent units and designated exam centers across the country. In 2010, over 65,000 examinees took the UPCAT.
For more details, please go to the Office of Admissions website. Those who want to study at the UP Open University, may want to check this link for instructions.
Graduate students
Requirements for graduate programs vary according to those set by the colleges and units. The programs offered by the constituent universities can be browsed over with the links the following links:
- UP Diliman
- UP Los Baños
- UP Manila
- UP Visayas
- UP Open University
- UP Mindanao
- UP Baguio (Found in the colleges on the main page’s menu)
- UP Cebu
Transferees
For transferees, here are links with the necessary information.
- UP Diliman
- UP Los Baños
- UP Manila
- UP Visayas
- UP Open University
- UP Mindanao
- UP Baguio
- UP Cebu (Requirements mentioned in the form available on the home page under the Registrar’s Corner)
Foreign students
Information on admission of foreign students may be found at the following pages:
- UP Diliman
- UP Los Baños
- UP Manila
- UP Visayas (Requirements are in a downloadable file)
- UP Open University
- UP Mindanao
- UP Baguio
- UP Cebu (Requirements are found in the form available on the home page under Registrar’s Corner)
Scholarships
There are a number of private and government funded scholarships available to UP students, both in the undergraduate and graduate level. To view the updated list of these scholarships, please visit the links below:
Other sections which you might be interested in:
- University of the Philippines College Admission Test (UPCAT)
- How to get to UP Diliman
- Campus Maps
- Academic Calendars
