UP offers P165,000 annual scholarship to low-income students
MANILA, Philippines — Students from low-income families who qualified for admission to the University of the Philippines can now apply for a scholarship program that will provide them with financial aid worth P165,000 covering housing, meals, transportation, and other academic expenses.
The "Lingap-Iskolar" program — now in its second year — provides financial support to UPCAT qualifiers who come from families earning less than P135,000 in gross annual income and who are not recipients of other scholarships.
The university has earmarked P50 million to fund scholarships for 300 recipients this year.
"UP education is costly, even if tuition is free. One must pay for food, dorms, books, transportation, loads, delivery, and other expenses," UP President Angelo Jimenez said at a press conference on Tuesday, April 22. "We don't want students who are offered admissions not to proceed to UP for the simple reason of financial lack."
Tristan Ramos, director for UP's student development services, said the annual P165,000 financial package will cover all essential expenses students face while studying at UP.
The financial support includes monthly allowances for housing (P3,000), meals (P9,000), communication (P500), and school supplies (P1,000). Students also receive a book allowance of P5,000 per semester and a one-time transportation allowance of P10,000 to help students relocate from their hometowns to their respective campuses.
Ramos said the scholarship program also offers flexibility in how students want to allocate the funds.
"If they have savings from their housing benefit, like in Diliman where it might cost less than P3,000, and their degree programs require more expenses for supplies, such as Fine Arts or Dentistry, those savings will be redirected to cover those additional costs."
The P165,000 financial support is given every year, but only within the standard number of years required to complete the degree program.
Valid leaves of absence are allowed and will not be counted against the scholarship duration, Ramos told Philstar.com.
How to apply? Interested UPCAT qualifiers can apply for the Lingap-Iskolar program by sending an email to the system-wide UP Office of Student Development Services or their respective constituent university’s Office of Student Affairs.
A total of 194 students were recipients of the scholarship program last year, with 90 grantees spread out from UP Baguio, UP Cebu, UP Mindanao and UP Los Baños.
Beyond scholarship
Shari Oliquino, assistant vice president for student affairs, said Lingap-Iskolar recipients also have the option to work as student assistants, especially with the university's recent approval of wage increases.
Oliquino said student assistants now earn P81 per hour (up 35% from P60), master's level graduate assistants receive P145 per hour (45% increase from P100), and PhD graduate assistants earn P211 per hour (50% increase from P140).
Jimenez said it is the first such increase for student and graduate assistants in a decade.
"We want students' stay in the university to be sustainable," Oliquino added.
The university on Tuesday released the results of UPCAT 2025 qualifiers. For this year, at least 13% of all test-takers were granted admission to the university.
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