BS Forestry is assessed under 378th AUN-QA Programme Assessment
The BS Forestry (BSF) program of the UPLB College of Forestry and Natural Resources (CFNR) underwent its second assessment by the ASEAN University Network-Quality Assurance (AUN-QA) on March 12-14, 2024.
The AUN-QA assessed the BSF program under its 378th AUN-QA Programme Assessment, which aimed to promote quality assurance in higher education institutions, raise the quality of higher education, and collaborate with regional and international bodies to benefit the ASEAN community.
AUN-QA assessors Prof. Dr. Hannah H. Bachtiar-Iskandar from the University of Indonesia and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Watana Padgate from Thailand’s Naresuan University examined the program structure, human resources and facilities, and alum satisfaction and graduate employability of the BSF by interviewing faculty members, support staff of the college and the university, students, alums, and employers of the college’s graduates.
They also toured the CFNR campus to assess the infrastructure and facilities and to identify the services provided to its constituents.
Dr. Padgate emphasized the geographic location of the college and the use of the Mt. Makiling Forest Reserve as a living, learning laboratory for students and researchers.
According to him, it gives the BSF program of CFNR an edge over the same programs in other state universities and colleges (SUCs).
He also commended the faculty members’ application of student-centered active learning through the outcome-based education (OBE) approach in BSF courses implemented since 2018.
For her part, Dr. Bachtiar-Iskandar commended the high employment rate of BS Forestry graduates and the employers’ high preference for them in their selection and hiring process.
She said that the employers categorized the CFNR graduates as belonging to the top five SUCs that provide them with their workforce.
CFNR’s BS Forestry program earned its first AUN-QA certification effective from 2017 to 2022.
It underwent its second program assessment with the BS Biology program of UPLB and UP Baguio and UPLB’s BS Nutrition programs. (PJB Del Rosario).
