The Bachelor of Science in Computer Science (BSCS) degree program of the Institute of Computer Science (ICS) has gone through its first External Quality Assurance (EQA) assessment in November 2023. BSCS is one of the degree programs under the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) which were lined up for EQA assessment this year.
The series of EQA assessments of the CAS degree programs started with an opening session held at the CAS Auditorium last September 12, 2023. The BSCS program was scheduled for assessment on Nov. 15-17, 2023. The three-day EQA assessment was full of activities set by the UPLB Quality Assurance Office (QAO). These include online interview sessions via Zoom with BSCS alumni and employers of BSCS graduates in the morning of the first day. This was followed by a face-to-face interview session with the ICS Director and ICS Self-Assessment Report (SAR) team, headed by Assoc. Prof. Jaime M. Samaniego, in the afternoon. A separate interview with the BSCS students was the last activity for the first day.
Two assessors, Dr. Myra G. Borines and Dr. Jezie A. Acorda, were assigned for the EQA assessment of the BSCS program. Dr. Borines is a professor from the College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial Technology and is the current Director of the UPLB QA office. Dr. Acorda was a former Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and was the first Director of the UPLB QA office. The assessors also did a facility visit at ICS in the morning of Nov. 16 which was followed by another set of interview sessions with ICS support staff and academic staff.
In the culminating event during the last day of the EQA assessment, the assessors presented a summary of their preliminary findings, which include both the strengths and the weaknesses of the BSCS program, based on the information they have gathered from all the stakeholders. The program ended with the closing remarks from the ICS Director, Dr. Maria Art Antonette D. Clariño and the CAS QA Officer, Prof. Rosemarie D. Eusebio.
The recently concluded EQA Assessment of the BSCS program marks another milestone for the institute. This momentous event will help ICS to further strengthen its degree program to meet the needs of all its stakeholders and continuously advance towards the realization of its mission and vision.