"Total University" Essay Writing Contest

For the PUP Foundation Celebrations

Rationale

To make possible the realization of the envisioned status of the university to be a TOTAL UNIVERSITY, the idea itself of what it should be must form part not only of the collective consciousness but of the lived reality as well of all the constituents of the university. Because of the extent and nature of the metamorphosis that it is going to bring to the University, the idea of a Total University must pass through the crucible of intellectual discourse. There is a need to pull together the learned opinions of our faculty and employees regarding their own creative and intellectual version of what a Total University is and how the paths towards such a status could be carved for the whole community to take to provide the generative matrix from which a final and consensual conceptualization of the Total University can be drawn.

Proposed Project

The Office of the Vice-President for Research and Development (OVPRD) is proposing to sponsor an essay writing contest (both in English and Filipino) to generate as many conceptualizations of the Total University vision as possible. The fecund intersections of the essays will then be used to frame the drafting of the document of and for a Total University. All submissions will be reviewed by the OVPRD for possible publication and exhibit this coming 103rd Foundation Celebrations.

Mechanics

Essays, either in English or Filipino, must be in publishable format: with bibliographic entries, abstract below the title (with keywords). Entries must work on the topic: “Conceptualizing a Total University”. A minimum of 2,000 words (for English) or a minimum of 2,500 words (for Filipino) is required for the paper excluding the abstract (150 words). The paper should not, however, exceed 5,000 words.

Rules

1. All currently teaching members of the faculty may join.
2. An entry can be a co-authorship but with a maximum number of 2 authors.
3. The finalists must present their papers in a final presentation program which will be held during the Research Colloquium on October 3, 2007, Wednesday at the Ninoy Aquino Learning Resource Center.
4. There will be 7 finalists for both English and Filipino categories whose papers are assured of publication in the book about a Total University.
5. Entries must be submitted in 3 printed copies.
6. All entries must be personally submitted to the Center for Human Development, S-419, from 8:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M.
7. No entries will be accepted after September 25, 2007.

Judging and Judges

1. The OVPRD will constitute a panel of 5 judges.
   
2. The decision of the Panel is final and not subject to appeal.
   
3. The judges are going to select the top 7 finalists based on the following criteria:
   1. strength of the paper argument - 30%
   2. cohesiveness of the arguments - 20%
   3. ability to contextualize main conceptual claims - 20%
   4. textual presentation - 15%
   5. over-all impact of the paper - 15%

   The paper argument is the main conceptual claim that runs throughout the whole paper. It is the thread of argument that binds the paper together.

   The cohesiveness of the arguments is the way smaller arguments are put together to constitute and strengthen the paper argument. It is how the minor claims of the paper are interconnected such as to present a coherent conceptualization (the paper claim).

   Ability to contextualize main conceptual claims has to do with paper substantiation through scholarly research (data, sourcing of insights, connecting and referring to other works)

   Textual presentation accounts for the proper choice of words, grammar, the paper as it is written (argument arrangement through sectioning).

   The over-all impact of the paper refers to the way the paper strikes the readers (judges) similar to the proverbial x-factor
   
   

4. To determine the top three prizes, presenters will be judged based on the following distribution:
   
   75% (original ranking) + 25% (oral presentation)

Prizes

There will be three winners (1st, 2nd and 3rd prize) who will receive cash prizes. Winning and published entries will earn for the authors corresponding points for promotion based on the BOR Resolution #520 series 2007 (University Policy and Guidelines on Individual and Team Research Grants)