In 1962, President Nemesio E. Prudente commissioned Prof. Ramon Villena to organize the Philippine College of Commerce - Placement Service Unit (PCC-PSU) and appointed him as the first Placement Officer. Other members of PSU included Prof. Reynaldo Pascua, who was the Assistant Placement Officer and all-around psychometrician, secretary, and messenger. A pool of 20 to 30 students were trained for job referrals to different requesting companies.
After five years, Prof. Reynaldo V. Pascua was reappointed Placement Officer until 1967 when Prof. Guillermo Mangahas took over for a five-year term. The Office was renamed Placement Bureau during the time of Prof. Arsenio Jose in 1972.
During the presidency of Dr. Isabelo T. Crisostomo, Prof. Adelaida Zamora became Chief of the Placement Bureau up to 1976. Prof. Ramon Villena once again served from 1976 to 1979.
When PCC was converted into the Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) in 1978, the Placement Bureau was renamed Placement Office.
In 1979, during the time of Dr. Pablo T. Mateo, Prof. Helen T. Cuason was designated as Chief of Placement Office. She initiated the Job Fair, which eventually became an annual event. Prof. Cuason also introduced the following placement programs:
Eight years after, Dr. Nemesio E. Prudente was reinstalled PUP President and Prof. Elizabeth Santos was designated as Chief. She served up to 1992. After Dr. Prudente’s term, Dr. Zenaida A. Olonan, as President, again designated Prof. Helen T. Cuason to head the Placement Office.
From June 1997 to December 1998, Dr. Milagros R. Morales was appointed as Chief after which Prof. Helen Cuason was reinstated in January 1998. Prof. Helen Cuason stayed on as Chief of the Placement Office until August 2004.
In September 2004, Dr. Erlinda C. Garcia took over until September 2005. She advocated the promotion of closer ties with different companies to provide better job opportunities for both alumni and students. In January 2006, when Prof. Jesusa C. Malvar sat as Chief for a year, she authored the Vision/Mission of the University Placement Office (UPO) and improved the image of the office by making it acquire a corporate identity.
From January to October 2007, Prof. Iris Rowena A. Bernardo took charge of the Office. For few months, she was able to initiate placement activities such as job fairs and job referrals for students who wanted to establish careers in various reputable companies.
In October 2007, Prof. Ria Santos-Fajilago was appointed as Chief by President Dante G. Guevarra to continue the advocacy of the previous Placement heads. She prioritized the accessibility of Placement services to all stakeholders- PUP students and alumni, private companies, non-government and government organizations. Also, Prof. Fajilago initiated research proposals on career services and other placement network-accessibility programs.
From University Placement Office (UPO) the Office became Career Development and Placement Office (CDPO) with Prof. Ria S. Fajilago as Director. In 2012, because of the restructuring of the University organizational structure, the office became Career Development and Placement Services (CDPS) and a service unit of the Office for Student Services.
Today, the Alumni Relations and the Career Development Office is headed by Engr. Florinda H. Oquindo and it focuses on the following thrusts in alumni, career development and placement services:
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