A up RESEARCH GUIDEBOOK

10
Because of new emerging technologies that require greater expertise as well as the
need to reinforce and expand national capability for training scientific leaders and conducting
research, national centers of excellence in the basic sciences were also constituted according
to Executive Order No. 889.
These included, among
others, the National Institute
of Physics, the National
Institute of Geological
Sciences and the Natural
Sciences Research Institute
in UP Diliman. In UP Los
Baños, the Institute of
Mathematical Sciences,
Institute of Chemistry and
Institute of Biological
Sciences were established.
Figure 1. Schematic diagram of UP’s present research scenario
The range of disciplines studied in the various research institutes and centers reflects
the diversity of research in the University of the Philippines. UP Diliman has 32 research
institutes, seven national institutes and three international centers that deal with various
research endeavours in the sciences, humanities and arts. UP Manila, which has 13 research
institutes, is more focused on health-related studies. UP Los Baños has six research institutes
for agricultural studies while UP Visayas has seven research centers on fisheries and the
marine sciences. Lastly, UP Baguio has two research institutes dedicated to the management
of and studies related to the Cordilleras.
UP nurtures a research climate that aims to advance knowledge and develop novel
technologies in the country. The UP Charter of 2008 has clearly stipulated its mandates to the
University of the Philippines as the national research university. The mandates, rights and
responsibilities, and guiding principles stated in the Charter shaped the overall research culture
of UP (Figure 1). Programs for the advancement of research in the university have been
established in the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs at the system level, and
the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Development (OVCRD) or the Office of
the Vice Chancellor for Research and Extension (OVCRE) at the level of the constituent unit.
Research in UP is creative, innovative, specialized, multi-dimensional, multidisciplinary
and collaborative. It is designed for international recognition, with the aim of solving both local
and global problems. Those that require immediate solutions such as issues in energy,
environment, health and nutrition, poverty, transportation, climate change and disaster risk
management are especially given priority.
Since research is done in an academic setting, a project’s success is measured not only
in terms of obtaining desired results but also in learning and acquiring old and new knowledge.