Pepe. | The Life, Works and Writings of Jose Rizal [ENGLISH]

Jose Rizal in University of Santo Tomas

After completion of Bachiller en Artes at Ateneo, Rizal was admitted to higher studies at a university. Doña Teodora was against Rizal's decision to pursue a higher education because of her fear of what might happen to her son due to the martyrdom of GOMBURZA.

"DON'T SEND HIM TO MANILA AGAIN: HE KNOWS ENOUGH. IF HE GETS TO KNOW MORE, THE SPANIARDS WILL CUT OFF HIS HEAD"

"DID MY MOTHER PERHAPS HAVE A FORBODING OF WHAT WOULD HAPPEN"

However, Don Francisco sent Rizal to UST, the Dominican University of the Philippines with the thought that his son who has the greatest intelligence among its generation has a bright future ahead of him.

At the beginning, Rizal was not sure of what course to take after graduation. His former mentors in Ateneo suggested priesthood or farming, but Rizal considered taking up literature, law or medicine. Paciano, his brother discouraged him to take law, saying that Rizal will not be able to practice it later on because of the political conditions in the country that time.

Rizal was 16 when he began his freshman year at UST. He enrolled under the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, Major in Philosophy. This was the course that his father wanted him to pursue, but then it turned out that he took up courses in Cosmology, Metaphysics, Theodicy and History of Philosophy.

He also took up surveying course at Ateneo. Once again, he excelled in the said course while underage and earned the Perito Agrimensor (Expert Surveyor) title as he won gold medals in Agriculture and Topography. But because of being underage, 17, he could not practice the surveyor's profession yet. Instead, Rizal was presented the title on November 25, 1881 when he turned 20, for his excellency. After his first year, Rizal changed his course from Philosophy and Letters to Medicine. He was also advised by Father Pablo Ramon, rector of Ateneo. Rizal believed that he should finish medicine so that he could cure his sick mother who had an eyesight failure.

ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AT UST

Rizal's performance in UST was not as good as his accomplishment in Ateneo, where he excelled in all his subjects. On the contrary, some of Rizal's grades in UST were still excellent but he had lower grades in other subjects. This might have been because Rizal was not actually happy while in UST. Three contributing factors explain this:

1. The hostile attitude of Dominican professors towards Rizal

2. there was racial discrimination against Filipino students;

3. he was disgusted at the primitive method used in UST.

In his novel El Filibusterismo, he discussed how Filipinos were humiliated and insulted by the Dominican Professors. In Chapter 13, The Class in Physics, Rizal related how classes are held in UST.

Furthermore, Rizal poorly performed at UST. It was manifested in Rizal's scholastic records that:

1. he was not into a medical course. Most of his grades in his medical subjects were generally average, his real vocation was really in the arts.

2. Discontentment with the system of education; and

3. Rizal's not-so-good performance can also be attributed to a number of distractions he experienced as a youth in Manila, specifically his interest in women when he was a UST student.

WOMEN DISTRACTIONS:

1. Segunda Katigbak of Batangas, whom he frequently visited in her boarding house. Segunda was Rizal's puppy love. They knew each other because Segunda is a friend of Jose's sister, Olympia. But when Rizal learned that she was getting married to a fellow townsman in Batangas, Manuel Luz, he turned his eyes on other women. One day, Segunda gave him an artificial white rose, in exchange, Rizal handed the portrait pencil sketch to Segunda.