INFOGRAPHIC: The cost of education in the University Belt

Manila's so-called University Belt is the densest cluster of schools of higher learning anywhere in the country, with some 50 institutions no more than six kilometers apart — and each with its own tuition rates and academic loads.

 

To help give a general idea of the cost of freshman education in the U-Belt, GMA News Online has produced this interactive graphic, with data provided directly by the schools themselves: NOTE: The administrators of the University of Santo Tomas, College of the Holy Spirit, and St. Paul University Manila have not been able to provide data as of posting time. Meanwhile, Sta. Isabel College has refused to divulge any figures.  

GRAPHIC COMPARISON

 

The above graphic immediately highlights the relationship between tuition (X-axis) and academic load (Y-axis), on the simplified premise that more units at cheaper prices is more economical —more "bang for your buck," as it were. But of course, this does not take into account such factors as the quality of the instructional materials and of the teaching itself.

 

Also shown are the academic schedules and general per-unit cost of education (if provided by the school). A more frequent schedule enables a student to pursue more academic work in the course of a year, but will also affect the total cost of education for the year depending on the per-unit cost.

 

If you want to run through the raw numbers, we've also provided the following dynamic table. Click on any header to arrange the data in ascending or descending order:  

RAW TABLE

 

 

 

 — GMA News