Over the last 24 years, Bachelor of Arts in Consular and Diplomatic Affairs (AB-CDA) has always been the sole degree program of the College’s School of Diplomacy of Governance (SDG). However, for Academic Year 2020 to 2021, Governance and Public Administration (GPA) and Diplomatic and International Affairs (DIA) will replace it, offering governance and international relations separately for students to focus on one field specifically.

Evolving for the future

In an interview with The Benildean, CDA Chairperson Catherine Samaniego emphasized how they “innovate so that our graduates are real-world ready.”

“Inclusion and innovation are firmly imprinted on Benilde’s DNA. In the process of introducing new innovation, such as a program, we are cautious of possible implications not only on the institution itself but also on students,” she said.

Meanwhile, for CDA alumnus and full-time faculty member Guill Mariano, “Benilde is a very innovative school and I think we have to take into account the need of the generation […] in the need of the time, how I feel about it (AB-GPA and AB-DIA) is it’s about time for us to evolve.”

Meanwhile, 118 CDA student and SDG Public Relations Officer Nathalie Co Yeu supports the change to further specialize the students that will be honed under the programs.

“It is part of adapting and is strategic at the same time, because we are changing our course from CDA to two separate courses which are more focused on their respective fields, which is needed today as new issues are appearing everyday that needs more in depth solutions. Separating the two can offer more in-depth specialization for certain issues to be addressed in the future,” she stated.

What’s next?

118 and 119 students, as the last batches of CDA, shall continue the end of the program, with Samaniego clarifying that “we are admitting new students into DIA, because [we] would like CDA to now be known as DIA from ID 120 and onward.”

“The bottom line is, in this context, it is safe to say that DIA will be the more streamlined version of CDA. Think of it as CDA 2.0,” Samaniego emphasized.

In terms of job security, as the course name will dissipate, SDG Dean Gary Ador Dionisio said in an interview with The Benildean to not worry for the course title will not matter but rather one’s “competencies, values and your professionalism will” weigh more at any institution it may be.

“We are versatile and responsive to new trends and changes for every cohort to help ensure employability after graduation. […] A number of our graduates are on their way to building a career in the foreign service, military, research, academe, public administration, and many more,” Samaniego added, further advising for students to use their three years wisely to be world-ready.

In other words, the rise of DIA and GPA is not the ending of CDA—rather a continuation of the efforts to improve quality education. As Benilde embodies inclusion and innovation, adapting to the fast-paced world brought about a renaissance for the College as it continues to create the hope of the future the world needs: a generation of competent, socially responsible, and proactive servant-leaders.

• Sole course no more: By Academic Year 2020-2021, SDG will not offer CDA to pave way for new courses DIA and GPA.

• Setting the mark

• • • Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies (AB-IS) was offered under Benilde’s SMS.
    • 1994: Autonomy with a price: Marching order from late Lasallian brother Br. Andrew Gonzalez FSC mandated that courses offered in Benilde should be different and not offered in DLSU to avoid competition.
    • 1996: Birth of AB-CDA.
    • Since AB-IS is similar to DLSU’s Bachelor of Arts in International Studies, the program was not eventually offered.
    • The curriculum kept on reviewing, changing and revising throughout the years.
    • 2015: Decision of upgrading CDA to DIA to be in par with other colleges’ internationalization programs; submission of new programs DIA and GPA to CHED
    • 2019: Approval of CHED to programs GPA and DIA.
    • 2020: GPA and DIA are open for enrollees

• Why rebrand CDA to DIA?

• • For future graduates to easily see and explain the essence of the degree
  • To highlight global dynamics and developments shaping our lives today
  • To highlight interconnectedness and multifaceted nature of actors, issues, and power structures around us
  • To be more convenient in terms of SDG’s branding and marketing, given the straightforwardness of the course.

• AB-CDA vs. AB-DIA

• AB-DIA vs. AB-GPA

Source: The Benildean interview with Dean Gary Ador Dionisio, Mr. Rene Valladolid, Ms. Catherine Samaniego, and Mr. Guill Mariano.

This article is also published in the first ever fully-online issue of The Benildean: Update Vol. 6 No. 2.