Rizal’s Higher

Education
Formal Search for Knowledge at Ateneo Municipal
• Rizal entered Ateneo Municipal when he was 11 years old, four
months after the execution of Gomburza and Doña Teodora still in
prison.

• His father decided not to send him at the Colegio de San Jose
because of the unhappy experience his brother Paciano had in the
said school.

• His father wanted to send Rizal to Colegio de San Juan de Letran

but later decided to have him enrolled at Ateneo Municipal,
formerly known as Escuela Pia.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

ATENEO
• Rizal took the entrance
examination at the Colegio
de San Juan de Letran on
June 10, 1872.

• After passing the qualifying

examination, Rizal sought
admission at the Ateneo
Municipal.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Enrollment at Ateneo
• Father Magin Fernando, the college registrar, was at first very firm
in denying Rizal admission.
• Rizal was refused to be admitted in this institution for two reasons:
late registrant and frail and undersized for his age.
• Due to the intervention of Manuel Burgos, the college registrar
finally admitted the young Jose.
• Jose adopted the surname Rizal at the Ateneo because their family
name Mercado had come under suspicion of the Spanish
authorities.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Enrollment at Ateneo
• Ateneo was located in
Intramuros, Manila. He
boarded in a house on
Caraballo Street, 25 mins.
walk from the campus. The
boarding house was owned
by Titay, who owed Rizal
family P300. Jose boarded
there to collect part of the
debt.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

The Atenean System of Education
• Jesuits trained the character of every student through rigid
discipline and religious instruction. Students were required
to hear masses in the morning before the start of the classes.
Classes were usually began and ended with prayers.
• Atenean teachers enforced a program of dividing a class into
two competing empires: the Romans and the Carthaginians.

• Roman Empire were the boarding students at Ateneo and the

Carthaginian Empire were non-boarding students

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

The Atenean System of Education
• Both empires had their ranks and dignities, namely: emperor,
tribune, decurion, centurion and standard bearer.

• Rizal understood the seriousness and severity of his studies. In

order to excel he made himself follow a daily timetable, which
he rigidly observed.

• Rizal lagged behind his classmates. But in a month’s time. He

emerged as the emperor in his class

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s First Year

• Rizal’s first professor in Ateneo was Fr. Jose Bech.

• Rizal was placed at the bottom of the class since he was a

newcomer and knows little Spanish.

• He was an externo (Carthaginian), occupying the end of the

line. But at the end of the month, he become emperor of his
Empire.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s First Year

• He was the brightest student in the whole class, and he was

awarded a prize, a religious prize.

• Rizal took private lessons in Santa Isabel College during noon

recess to improve his Spanish language, paying three pesos for
those extra lessons.

• Rizal didn’t enjoy his summer vacation because his mother was
in prison so Neneng (Saturnina) brought him to Tanauan

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s First Year

• But without telling his father, he went to Santa Cruz to

visit her mother in prison. He told her of his brilliant
grades.
• After summer, he returned to Manila and now boarded
in Intramuros at No. 6 Magallanes Street.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s Second Year
• At the end of the school year, Rizal received excellent grades in
all subjects and a gold medal

• The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas – the first

favorite novel of Rizal which made a deep impression on him

• Universal History by Cesar Cantu – Rizal persuaded his father

to buy him this set of historical work that was a great aid in his
studies.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s Third Year

• Rizal grades remained excellent in all subjects but he

won only one medal – in Latin

• At the end of the school year, Rizal returned to

Calamba for the summer vacation. He himself was not
impressed by his scholastic work.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s Fourth Year

• June 16, 1875 – Rizal became an interno in Ateneo

• Padre Francisco de Paula Sanchez – a great educator and

scholar, one of Rizal’s professors who inspired him to study
harder and to write poetry

• Rizal topped all his classmates in all subjects and won five
medals at the end of the school term.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
Rizal’s Last Year
• Rizal – the most brilliant Atenean of his time, and was
truly the pride of the Jesuits

• Graduated With Highest Honor

• March 23, 1877 – Rizal received from his Alma mater,

Ateneo Municipal, the degree of Bachelor of Arts,
with highest honors

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance at Ateneo
• Rizal’s academic triumph at Ateneo can be attributed to three
factors, namely: racial pride, monastic discipline and
seclusion of boarding school life.
• He exerted extraordinary efforts to prove to his Spanish
classmates that the Filipino students can compete with them
academically
• The monastic discipline of competition inside the classroom
triggered in him the motivation to outdo his classmates
• Owing to the seclusion of his boarding school life, he was able
to devote more time to his studies.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Extra-curricular Activities at Ateneo
• He became a member of and eventually an officer in the
religious confraternities at Ateneo – Sodality of Our Lady;
and Apostleship of Prayer.

• He also joined the Academy of Spanish Literature and the

Academy of Natural Sciences

• Rizal took painting lessons under Agustin Saez, and sculpture

lessons under Romualdo de Jesus.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Extra-curricular Activities at Ateneo
• As a result of the talent he had in fine arts, Rizal was able to
carve the image of the Virgin Mary and the Sacred Heart of
Jesus.

• He also sustained the physical fitness training he started

under his Tio Manuel.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Literary Works at Ateneo
• The first poem he wrote as a student was entitled Mi Primera
Inspiracion (My First Inspiration). This poem was dedicated
by Rizal to his mother on the occasion of the latter’s natal day.

• Un Cuerdo de Mi Pueblo (In Memory of My Town) - this

poem was his way of paying homage to his birthplace,
Calamba.
• Al Niño Jesus (To the Child Jesus) - written by Rizal during his
student days, when he was 14 years old. This poem was his
expression of his devotion to Catholicism

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Literary Works at Ateneo
• Through Education The Country Receives Light - Rizal
compared education to a lighthouse, considering that it can
guide people in their behaviors and actions.

• The Intimate Alliance Between Religion and Good Education -

Rizal stressed the importance of religion to education. For Rizal,
education not centered on God cannot be considered true
education.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

UST
Rizal’s completion of the Bachiller
en Artes at Ateneo Municipal
entitled him for admission to higher
studies at a university.

Although Doña Teodora was

opposed to Rizal’s pursuit of higher
education for fear of what might
happen to him due to the
martyrdom of Gomburza, Don
Francisco decided to send him to
UST

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Enrollment at the University of Santo Tomas
• At first, Rizal was not certain of what course to pursue after
graduating with honors at Ateneo. His former Jesuit mentors
were suggesting that Rizal should take either priesthood or
farming.
• Rizal considered going into literature, law or medicine.

• His brother Paciano discouraged him to pursue law, owing to his

belief that Rizal will not be able to practice the profession later due
to the political conditions in the country during those times.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Enrollment at the University of Santo Tomas
• Uncertain of what to take up, the sixteen-year-old Rizal
enrolled the course Philosophy and Letters, during his
freshman year at UST.

• In the first place, the said course was what his father wanted
him to pursue. Secondly, his decision to enroll in the said
academic program could also be attributed to his failure to
solicit the advice of Father Ramon Pablo.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Enrollment at the University of Santo Tomas
• After his freshman year, Rizal shifted his course from
philosophy and letters to medicine. This was brought about
by two factors.

• He was advised by Father Ramon to pursue the course.

Owing to his mother's failing eyesight, Rizal felt that he
should finish medicine so that he could cure his mother's
physical ailment.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance At UST
• Rizal's academic performance at UST was not comparable with how
he fared in Ateneo.
• His unhappiness at UST can be traced to three factors, namely: the
hostility of Dominican professors to Rizal; racial discrimination
against Filipino students; and obsolete and repressive method of
instruction at UST.
• From Rizal's scholastic records, it was obvious that he was not a
good material for a medical course. His grades in most of his
medical subjects were generally average, indicating that medicine
was not his real vocation but in the arts.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Academic Performance At UST
• Rizal's unsatisfactory performance can also be attributed to the
exciting distractions of youth he experienced as a student in Manila.
Rizal became fascinated with women during his student days at
UST.
• At first, he became infatuated with Segundina Katigbak of
Batangas, whom he visited often in her boarding house frequently.

• In fact, there is a time that he was courting Leonor “Orang”

Valenzuela and Leonor Rivera. After learning that Orang was
already engaged with another man, Rizal concentrated his efforts on
Leonor Rivera.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Liberalism and Filipino Students at UST
• The influx of liberal ideas can be attributed to the opening of the
Suez Canal, and the opening of the Philippines to world trade.

• To encourage the production of literary works in Manila, the Liceo

Artistico Literario de Manila, an organization of art lovers in the
city, conducted regular competition in literary writing.

• Rizal joined the contests. His entries, A La Juventud Filipina (To

the Filipino Youth) and El Consejo de los Dioses (The Council
of the Gods) were adjudged as the best entry in the said
competition.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Important Literary Works as a University Student
• A La Juventud Filipina. A La Juventud Filipina was a classic in
Philippine literature for two reasons. First, it was the first great poem
in Spanish written by a Filipino, recognized by the Spanish
authorities. Second, it was the first expression of the nationalistic
concept that the Filipinos were the fair hope of the motherland.

• Another important point that Rizal stressed in the poem relates to

the role of the youth in nation building. From the poem, he called the
youth, The Fair Hope of the Motherland.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Important Literary Works as a University Student
• Rizal challenged the youth of his day to do three things: to cultivate
their talents in the arts; to develop their knowledge of the
sciences; and to look forward and break their chain of bondage

• El Consejo de los Dioses. It was an allegory in praise of

Cervantes as a co-equal of Homer and Virgil. The entry was judged
the best entry in the competition that year. The jury, however, upon
discovering that its author was a Filipino decided to confer the grand
prize to a Spaniard.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Important Literary Works as a University Student
• Junto al Pasig. It is a play written by Rizal at the request of the
Jesuits and was staged at Ateneo, in connection with the
celebration of the Feast Day of Immaculate Conception.

• A Filipinas. This sonnet was written by Rizal in 1880 not only to

praise the Philippines for its beauty but to encourage Filipino
artists to glorify the country through their art works.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Student Activism at UST
• In order to show their Spanish detractors that Filipino students were
united, Rizal organized a secret society of Filipino students. This
society came to be called Compañerismo. The members called
themselves Companions of Jehu. Rizal naturally became the
president of this secret society, with Galicano Apacible as
secretary.
• He criticized the humiliating treatment of brown Filipino students,
who were often insulted by their Dominican mentors.
• He also condemned the archaic/old method of instruction at UST.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Student Activism at UST
• He described comically the teaching of Physics devoid of laboratory
experiments. Students could not even touch the different laboratory
apparatus and equipment.

• Moreover, favoritism and skin color, not meritocracy and intellectual

brilliance, were the criteria for judging the actual academic
performance of students.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

First Taste of Spanish Brutality
• Rizal had his first taste of Spanish brutality during his first summer
vacation at Calamba after his freshman year at UST. While he was
walking in the street, he failed to see the man passing by owing to
the darkness of the night. Because he was not able to recognize the
man, who happened to be lieutenant of the Guardia Civil, Rizal did
not bother to salute nor greet him Buenas noches. Since, the
lieutenant was expecting that he be treated with respect and
courtesy by everybody in the town, what he did was to whip out his
sword and slashed it at Rizal's back.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

First Taste of Spanish Brutality
• Rizal was wounded. He sent a written complaint to
Governor-General Primo de Rivera about the incident.
Nothing positive came out from his complaint, considering
that he was an Indio. This incident left a deep impression on
Rizal.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

Decision to Go to Europe
• After completing his fourth year in the medical course, Rizal decided
to leave the country for Europe. While obviously, Rizal was to leave
the country to complete his medical course in Barcelona, Spain, this
was not the real reason for his sudden departure.
• There were hidden purposes for his voyage to a new world. It can
be inferred from Paciano's letter to Rizal that the following were the
real purposes of Rizal's voyage to Europe: to make a name for
himself in the realm of journalism; to observe and study
European society; and to prepare himself for the task of
liberating the Filipinos from Spanish tyranny.

Mr. Marvin Cabañero

THANKS!
Sir Marv,
xoxo