Meet the First Female Summa Cum Laude of University of the Philippines History Department
The country’s leading state university, the University of the Philippines produced for the very first time a female summa cum laude of its Department of History, her name is no other than Julia Catherina Agoncillo. The UP student will be graduating a BA Kasaysayan degree on June 26, 2016. She is also the fourth person to graduate summa cum laude from her department.
Julia Catherina Agoncillo has a general weighted average of 1.122 followed the footsteps of the three other summa cum laude from the UP Department of History namely Zeus A. Salazar (1955, AB History), Alfredo C. Robles, Jr. (1976, AB History) and Ariel C. Lopez (2007 BA Kasaysayan).
According to Agoncillo as a student she spent time with her peers, joining as many organizations as she can. She however realized that it is not possible to be active in six organizations at the same time so she decided to let go of some. She served as officer in the UP Marine Biological Society (UP MBS).
The first female summa cum laude of the Dept. of History, revealed in an interview with ABS-CBN that she did not have any special study habits, but she stands by efficient time management and note-taking as secrets to her success.
One of the main reasons according to Julia Catherina Agoncillo why more people at her age is more interested in history nowadays is because of the easy access to information. Agoncillo believes that the charm in studying history is more than just learning about the past, but also understanding the self based on past events.
Agoncillo plans to narrow down her research interest to prepare for a master’s degree in a field related to social sciences.