DESPITE the opposition of students, faculty members and alumni, the University of the East stood pat on its decision to permanently close its Electronics Engineering program.

In a report by the school’s publication Redwire, University President Ester Garcia said the closure of the program is based on “valid and existing grounds.”

“Relatedly, and contrary to the ludicrous assertion of the Student Council, the ECE program of the University was introduced for the purpose of educating and in the process producing engineers and not merely technicians,” Garcia said in a letter to the Commission on Higher Education.

She added that the passing percentage in ECE boards of UE-Manila for the last 10 years yielded “only an average result and always lower than the national passing rate.”

The University Student Council, Central Student Council, UE-Manila Engineering Student Council and the Faculty Association claimed that the ECE program was “commendable for it has attained and surpassed the National Passing Rate consistently.”

“BSECE is a tough and complex program and its Board Exam is arguably one of the most difficult Engineering Board Exams in the country which has yielded to a percentage below but close to the national passing rate,” the groups said.

“Based on official PRC record, the ECE Department in Manila Campus has a number of passing percentages above the national passing percentage and even produced ECE Board topnotchers,” they added.

Last month, Senator Joel Villanueva pledged to look into the impending closure of the ECE program and asked CHED to review and evaluate the petition of the students.