Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS..............................................................................................I
TABLE OF FIGURES.................................................................................................I
INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................... 1
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY......................................................................................... 1
SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY.............................................................................1
FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY......................................................................................... 2
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE.............................................................................3
INFORMATION SYSTEMS IN ORGANIZATIONS..........................................................................3
THE NEW ROLE OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS..........................................................................3
WEB-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS.................................................................................3
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS......................................................................................4
THE MANUAL APPLICATION PROCESS................................................................................4
ISSUES AND PROBLEMS.............................................................................................. 4
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS.......................................................................4
WORKS CITED...................................................................................................... 5

Table of Figures
FIGURE 1. FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY.....................................................................................2
INTRODUCTION
The pervasiveness of information technology (IT) has revolutionized data and information
management in the new global and digital economy. IT includes all technologies that enable
the capture and collection, storage, processing, dissemination and exchange of information.

The academic sector continues to acknowledge the increasing role and demands of IT and
many educational institutions have adopted information systems as facilitators in the
teaching-learning process, as well as enablers in carrying out effective and efficient
administrative operations.

Majority of higher education institutions (HEIs) have annual IT expenditures of more than
one million pesos. Internet connectivity is available in these HEIs, with the fastest bandwidths
at 16-20 megabits per second (mbps) and the least at one mbps. Moreover, the enrolment and
grading system was found out to be the information system that is most developed in- house,
while the library IS was the most outsourced [ CITATION Mar12 \l 1033 ].

Objectives of the Study

This study was guided by the following objectives:

1. To determine the flow of procedures used in the manual application process for
admission of students in the graduate program of UPV;

2. To assess the current application process in terms of the requisites of valuable

information;

3. To identify issues and problems surrounding the implementation of the manual

application process; and

4. To recommend measures to address these problems and/or alternatives in

effecting improvements that can lead to increased efficiency in the application
process.

Scope and Limitations of the Study

The study primarily covers the assessment of the manual application process for admission
to the graduate programs in UPV beginning with the filing of application, to the
posting/issuance of the notice of acceptance or non-acceptance for admission. The
registration process for admitted students follow the UPV Computerized Registration System
(CRS) which is already in place, and hence, is excluded in this assessment. Furthermore, this
study covers only students who have been accepted already to the UPV graduate programs
offered at the Miagao and Iloilo City campuses

1
 Belanio/ Phil. J. Soc. Scid& Hum 17, 2 (2012) 51-64 53

improvement will have to take into account addressing Reynolds (2012).

the issues and problems identifie in thi s st udy .
The study is descriptive and exploratory Frame work of thePreliminary
in nature. Study investigation was
Me thodology
conducted through the appraisal of relevant documents The studyhoused
was guidedatby athe GPOpresented
framework and the various
The study is descriptive and exploratory in in the schematic diagram found in Figure 1 below.
colleges of UPV that
nature. offer graduate
Preliminary programs.
investigation was conducted A critical source of primary data was the series
The UPV manual application process utilizes
of interviewsthrough
withthethe GPO
appraisal personnel,
of relevant documentsparticularly
housed the SRE, and observations made on the
traditional work procedures of face-to-face transactions
at the GPO and the various colleges of UPV thatroffe
actual transactions during the application period
graduate programs. A critical source of primary data at
with the GPO.
clients and relies heavily on documents to be
was the series of interviews with the GPO personnel, submitted to the GPO. Given that GPO is based at
particularly the SRE, and observations made on the the Iloilo City campus and that the applicants come

Framework of the Study

actual transactions during the application period at the
GPO, eand the offic of Department of Management
from within the entire region, an assessment of the
process is important so as to pinpoint weaknesses
at the UPV College of Management for those who in the system. Valuable information is a critical tool
in decision making and in today’s highly globalized
The study was guided by a framework in Figure 1.

Admission Application System Assessment of Admission

Application Process
Manual admission
application process
► Characteristics of Valuable
► Issues and Problems
Information (Stair &
►

Reynolds, 2012):

►
Web-based information
▪Accessible
system as a potential
▪Accurate solution to address
▪Complete issues and problems in
▪Economic the manual application
▪Flexible process
▪Relevant
▪Reliable
▪Secure
▪Simple
▪Timely
▪Verifiable

Figure 1. Framework of the Study

Figure 1. Framework of the Study
applied for admission to the Master of Management environments, specific objectives of organizations
The UPV (MM)
manual
program.application process utilizes are traditional
invariably metwork procedures
with information
efficency of task per for m
a nce.
of forface-to-face
technology i

transactions with clientsfocus

Furthermore, andgroup
relies heavily
discussions on documents to be submitted to the GPO. Given
(FGDs)
were undertaken among graduate students already Stair and Reynolds’ (2012) characteristics of
that GPO is enrolled
basedin at the MM program. These students wereand
the Iloilo City campus thatinformation
valuable the applicants come from within the
describe 11 features:
entire region, an assessment of the process is important
asked to relate their experiences with regards the so asInformation
1. Accessibility. to pinpoint should weaknesses
be easilty in the
manual application process. An assessment was then
system. undertaken based on the standards or characteristics accessible by authorized users so they can obtain it
of valuable information espoused by Stair and in the right format.

Valuable information is a critical tool in decision making and in today’s highly globalized
environments, specific objectives of organizations are invariably met with information
technology for efficiency of task performance [ CITATION Sta12 \l 1033 ].

2
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Information Systems in Organizations
Information systems (IS) converge the IT infrastructure with data, people and processes
and, have become instrumental in the attainment of the organizational goals such as
maximizing revenues, minimizing costs, improving decision making, and enhancing
relationships with customers, clients and partners. Several trends which have made the use of
IS very important in organizations and business processes [ CITATION OzE07 \l 1033 ]. For
instance, the power of computers has grown tremendously while their prices have dropped.
Also, the variety and ingenuity of computer programs have increased, and quick and reliable
communication lines and access to the Internet and the Web have become widely available
and affordable. Oz likewise pointed to the fact that the fast growth of the Internet has
opened opportunities and encouraged competition in global markets that are now run by an
increasingly computer literate global workforce.

The New Role of Information Systems

The emergence and successful implementation of IT innovations shifted the role of IT from
a mere supporting player to an integral role in the overall strategy of the firm. IT is now take
significant roles in business processes—creating new needs, causing new product development
and commanding new procedures [ CITATION Cha00 \l 1033 ].

Web-based Information Systems

Organizations begin to realize the need to develop and implement web-based information
systems [CITATION Pan11 \l 1033 ]. One Manila-based university implemented an online exam
result viewer using a web-based application that allows entrance examinees to view and get
the results of their college entrance examinations through the Internet. This application
solved the problem of repetitive and re-encoding of same information, untimely and
incomplete reports, and inconveniences on the part of the examinees to physically go to the
campus just to get the results of the examination. The system’s main purpose is to provide a
tool for administrators to encode, test, and measure the entrance exam results as well as
encode and edit an applicant’s information into the university database. Likewise,
information from the database can be readily available online for viewing and downloading,
and for producing necessary reports and summaries of results.

3
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
The Manual Application Process
Application for admission to any of the graduate program at UPV starts with an applicant
securing an application form that is addressed to the dean of the college, submission of the
accomplished form together with proof of payment and required documents, and ends with
the issuance of notice of acceptance or non-acceptance for admission.

Issues and Problems

In identifying the issues and problems of the current manual application process, the
characteristics of valuable information were used as the bases of analyses and assessment
[ CITATION Sta12 \l 1033 ].

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Using the characteristics of valuable information by Stair and Reynolds (2012) as the basis
in assessing the current manual application process in the UPV graduate programs, a number
of problems were identified. These include the inconvenience of physically submitting the
applications on the part of the applicants most of whom are busy professionals or
entrepreneurs, the likelihood of inaccuracy in the re- encoding of data, incompleteness of
data submitted, unnecessary costs in overhead for the GPO as well as transportation and
other costs incurred by applicants in the manual submission of their applications, and the lack
of relevance, reliability, verifiability, as well as complexity and security of data due to
manual encoding and sorting, among others.

4
Works Cited
Chan, S. (2000). Information technology resources in business processes. Business Process
Management Journal, 6 (3), 224-237.

Marcial, D. (2012). Information technology resources in the higher education institutions in

the Philippines. Philippine Information Technology Journal, 5(1), 3-8.

Oz, E. (2007). Management information systems (5th ed.). Singapore: Course Technology.

Stair, R., & Reynolds, G. (2012). Information systems essentials (6th ed.). Singapore,
Singapore: Cengage Learning Asia Pte Ltd.

University of the Philippines Diliman. (n.d.). Approved Acceptable Use Policy for Information
Technology (IT) Resources of the UP System. Retrieved from http://upd.edu.ph/aup/

Pantoja-Aureus, J., & Martinez, J. (2011). Ateneo online entrance exam result viewer.
Philippine Information Technology Journal, 4(1), 32-36.