Dr. Jose Rizal is the country’s most revered hero, from his fearless and eye-opening novels that eventually made him a martyr. Further echoing a sentiment of freedom and better treatment to Filipinos.
He’s a brilliant student. No doubt. Here’s Dr. Jose Rizal extraordinary school performance at UST, finally revealed by the academic institution.
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UST discloses Dr. Jose Rizal’s grade
The UST Faculty of Medicine & Surgery presented the transcript of records or grade report of Dr. Jose Rizal, one of the nation’s most revered and celebrated national heroes, during the commemoration of his death anniversary in 1896 at Bagumbayan (now Luneta or Rizal Park).
On the official Facebook page of the University of Santo Tomas (UST), where Rizal pursued his degree in Medicine, a photo of the transcript was shared last December 30, Rizal Day.
Jose Rizal as a Medical Student
“The national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, spent much of his medical preparation in the UST Faculty of Medicine & Surgery. The famed historian, Rev. Fr. Fidel Villarroel, O.P., in his magnum opus A History of the University of Santo Tomas, devoted Chapter VI of Volume II to ‘Jose Rizal as a Medical Student and an Alumnus,'” the post noted.
“After taking the pre-law course in 1877, ‘he changed his mind—or his parents did—and opted for the career of medicine.’ While several of Rizal’s classmates ‘one by one fell by the roadside,’ by the fourth year, only seven medical students of the year remained, and Rizal was one of them, ending that year in second place.”
Jose Rizal extraordinary school performance at UST
“From Rizal’s twenty-one subjects in UST, he received one ‘passing grade,’ eight ‘good,’ six ‘very good,’ and six ‘excellent.'”
Based on the transcript and the grading system used during the Spanish period, Rizal’s grades at UST were categorized as Sobresaliente (Excellent), Notable (Very Good), Bueno (Good), Aprobado (Pass), and Insuficiente (Insufficient or Failed). The term Aprovechado referred to commendable but not necessarily top-tier performance.
During his preparatory course in Theology and Law, Rizal consistently received Sobresaliente for subjects like Cosmology, Metaphysics, Theodicy, and History of Philosophy.
In his preparatory course for Medicine, he earned Sobresaliente in Advanced Chemistry and Aprovechado in Advanced Physics and Advanced Natural History.
In his first year in Medicine (1878–1879), Rizal achieved Bueno in General Anatomy and Histology I, Descriptive Anatomy I, and Exercises of Osteology and Dissection.
For his second year (1879–1880), he also received Bueno in General Anatomy and Histology II, Descriptive Anatomy II, Exercises of Dissection, and Physiology, Private and Public Hygiene.
In his third year (1880–1881), his grades varied: Sobresaliente in Therapeutics, Medical Matter and Art of Prescribing; Bueno in Surgical Anatomy, Operations, External Medical Applications and Bandages; and Aprobado in General Pathology, its Clinic, and Pathologic Histology.
By his fourth year (1881–1882), he earned Notable in Medical Pathology, Surgical Pathology, Obstetrics, Sickness of Women and Children, and Syphilography.
