Good day. It’s been six months since we started stressing over our MOA. It’s a contract that needs to be signed by the school and the institution. Since June 2025, it has already been our main source of stress, even before we started our internship. Until now, it’s still our primary dilemma as the deadline for our Practicum Report is slowly approaching. Although we tried our best, there were times when the system just messed things up. Here’s how it happened.
During the last week of May, my friend and I went internship hunting near our area. Luckily, I got accepted just three days after we expressed our interest in applying. My friend, on the other hand, had been applying in Cabanatuan for two weeks with my other friends. Unfortunately, they weren’t accepted, or the positions didn’t match their capabilities. Still, I got accepted right away, and I was glad that we both managed to secure placements.
While preparing the required documents, our supervisor stated that we couldn’t start rendering our hours without the MOA. Our classmates had already started, while we were waiting for approximately 2 months. This is despite the fact that we found a company much earlier. I specifically remember my former research groupmates asking our adviser for company suggestions while we were already processing our documents. Then, out of the sudden, they finished first rather than us.
After a month, we finally secured our MOA, and our main supervisor delivered it to the Main Branch. Two weeks later, HR emailed the branch confirming that they had accepted our MOA and we're qualified.
Three months later, we asked our supervisor if they have notarized our MOA since we were almost done with our service hours. Unfortunately, she said she would look for it and even blamed us for raising the concern late. They searched for it elsewhere, but nothing was found. She also tried to communicate it with the messenger and told us that they already delivered it to the Main branch. Then, they contacted HR at the Main Branch, who told us they had the document.
Even though they assured us that the MOA was already at the branch, I was still doubtful. That’s why I requested our adviser to print a new MOA as a backup. Take note that this was already November 2025, when we were nearly finished with our remaining hours. Unfortunately, their HR didn’t respond despite multiple calls. As a resolution, they asked us to look for another Memorandum of Agreement.
My first thought was that they might have thrown it away. I still remember how frustrated we were when we saw one of our documents used as scratch paper. Thankfully, I found it, and my friend even save money as she planned to travel to San Jose just to get new copies.
Then, in January 2026, my friend followed up with our adviser regarding the MOA. It was both upsetting and frustrating when they said that the Main Branch couldn’t find it. That’s why they printed a new MOA. To clarify, our school has two branches: one in San Jose, where I study, and the Main Branch.
During the first week of February, I asked our professor about our pending MOA. He said that our Dean might receive it that day.
I decided to follow up after seeing the upcoming deadlines before graduation. The Practicum Report deadline is on February 16. As usual, I followed up again, and he said it was still with the OP. I’m not exactly sure what that office is, but it’s the main signatory for our MOA. I believe it’s the office-in-charge of the school, which makes the signing process slower.
I also asked if we could submit without the MOA. However, as expected, he didn’t approve it. Instead, he said it again that he would follow it up and give us a special deadline if we didn't make it.
Because of this issue before graduation, we jokingly told ourselves that we might not graduate on time. Of course, I didn’t say that directly to our professor, but I think he understood our concern.
On the other hand, the deadline for Academic Awards applications is on February 27. My friend suggested that I should communicate with our professor instead, since he might feel pressured by constant follow-ups. She has a point. I’ve already received awards before, and missing one just because of a pending document would be devastating.
I know it’s stressful for everyone involved, but the system really failed us. Imagine putting in so much effort just to stay on the Dean’s List from first year until the end. It's ironic that only a single pending document we’ve been following up on for months to jeopardize everything. That’s why I told my mom not to expect an award anymore. I even told her that I might graduate next year. Still, there’s a part of me that believes it’s not entirely impossible.