by Engr. Myrckho Miguell A. Mendoza
The UPLB Chemical Engineering Quiz Team bagged 2nd Place in the Inter-University Chemical Engineering Quiz Show (INTER-U), a sub-event of the Students’ National Chemical Engineering Conference (SNCEC) 2024, organized by the UP Chemical Engineering Society Inc., commonly known as UP KEM. This is the 46th time the organization has held this event. It was held last November 30, 2024, at the Engineering Theater, Melchor Hall, UP Diliman, Quezon City, and was participated by 14 teams from 9 universities and colleges nationwide. Two teams represented UPLB, dubbed Team A and Team B, during the said event.
The competition had three phases, the Elimination, Wildcard, and Final Phase. Each phase consisted of Easy, Average, and Difficult questions covering various subjects in the chemical engineering curriculum, namely Chemistry, Mathematics, Physics, Engineering Science, and Chemical Engineering, including General Knowledge. Both UPLB teams A and B were not only able to secure a slot in the Final Phase, but also secured the top two places after the Elimination Round.
After the Final Phase, UPLB Team A (Team Captain: John Norbert Capacio, Members: Jaylord Nakila, Matthew Felimon Caisip, and Cyra Panganiban) was awarded 2nd Place while UPLB Team B (Team Captain: Merel Ann Belleza, Members: John Noel Macorol, Bernadette Gail Maningas, Arnelle Paul Rosales) finished 6th overall in the scoreboard. The event was attended by one of the Faculty Coaches of the UPLB Chemical Engineering Quiz Team: Engr. Ruen Rey Sazon. Meanwhile, the team from University of Santo Tomas bagged 3rd Place and the team from De La Salle University Manila bagged the 1st Place in this year’s competition.
Despite the numerous struggles of the team, they kept their cool and remained focused putting in the pedal to the metal thus giving UPLB DChE with a podium finish. It was indeed a job well done and an award well-deserved, and a unique learning experience bringing together the invaluable brain power, and showcasing good sportsmanship, teamwork, and camaraderie among fellow chemical engineering students making all of student participants winners.