A FORMER journalism program coordinator and migration expert has been named assistant research director of the UST Research Center for Social Sciences and Education (RCSSED).
Asst. Prof. Jeremaiah Opiniano of the Department of Communication and Media Studies was appointed to the post last Sept. 22
Opiniano, whose works have appeared in various reputable academic journals, said he hopes that the research center would produce more output during his term.
“If only we could have an output every year, then increase that output, then continue with that increase every year, not for the sake of international rankings, but for the sake of being a generator of knowledge that at the moment saves lives,” Opiniano told The Flame.
Opiniano obtained his doctorate degree in human geography at the University of Adelaide in Australia this year. His doctoral thesis was about overseas remittances and rural hometown investing in the municipalities of San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte, and Moncada, Tarlac.
He finished his bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of Santo Tomas in 1997 and completed his master’s degree in development communication at the University of the Philippines Open University in 2001.
Opiniano, also the founder of hyperlocal news website The Filipino Connection, said the main challenge for the research center is to create a conducive environment that can start at thesis writing classes.
“Research is really difficult, [the] students are also saying that [they] are having a difficult time, so the challenge is to sow motivation for the people who are doing research,” he said.
“It does not matter who becomes, what matters is that whatever the role is, there is a contribution to the aim of a university to generate new knowledge,” he added.
The UST RCSSED was formed in 2017 and has 11 research interest groups and 51 researchers, according to its website. F – Arthur N. Apostol
