Part of Ateneo de Davao University’s (AdDU) lifeblood is the scholars, composed of 1,132 (12.73%) of the 8,891 enrollees in the first semester of Academic Year 2025-2026.*
From the 2024 edition of the AdDU Student Handbook, scholarships and financial aid have been available to “deserving students based on their academic potential and proven financial need.” Yet, despite the University’s commitment to supporting the financially struggling students, not everyone can access this assistance due to bureaucracies, and this does not fully shield them from difficulties that may affect their well-being as enrollees of a prestigious private institution.
Behind blues and whites
The bell rings at 7:40 AM and echoes through the halls of the university. For the privileged students, it’s a call to begin another academic day. But for others, it marks only one part of a long, exhausting cycle: staying late to meet academic deadlines and, at the same time, completing shifts to earn a living.
“Gisabay jud nako ang working scholar inside the university and outside kay dili enough and working inside the university lang. Lisod kaayo mag apas sa klase, most especially akong work outside sa school is 1:00 AM – 8:00 AM. Naay time na malate ko pero naay time naa di na jud ko makasulod tungod sa kakapoy; instead musulod, matulog na lang,” Juniel Morales, a third-year AB Communication student and a Working Scholars Program (WSP) grantee, expressed, juggling being a fruit factory worker and a student.
Working scholars hold on-campus, institutionally funded assistantships tied to the university’s financial aid program, which is the WSP. In contrast, working students take off-campus jobs to support their daily needs.*
The burden of their academic responsibilities is exacerbated by the necessity to plan their lives ahead of time, as tight budgets compel them to seek additional sources of income.
“There are instances where all of my tasks [in academics, school organizations, and work] overlap, so I have to multitask for hours. It makes the quality of my work haphazard, and I sometimes lose focus on what I should be doing now,” Eldin John Lozada, a second-year AB Psychology and a work-from-home virtual assistant, shared.
Lozada also lamented how stress seeped into his mind and body. The weight and uncertainty of time to rest are divided, fueling doubt about maintaining academic glory.
“Feel ko na nga di na ako ma honors nito with how stressed I am pero kakayanin, I hope!”
Making the invisible seen
“I think it’s better if any [OSA-recognized] student organization is [dedicated for] working students? I believe that’s something wala pa na consider, and it might be a good way for student organizations to pitch projects that benefit working students,” Lozada said.
Unlike other student groups with organized bodies in Samahan ng Mga Mag-Aaral ng Pamantasang Ateneo de Davao (SAMAHAN), working students don’t have a formal space or platform to voice their needs. As of this writing, the SAMAHAN Multisectoral Council does not have a representative from the Ateneo de Davao Scholars Society or from the working students cohort. There is also a shortfall of university-wide discussions that center their lived experiences.
“Unta mag conduct silag survey about it tapos mag hatag unta silag klase like night class para sa mga naga work para ma balance sa mga working students ang ilahang time” Morales remarked.
With the recent enrollment change in the Student Information System (SIS), scheduling options are reduced, affecting most working students.
“Maybe a better way of processing schedules for mga working students, as some students always need a specific type of schedule that is work-friendly,” Lozada stated.
Morales and Lozada’s part-time rackets are temporary measures within systems that have failed to facilitate their focus on studying. The issues affecting working students will endure so long as insufficient assistance obliges them to seek alternative sources of income.
Proposals like flexible scheduling or even a dedicated organization for working students could bridge the gap between policy and lived experience—practical steps toward a university culture that truly embodies cura personalis.
Working students need stories that tell their grind, safe spaces for their voices, and policies that meet where they are.
Dignity, after all, is not reserved only for those with medals and titles. It must extend to those who work between classes for their sustenance—in silence and in service.
Editor’s Note: This article was first issued in the December 2025 First Semester Newsletter of Atenews.
*The opening sentence of the article was revised due to inaccuracies in the figures and to distinguish working scholars enrolled in the university’s Working Scholars Program (WSP) from working students holding jobs unrelated to the university. We apologize for this oversight.