By Prince Mark M. Cubos, Bachelor of Arts in English Language freshman

Triumphant challengers emerged from the University Week held at NU Baliwag last May 27-30, 2025! Through competitions of sports, cultural and the creatives, one can see that the Nationalians of Bulacan really got the bulldogs in them.

Six schools eyed the victory, from SEAS, STHM, SET, SOA, SHS and SBA.

Ranking first in wins through all the competitions, the School of Business and Accountancy showed they are more than just business. They did so by shooting for the win in Men’s Basketball, flexing the beauty of their Festival Queen, grooving to the tunes in the summer ID contest, and showcasing the spirit of a film maker in the AVP Contest. They also produced multiple first runner ups in Women’s Volleyball, Valorant, Spoken Word Poetry, Photography Contest, Malikhaing Pagkuwento, Poster Making, and Talumpating Di Handa.

Second in our overall ranking is School of Engineering and Technology. Displaying their technical skills not just in their courses but also at U-Week! They were the champions at serving the ball right at their opponents in Men’s Volleyball, being hot with the paddles in Table Tennis, going all-out with their gamer skills in Mobile Legends, shooting for the stars in the Photography Contest, and wowing the audience in the art of storytelling through Malikhaing Pagkuwento. They are also the first runner ups in Men’s Basketball, Singing Competition, and Pagsusulat ng Sanaysay.

Third in the overall ranking is the flaring red School of Education, Arts, and Sciences. Their knack for being a jack of all trades helped them rank 3rd through the tough competition in U-Week. Their players brought home the championship in women’s volleyball and hyped everyone up in the Bench Yell Competition. SEAS has many first runner up awards as well; they were close to winning the Quiz Bee, Men’s Volleyball, Table Tennis, Festival King, Festival Queen, and AVP Competition.

The Senior High School was not far behind. The bullpups proved they can go toe to toe with their college seniors. Having their David and Goliath moments proved they are more than just an underdog in the battle with the colleges. They were champions in bringing the fire power in Valorant, having that voice and melody in the singing competition, and casting wizardry over the board in chess. They were also the first runner up in Mobile Legends.

The School of Tourism and Hospitality Management’s craft and hospitality is already renowned for its Filipino brand of excellence, and in the U-Week they didn’t forget to put themselves out there and delivered wins for their department as well. They are champions in the art of poem recital in Spoken Word Poetry and in the art of unprepared speech in Talumpating Di Handa. They are first runner ups in Bench Yell and Summer ID Contest.

Having that blueprint for success, the School of Architecture surely left a mark in U-Week! Their bet was crowned Festival King, they landed the top spot in Poster Making, and they put out a thought-provoking, award-winning essay in Pagsusulat ng Sanaysay.

It was a colorful U-Week and all who participated and helped in bringing these together and making it happen are all winners.