Today, a record-breaking 305 students will receive their summa cum laude diplomas from the University of the Philippines (UP) in Diliman, Quezon City.

According to data from the UP Office of the University Registrar, over half of the 4,478 graduating students this year will graduate with honors, led by the 305 summa cum laude grads, or those with a general weighted average of at least 1.20.

There will be 742 cumlaude graduates and 1,196 magna cumlaude graduates.

This year's total of summa cum laude graduates topped the previous year's total of 150. In 2020, there were 28, and in 2019, there were 55.

There are 3,359 undergraduate (including associate and certificate programs), 244 diploma, 793 master's, and 82 doctorate students among the total number of graduating students.

The commencement speaker will be UP president Angelo Jimenez, who began his term in February, while political science graduate Jessie Malibiran Jr. will give the message on behalf of the graduates.

Several colleges held graduation ceremonies for their graduates last week.

Invited speakers were former vice president Leni Robredo for the College of Education and College of Social Sciences and Philosophy, multi-awarded journalist Jessica Soho for the College of Mass Communication, Nobel Prize laureate Maria Ressa for the School of Economics, National Artist for Music Ramon Santos for the College of Music, Supreme Court Associate Justice Marvic Leonen for the National College of Public Administration and Governance, and international award-winning actress Dolly de Leon for the College of Arts and Letters.