A CAMPUS BUILT ON COMPROMISE

In the University of the Philippines Cebu, space is not just physical; it is something constantly negotiated, competed for, and worked around.

More and more, students find themselves adapting not only to academic pressure or athletic responsibilities, but to the uncertainty of whether there will be enough spaces for them to study, train, or rest on campus.

They navigate the facilities of UP Cebu not just to find spaces where they can stay, but in a constant struggle to find areas where they are permitted to occupy.

In a shared workshop, Fine Arts students crowd a table for their projects while another rests in a ceiling hammock, showing how they improvise spaces for both work and rest in a limited campus environment.

If this is the reality for regular students, the strain becomes heavier for student-athletes who are expected to meet academic deadlines while also committing to physically demanding training schedules.

Van Cinco, a Fine Arts student and soccer varsity player, is no stranger to this struggle. His days are often shaped between classes and training, without a stable place to pause, recover, and work.

Loinne Shie Antopina, a Communication student and volleyball varsity player, faces a similar cycle of exhaustion. Early morning classes after late training sessions, and rest that rarely feels complete due to requirements that still need to be completed.

They are just two of the many students who exist within the same system, yet their experiences reveal how space is lived when it becomes scarce.

SHARED COURTS AND DIVIDED HOURS.

Since the varsity program opened in A.Y. 2022–2023, athletes have faced limited access to proper facilities and training equipment. Maintaining a rigorous conditioning routine has become a daily exercise of improvisation and frustration for both coaches and players.

Teams in lawn tennis, volleyball, futsal, and basketball often deal with overlapping schedules with classes, PE use, and practices, and a shortage of dedicated training spaces. As a result, they share courts and cut sessions short to accommodate others.

Varsity coordinator Miko Cañete said coaches and faculty struggle with secure storage for equipment due to risks of damage or theft. Instructors also noted gaps in space, equipment, and maintenance, but capacity to respond remains limited.

For athletes like Loinne, the constant scramble for space translates into an exhausting game of patience. Training schedules stretch late into the night, and when space overlaps happen, waiting becomes part of the practice itself.

“Naabot sa time nga nag-ilogay na og court ang mga VAAS kay tungod lagi sa schedule. Sometimes pud ang mag-una sa amoa og training kay malapas gani sila sa 7 [pm] imbes 7 [pm] ra sila kutob — and then, ang effect ana sa amoa or at least sa akoa is kana dugay mi makasugod so dugay sad mi mahuman,” Loinne said, recalling how training sessions are pushed back when other groups overrun their slots.

In such cases, the court is not a guaranteed resource — it is borrowed time, divided among many.

Even on the rare days of availability, inconsistent maintenance further limits their use. Athletes often take on upkeep themselves, eating into already shortened training time.

Requests must pass through prolonged bureaucratic processes, delaying even minor improvements and leaving both athletes and staff to work around persistent inadequacies.

STUDYING BETWEEN SPACES.

Outside the court, designated study spaces and other alternative areas are harder to secure. Students move between the library, TLRC, kiosks, discussion halls, and workshops, often settling wherever space becomes available. During peak hours, these areas fill quickly, leaving others to wait, relocate, or adjust their study routines.

Unattended belongings crowd the wooden shelves before the library entrance. Despite the university’s effort to expand the library spaces, it still operates under tight systems, limited hours, and competition for space.

The lack of space becomes more difficult for Fine Arts students when they start working on creative outputs. Unlike other courses that require only a desk and a laptop, their nature of work is often spatial, tactile, and material-heavy.

For Van and his co-artists, the problem is finding a space sufficient enough to accommodate the scale of Fine Arts work.

“Kana ganing ting pass na or hapit na ang deadline kay magtapok gyud tanan taw, samot walay space gani. Wala koy ma trabahoan lain, ari ra jud ko sa skuwelahan, so m a problema jud ko. So in terms of asa namo ibutang, di man namo mada kay dagko man kaayong mga works, so kana palang daan, wala nami butanganan,” Van said, referring to how studio and workshop spaces quickly become overcrowded.

Limited workshops and storage force Fine Arts students into cramped, repurposed spaces, with unclaimed canvases, tools, and materials spilling into corners. Despite available workshops, 24-hour access still requires approval.

It is not as though they are not provided with designated spaces; such areas do exist. Despite this, classrooms and studios remain insufficient to meet the needs of the expanding Fine Arts Community in UP Cebu.

Campus kiosks, often the only alternative spaces, are usually occupied, uncomfortable for rest, and lack charging outlets needed for academic work.

Students simply leave and search elsewhere; however, alternative spaces such as the study halls and kiosks are only meant for studying — creative works are restricted. This compels them to move between areas or wait for others to finish before they can begin.

For someone like Van, this constant adjustment becomes heavier during thesis periods or competition season. Academic demands and athletic training collide in the same limited hours, and often in the same limited spaces.

REST WITHOUT RESIDENCE.

Even when students leave the classroom, studio, or court, access to rest does not automatically follow, especially for student-athletes.

Not being accommodated in campus dormitory adds another challenge. With deadlines piling up and no time to go home, some Fine Arts students stay overnight in workshops just to finish requirements.

Access to the campus dormitory remains highly competitive. Residency evaluations are based on official documents submitted during the application, with final rankings determined through the combined weighted system, the place of residence, and socioeconomic status.

Van initially applied for a dormitory slot in the university, but was rejected since priority was given to those who live farther from campus. Although he lives in Lapu-Lapu City, his demanding routine makes the daily commute even more difficult, often ending his day amid peak rush hours.

For Loinne, dorm life would have meant reduced travel time after late-night training sessions. Instead, she travels from Minglanilla to the university, often arriving home close to midnight before waking early for class.

“Pag start namo diha sa VAAS, we were told that we will have separate quarters sa regular students and sa varsity player and wala man siya nadayon. Akong mga kauban karon is naa sila sa Lihangin nga dorm, lucky for them maka rest jud sila didto if naa silay break. Kapoy jud baya ang training. Lisod kaayo e-find og space jud para maka nap man lang or rest,” Loinne said, emphasizing the lack of spaces where student-athletes can rest between commitments.

Despite affordable dormitory rents, residents still face cramped living conditions with shared spaces, stacked belongings, exposed infrastructure, and broken facilities, falling short of basic comfort and functionality.

As expressed by other former dorm residents and unaccepted applicants, they are not always directly informed if they are not accepted, leaving them waiting without updates and scrambling to secure off-campus housing at the last minute.

Even students accommodated in the dormitories still contend with overcrowded shared facilities. With only two shared refrigerators and no CCTV, lost food often goes unresolved, while common bathrooms become congested as residents rush to attend classes and training.

Although dormitory management has proposed expansions, including additional units and modular housing, they remain slow due to funding and institutional processes.

MEALS ON BORROWED SPACES

Aside from dealing with the lack of campus spaces and deteriorating dorm conditions, even basic routines such as eating are shaped by the same limitations.

With tight schedules and short lunch breaks between classes, not all students can afford to leave campus, forcing many to wait for available seating or remain in crowded dining spaces.

The campus canteen, serving as the only primary on-campus food option, struggles to accommodate the increasing volume of students. During peak hours, seating becomes scarce, forcing students to wait, stand, or look elsewhere.

At the same time, canteen meals are often described as premium-priced, with some being caught off guard by unclear pricing.

Students line up at a nearby karenderia outside the university. Food spaces like Kawayanan have become a go-to for many UP students, offering ₱50–₱80 meals with better quantity and value for those on a budget.

For many students, stepping outside the university is not a matter of preference but out of necessity.

*“Naa may usahay gud nga expensive jud ang canteen nya small kayng portions. For the sake of like tipid gani, like tingbits, wala kaayo koy budget karon, so mas naturally mo pick gyud ko og other choices like pastil–35 pesos ra. And other like Sols or like kanang mga karinderya lang kay mas daghag hatag, mas daghag portions, mas sulit pa ba.” Van said, noting how cost affects every decision, from where he eats to how much he spends in a day.*

Some students eat on roadside benches inside the university, using any shaded space available, as limited seating and dining areas force them to settle wherever they can have their meals.

Even after buying food, the problem remains: Where to stay? Where to sit down? In these moments, access is not just about food availability, but whether there is space to consume it.

While the campus canteen’s limited capacity is an inevitable constraint, this does not fully explain the situation. The issue reflects how campus facilities have not kept pace with the growing student population and their daily needs. It is not simply that the canteen cannot cater to everyone, but that there are too few accessible and inclusive food spaces within the university.

A SYSTEM OF CONSTANT ADJUSTMENT.

What appears as everyday decisions about where to eat, rest, or continue work is shaped by a wider structure where limited funding, slow processes, and uneven development of facilities force students to constantly recalibrate their routines around what is available rather than what is needed.

Workshops, dining areas, and makeshift training spaces show how campus facilities are stretched beyond their intended functions, as students and athletes continuously adjust to limited, overcrowded, and improvised environments in their everyday routines.

The university serves as a microcosm of a larger systemic problem within the education system, where state universities continue to struggle under budget constraints and bureaucratic neglect that leave students and athletes like Van and Loinne fighting for proper spaces while trying to fulfill their academic and athletic responsibilities.

Despite ongoing efforts by the student council to address the concern, the growing student population and the upcoming expansion of programs and blocks mean that the current available spaces are no longer sufficient. Even faculty members and the university’s very own varsity coordinator acknowledge that campus spaces, while present, remain insufficient and unevenly accessible.

This reality is reflected in the everyday routines of students and athletes. Facilities designed for a single purpose are regularly stretched to accommodate many needs, turning access into a matter of timing, availability, and constant adjustment.

As the semester workload grows heavier, students are left maximizing available spaces. With most learning areas occupied, they spill into hallways and stairs, even outdoor corners.

The search for space has accustomed the students to compromise. Students arrive earlier, stay later, adjust plans, and work around limitations that have long been accepted as normal. Whether in classrooms, study areas, training venues, or campus grounds, access often depends on patience, timing, and the willingness to make do with what is available.

Yet amid these constant adjustments, students continue to show up. They attend classes, represent the university in competitions, lead organizations, and pursue their goals within the spaces they can find.

Their stories reveal not only determination but also a quiet question that lingers across the campus: how much more should students have to adjust before the spaces meant for them finally make room for their needs?

Published by: Eumague, Felizarta, Gaquit, Labrejos, and Lavilla