Medical Studies at the

University of Santo
Tomas (1877-1882)
Group 1
 University of Santo Tomas
 Oldest existing university in Asia

 Established through the initiative of

Bishop Miguel de Benavides, third
Archbishop of Manila

 It was then founded on April 28, 1611

 It was first located in Intramuros,

the Walled City of Manila
UST was first called Colegio de Nuestra
Senora del Santisimo Rosario
Later named Colegio de Santo Tomas, in
memory of the foremost Dominican
Theologian, St. Thomas Aquinas
By November 20, 1645, Pope Innocent X
elevated the college to a university.
 Old building in
Intramuros,
Manila

New building in
Sampaloc, Manila
 Arch of the Centuries
It was first erected around 1680 at Intramuros,
where UST was originally established.
The original Arch which faces the main building
was the main doorway to the university building
before it was destroyed during World War II when
it was in Intramuros.
The inscription on the arch says “Gateway to the
history of the finest breed of Filipinos”
 Current Traditions
All incoming students, as parts of their
initiation rites into the university, known as
the Thomasian Welcome Walk are required
to pass through under the Arch.
Candidates for graduation, also pass
through under the Arch during a parade
after their Baccalaureate Mass.
 ’
o Don Francisco and Paciano wanted Jose to
pursue higher learning in a university, but
Dona Teodora, who knew what happened to
GomBurZa, vigorously opposed the idea and
told her husband: “Don’t send him to Manila
again; he knows enough. If he gets to know
more, the Spaniards will cut off his head.”
• April 1877
– 16-year-old Rizal matriculated in University of Santo
Tomas, taking the course on Philosophy and Letters

• Why Philosophy and Letters?

– His father liked it
– He was still ‚uncertain as to what career to pursue‛
• Rector of Ateneo to
whom Rizal had asked for
advice on the choice of a
career. Unfortunately, Fr.
Ramon was in Mindanao
that time so he was
unable to give Rizal an
advice
• Rizal studied the following:
– Cosmology
– Metaphysics
– Theodicy
– History of Philosophy
• Rizal took up medical course as advised by
Fr. Ramon and also because of his
mother’s eye condition that he wants to
cure her growing blindness.
• He enrolled in the preparatory medical
course and the regular first year medical
course simultaneously
• During his 1st year in UST, Rizal also
studied in Ateneo

• Perito Agremensor
– ‚expert surveyor‛
– Vocational course that Rizal took up in Ateneo
• Excelled in all subjects in the surveying course
• Gold medals in agriculture and topography
• Passed the final examination in the surveying course at
the age of 17, but he was not granted the title due to
his age so it was issued to him on November 25, 1881
• Although Rizal was then a Thomasian, he became loyal
to Ateneo because he had so many good memories and
whose Jesuit professors loved him and inspired him to
become better
• President of the Academy of Spanish
Literature
• Secretary of the Academy of Natural
Sciences
• Secretary of Marian Congregation
 AS A
LOVER
• There were at least nine women linked with
Rizal; namely
• Segunda Katigbak, Leonor Valenzuela, Leonor
Rivera, Consuelo Ortiga, O-Sei San, Gertrude
Beckette, Nelly Boustead, Suzanne Jacoby and
Josephine Bracken.
 SEGUNDA KATIGBAK

• Segunda Katigbak was her puppy love.

• Unfortunately, his first love was engaged to be married
to a town mate- Manuel Luz.
• After his admiration for a short girl in the person of
Segunda
 LEONOR VALENZUELA

• a tall girl from Pagsanjan

• Rizal send her love notes written in invisible ink, that could only be
deciphered over the warmth of the lamp or candle.
• He visited her on the eve of his departure to Spain and bade her a last
goodbye.
 LEONOR RIVERA
• sweetheart for 11 years played the greatest influence in keeping him from
falling in love with other women during his travel.
• Leonor’s mother disapproved of her daughter’s relationship with Rizal
• She hid from Leonor all letters sent to her sweetheart. Leonor believing
that Rizal had already forgotten her, sadly consented her to marry the
Englishman Henry Kipping, her mother’s choice.
 CONSUELO ORTIGA
• He dedicated to her A la Senorita C.O. y R., which became one of his best
poems.
• He probably fell in love with her and Consuelo apparently asked him for
romantic verses.
• He suddenly backed out before the relationship turned into a serious
romance, because he wanted to remain loyal to Leonor Rivera and he did
not want to destroy hid friendship with Eduardo de Lete who was madly
in love with Consuelo.
 O SEI SAN
• a Japanese samurai’s daughter taught Rizal the Japanese art of painting
known as su-mie.
• She also helped Rizal improve his knowledge of Japanese language.
• If Rizal was a man without a patriotic mission, he would have married this
lovely and intelligent woman and lived a stable and happy life with her in
Japan because Spanish legation there offered him a lucrative job.
 GERTRUDE BECKETT
• Gertrude, a blue-eyed and buxom girl was the oldest of the three Beckett
daughters.
• Tottie helped him in his painting and sculpture. But Rizal suddenly left
London for Paris to avoid Gertrude, who was seriously in love with him.
• Before leaving London, he was able to finish the group carving of the
Beckett sisters. He gave the group carving to Gertrude as a sign of their
brief relationship.
 NELLIE BOUSTEAD
• Befriended the two pretty daughters of his host, Eduardo Boustead.
• Antonio Luna, Juan’s brother and also a frequent visitor of the Bousteads,
courted Nellie but she was deeply infatuated with Rizal.
• Their love affair unfortunately did not end in marriage. It failed because
Rizal refused to be converted to the Protestant faith.
• Nellie’s mother did not like a physician
• The lovers, however, parted as good friends when Rizal left Europe.
 NELLIE BOUSTEAD
• Their love affair unfortunately did not end in marriage. It failed because
Rizal refused to be converted to the Protestant faith, as Nellie demanded
and Nellie’s mother did not like a physician without enough paying
clientele to be a son-in-law. The lovers, however, parted as good friends
when Rizal left Europe.
 SUZANNE JACOBY
• In 1890, Rizal moved to Brussels because of the high cost of living in Paris.
In Brussels, he lived in the boarding house of the two Jacoby sisters. In
time, they fell deeply in love with each other. Suzanne cried when Rizal left
Brussels and wrote him when he was in Madrid.
 JOSEPHINE BRACKEN
• February 1895, while still in Dapitan, Rizal met an 18-year old petite Irish
girl, with bold blue eyes, brown hair and a happy disposition.
• The adopted daughter of George Taufer from Hong Kong, who came to
Dapitan to seek Rizal for eye treatment.
• Rizal was physically attracted to her. But the Rizal sisters suspected
Josephine as an agent of the friars and they considered her as a threat to
Rizal’s security.
• Josephine later give birth prematurely to a stillborn baby, a result of some
incidence, which might have shocked or frightened her.
 ’
• UST-Freshman Med. Student.(1s taste of Spaniard brutality.
• Calamba (1878, summer vacation)
• Did not salute/nor say ‚Good evening‛
• Lieutenant of the Guardia Civil
• General Primo De Vera ( Spanish Gov. General of the Ph.)
• Later, in a letter to Blumentritt, dated(March 21,1887) he
related:‛ I WENT TO THE CAPT.GENERAL BUT I COULD NOT
OBTAIN JUSTICE;MY WOUND LASTED TWO WEEKS‛
 “ ”
•Artistico-Literario (Lyceum), Manila-Contest
•Rizal (18 yrs. Old) Submitted: A La Juventud Filipina.
•Board Of Judges: Spaniards
•First Prize: Silver Pen, Feather-shaped w/Gold Ribbon
•Congratulated by: Jesuits (Former Profs. At the Ateneo,
friends, relatives.
 0
• The artistic Literary Lyceum opened another
literary contest to commemorate the fourth
centennial of the death of Cerventes.
• Many participated in this contest
• Opened to both Filipinos and Spaniards
• The judges of the contest were all Spaniards
• Rizal’s work
• Won the first prize
• Made a history
• It was based on Greek classics
• Rizal produced other poems and a zarzuela. This zarzuela
was Junio al Pasig (Beside the Pasig)
• December 8, 1880- The anual celebration of the Feast Day
of the Immaculate Conception, Patroness of the Ateneo.
• In the same year (1880), he wrote a sonnet entitled A
Filipinas for the album of the Society of Sculptors.
• In 1879, he composed a poen entitled Abd-el-Azis y
Mahoma.
• In 1881, he composed a poem entitled Al M.R.P Pablo
Ramon.
• In May 1881, Rizal went on a pilgrimage to the town of
Pakil, famous shrine of the Birhen Maria de los Dolores.
• He was accompanied by his sister, Saturnina, Maria, Trinidad
and other female friends.
• Casco- flat-bottom sailing vessel
• They stayed at he home of Mr. and Mrs. Regalado.
• Turumba- the people dancing in the streers during the
pricession in honor of the miraculous Birhen Maria de los
Dolores.
• In Pakil, Rizal was infatuated by a pretty girl
colegiala, Vicenta Ybardolaza.
• Rizal and his party made a side trip to Pagsanjan
for two reason:
1. It was the native town of Leonor
Valenzuela.
2. To see the world famed Pagsanjan Falls
• Years later Rizal mentioned the Turumba and
Pagsanjan Falls in Chapter 6 of Noli Me Tangere.
• In May 12, 1888, he said that Niagara falls was
"The greatest cascade I ever saw"
• Rizal was the champion of the Filipino students
in their frequent fights against arrogant Spanish
students, who insultingly call their brown
classmates
• Rizal participated in street brawls.
• In 1880, he founded a secret society of Filipino students
in UST called Compañerismo (Comradeship), members
were called ‛Companions of Jehu‛.

• Rizal was the chief of the secret society and his cousin
from Batangas, Galicano Apacible was the secretary.

• There was a time in their fights, when Rizal was

wounded on the head, his friends brought him in his
boarding house and Leonor Rivera aided and washed
his wound.
o Rizal, Ateneo’s boy wonder, found the atmospheric at the
University of Santo Tomas suffocating to his sensitive spirit.

o He was unhappy at this Dominican institution of higher

learning because:
1. the Dominican hostile were hostile to him
2. the Filipino students were racially discriminated
against by the Spaniards
3. the method of instruction was obsolete and
repressive.
 In his novel El Filibusterismo, he described how the Filipino
students were humiliated and insulted by their Dominican
professors and how backward the method of instruction was,
especially in teaching of the natural sciences.

 In the Chapter XIII, ‘’The Class in Physics’’, Rizal related how

classes are held in UST.

 Because of unfriendly attitude of his professors, he failed to win

high scholastic honors. His scholastic records in the University of
Santo Tomas were as follows:
 1877-1878 (Philosophy & Letters)
Cosmology and Metaphysics………………………………Excellent
Theodicy……………………………………………….……………Excellent
History of Philosophy………………………………………….Excellent

1878-1879 (Medicine) – 1st year

Physics…………………………………………………………………….…Fair
Chemistry……………………………………………………..…..Excellent
Natural History…………………………………………………..…..Good
Anatomy I……………………………………………………………….Good
Dissection I……………………………………………………….…….Good

1879-1880 (Medicine) – 2nd year

Anatomy II…………………………………………………………….Good
Dissection II……………………………………………………..……Good
Physiology…………………………………………………………....Good
Private Hygiene…………………………………………………….Good
Public Hygiene………………………………………….………….Good

1880-1881 (Medicine) – 3rd year

General Pathology………………………………………………….Fair
Therapeutics……………………………………………….…Excellent
Surgery………………………………………………….……………Good

1881-1882 (Medicine) – 4th year

Medical Pathology…………………………………...Very Good
Surgical Pathology……………………………………Very Good
Obstetrics……………………………………….……….Very Good
 After finishing the fourth year of his medical course, Rizal decided to study
in Spain.
- Because he could no longer endure the discrimination and hostility in
the University of Santo Tomas.
 His older brother readily approved his going to Spain and so did his two
sisters Saturnina (Neneng) and Lucia, Uncle Antonio Rivera, the Valuenzuela
family, and some friends.
 For the first time, Rizal did not seek his parents’ permission and blessings to
go abroad. He did not bring his beloved Leonor into his confidence either.
- Thus Rizal’s parents, Leonor and Spanish authorities knew nothing of his
decision to go abroad in order to finish his medical studies in Spain.