The Supreme Court said yesterday that the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City is among the 24 local sites for the regional Bar examinations scheduled in November.
This will be the first time that multiple sites will be used for the Bar examinations.
In Western Visayas, it will be held at the USLS, with a maximum of 1,340 slots, and at the Philippine University in Jaro, Iloilo City, with a maximum of 475 slots.
In a bulletin, the High Court said that aside from the 24 sites, four more venues – three in Metro Manila and one in Central Luzon – are also being evaluated for the exams.
Manila universities, including the Manuel Luis Quezon University, De La Salle University, and the University of Santo Tomas were the past sites of the exams.
Under the measure, each bar applicant will select their local testing center through the Bar Personal Login Unified System.
Venue-matching will not be on a first-come, first-served basis and instead, applicants from remote areas will be prioritized.
Applicants may select their chosen local testing centers after their applications have been approved by the Supreme Court en banc. The Office of the Bar Confidant will send separate emails to the approved applicants.
The SC advised applicants to choose the testing center that is closest to their residence.
“This will not only reduce their expenses, but will also free up the slots in vicinities closest to those with the least resources.” the Court said.
Earlier, the SC has approved other changes, including the possibility of including bar examinees in the list of priority individuals for anti-coronavirus vaccination.
The other 22 testing centers approved, so far, are Ateneo de Manila University Law School, Manila Adventist College, University of Makati, Far Eastern University, and University of Santo Tomas for the National Capital Region, St. Louis University School of Law in Baguio City, St. Louis College in La Union, Cagayan State University College of Law, St. Mary’s University College of Law, De La Salle University – Lipa, City College of Calapan, University of Nueva Caceres, University of San Jose Recoletos–Basak Campus, University of Cebu School of Law, University of San Carlos School of Law and Governance, Silliman University College of Law in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental;
Dr. V. Orestes Romualdez Educational Foundation, Ateneo de Zamboanga University, Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan College of Law, Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology, Ateneo de Davao University, Senior High School Campus, and Mindanao State University in General Santos City.*PNA
