Sense of civic responsibility of National Service Training Program completers and non-completers in a university setting in the Philippines

In compliance with Republic Act 9163, Philippine higher education institutions are mandated to include the National Service Training Program (NSTP) program into all the degree program curricula offered. The government aims to develop young people who are civic-conscious towards nation-building. The present study aimed to determine the extent of the sense of civic responsibility of NSTP completers and non-completers of a University as of July 2017. The study used a quantitative, descriptive design in which 204 respondents enrolled in June-July 2017 answered the self-constructed survey questionnaire. Findings show that the respondents had a very high sense of civic responsibility in terms of connection to the community and civic awareness. However, in terms of civic efficacy, they had yielded only a high sense of civic responsibility. This could be attributed to their sense of willingness but, feeling of unpreparedness. A comparison of NSTP completers and non-completers indicated no significant difference in their sense of civic responsibility. It is thus recommended for the administration and concerned department to further look into how the NSTP program can maximize its opportunities to effectively foster a greater sense of civic consciousness and responsibility among the youth.