Saint Louis University (SLU) is located within Baguio’s Central Business District (CBD) along Andres Bonifacio Street. It is strategically located within walking distance or short jeepney ride from Baguio City’s major landmarks such as Baguio City Public Market, Church of Our Lady of Atonement or more popularly known as Baguio Cathedral, Session Road and Burnham Park .
Almost all local jeepneys terminate in the heart of the CBD. To get to SLU, one can take any jeepney that passes or terminates its route at the CBD. Taking a taxi may be more expensive, but it’s more convenient as passengers are dropped off in front of the university’s main gate.
Saint Louis University is a non-stock, non-profit educational institution founded in 1911 by the Congregation of the Heart of Mary. It started with 10 pupils in a wooden barrack. It was in 1915 that the intermediate level was offered, while the secondary began with an all-boys batch in 1921. The collegiate level began in 1952 with classes in liberal arts and commerce. In 1963 that Saint Louis University was given its university charter which made it the first private university in the northern Philippines.
As of February 2009, SLU has grown exponentially to 54,392 students and over 2,000 faculty and staff, with a laboratory elementary and high school, and with 7 colleges with their respective undergraduate and graduate programs totaling nearly 100 half of the course of which are graduate programs.
Students can enroll in degree courses such as accounting, business administration, training courses, numerous engineering and architecture courses, human science courses such as psychology and mass communication, IT courses, natural science courses such as biology and pharmacy, law , nursing and medicine. Numerous undergraduate and postgraduate programs are also offered in the 7 colleges.
Saint Louis University envisions itself as the Light of the North, an excellent missionary and transformative educational institution capable of tapping into and enhancing human potential. Being a Catholic institution, education is an evangelical work aimed at producing human beings who are imbued with the Christian Spirit, competent, creative and involved with their community and society.
On average, a student can expect to shell out around Php 13,000-15,000 per semester for an average of 24 units. This would vary depending on which course a student would be taking as a course which would require specialized tuition would mean an additional cost. However SLU offers scholarships for working students, as well as scholarships from governmental, non-governmental and private organizations for deserving students.
SLU has its own tertiary-level general hospital, Sacred Heart University Hospital in Saint Louis, which began in 1977. SLU has a Children’s and Youth Wellness Center, fondly called the Sunflower Children’s Center, which offers assessment and therapy sessions for children with behavioral problems. Also present was the SLU Alumni Foundation, Inc. with Louisianans as the recipients of the most popular project, the scholarship program for financially challenged but deserving students. SLU has also established research units that focus on curriculum improvement, present solutions to economic, environmental, and community problems.
Saint Louis University is actively involved in the Philippine organizations CEAP and PAASCU as well as international ones such as Association of Southeast Asian Institutions of Higher Learning (ASAIHL) and International Association of University Presidents (IAUP). It has also fostered links with universities and international organizations such as the American Studies Resource Center (Thomas Jefferson Information Center, USA); Catholic University of Lovain (Belgium), Ford Foundation (USA), Jinan University (Guangzhou, China) and others. These pave the way for the pursuit of higher education as well as the exchange of students and faculty.