(Total Quality Management) TQM at a State University As a result of several years of severe cuts to its operating budget by the national government, the administration of the a State University in the Bicol region has raised tuition annually for the past five years. Five years ago, getting an education at the university was a bargain for both students in the province as well as its neighboring provinces. Now, it is one of the more expensive state universities. An immediate repercussion has been a decline in application for admission. Since a portion of the Commission on Higher Education's budget is allotted to students' tuition fees and in which the state university is bestowed with, the State University has kept its enrollments up at a constant level by going deeper into its pool of applications, taking some less-qualified students. The increase in the cost of a degree has also caused legislators, parents, and students to be more conscious of the value of a education sponsored by the government-that is, the value of parents and students are receiving for their money. This increased scrutiny has been fuelled by numerous media reports about the decreased emphasis on teaching, in universities, low teaching loads by faculty, and large number of courses taught by graduate students. This in turn, has led the House of Representative's Committee on Higher Education to call for an "outcomes assessment program to determine how well the State University is achieving its mission of producing high- quality graduates. On top of those problems, a substantial increase in the college-age population is expected this decade resulting from an increase in child birth way back the past decades. Key members of the House of Representatives have told the university administration that they will be expected to absorb their share of the additional students during the next ten years. However, because of the budget situation, they should not expect any funding increases for additional facilities, classroome dormit rooms, or faculty. In effect, they will be expected to do more with 1/2 i resources. The State University is already facing a classroom deficit, anu /h. teaching loads above the average of its peer institutions. The House Committee o.. Appropriation of the Philippine Congress are fond of citing a study that shows that if the university simply gets all the students to graduate within a four-year period or reduces the number of hours required for graduation, they can accommodate the extra students. This entire scenario has made the University President consider retirement. He has summarized the problems to his administration staff as, "having to do more, better with less." One of the first things he did to address these problems was to set up a number of task forces made up of faculty and administrators to brainstorm a variety of topics. Among the topics and problems these task forces addressed were quality in education, educational success, graduation rates, success rates in courses (the percentage of students passing), teaching, the time to graduation, faculty issues, students issues, facilities, class scheduling, admissions, and classroom space. Several of the task forces included faculty from the College of Engineering and the College of Business and Accountancy. These individuals noted that many of the problems the University faced would benefit from the principles and practices of a total quality management (TQM) approach. This recommendation appealed to the University President and the Academic Vice President. Requirements: Considering the current situation, discuss in general terms how TQM philosophy and practices might be instituted at the State University.