NCES 2025: Breaking Grounds Begins

Caryl Angela Opulencia

Amid structural decay and outdated engineering practices threatening the nation’s foundation, UP ACES launches NCES 2025 this September 19 to prove that even students can break grounds and help reshape the very core of engineering and society, long before they earn their license.

Now on its 21st year, the National Civil Engineering Summit (NCES), the two week-long flagship event of the UP Association of Civil Engineering Students (UP ACES), once again gathers the country’s brightest civil engineering students, leading industry professionals, and national advocates in an unparalleled platform for technical excellence, critical discussions, and service to the nation.

This year’s theme, “Breaking Grounds: Reshaping the Core of Nation-Building,” sets a bold vision to confront the realities of crumbling infrastructures, vulnerable communities, and systemic inefficiencies while embracing innovative and inclusive solutions shaped through active engagement with the people who will live with the results. To break grounds means to dig deeper into the structural and societal problems that demand transformation.

But behind this prestigious summit are not seasoned professionals or paid organizers. Instead, NCES 2025 is built entirely by students who, beyond their academic loads, have devoted months of preparation for this milestone event. For over five months, the members of UP ACES— recognized for over seven decades of academic excellence, leadership, and service— have been working tirelessly to shape the summit. The organizing committee composed of event heads and 16 ad hoc committees with specialized responsibilities: academics, communications and security, documentations, externals, finance, food and refreshments, housing and transportation, marketing, merchandise, physical arrangements and logistics, promotions, programs, publicity, registrations, souvenir programs, and technicals, operates as one. 

Their preparation has been far from easy. Late nights were consumed by grueling meetings, conceptualizing the themes for all sub-events, drafting hundreds of quiz questions, mapping venue floor plans, editing teaser videos, sending out email blasts, generating thousands of QR codes, and packing souvenirs. Days were spent contacting suppliers, negotiating with partners, calling through databases, conducting face-to-face invites, contacting resource speakers, building testing rigs, painting exhibits, programming buzzers, doing ocular visits, redesigning publication materials countless times, and visiting communities for consultations. And as if these long days and sleepless nights were not enough, the NCES Grilling held last April, clearly demonstrates their commitment as organizers, where their plans were meticulously critiqued by members and alumni in a meeting that stretched past 1:00 AM. Yet through all the exhaustion, the dedication of UP ACES members never wavers, fueled by reasons they hold close to their hearts.

As the UP ACES President Ian Marquez expressed, these reasons are rooted in both service and legacy: “Despite the countless tiring days we spent preparing for this summit, we never stop pushing forward because, as Civil Engineering Scholars and ACES members, we see this as our way of giving back to the community. More than anything, we also owe it to those who led before us to continue this legacy.”

This shared commitment unfolds through the summit’s lineup of flagship events, each designed with a specific purpose: to highlight technical innovation, foster collaboration, and ground engineering in service to the people.

The summit officially opens today, September 19 with Jumpstart, a ceremony dedicated to the UP Institute of Civil Engineering faculty, staff, and UP ACES members who made the summit possible. It will feature a ribbon-cutting, summit blessing, and the much-anticipated Grand Pakain to mark the start of festivities.

On September 20, the Bridge Building Competition will challenge high school students nationwide to put theory into practice by constructing model bridges under time and material constraints. Judged on strength, cost-efficiency, and aesthetics, the event continues its legacy of sparking early interest in engineering and celebrating youthful ingenuity.

Running throughout the summit is the Civil Engineering Exhibit, a curated showcase highlighting the six fields of civil engineering, the milestones of UP ACES, and artistic presentations of how civil engineering shapes society. More than a display, it is an invitation to imagine what the future of the discipline can look like—sustainable, transformative, and people-centered.

By September 24, participants immerse themselves in two dimensions of civil engineering through ImmerCE. The CE Laboratory Tour provides students with firsthand exposure to UP ICE’s laboratories and facilities, while the CE Career Fair connects them with leading firms and companies through resume consultations, interview simulations, and industry showcases. 

The following day, September 25 marks the highly anticipated National Civil Engineering Symposium, expected to draw thousands of participants. Esteemed speakers will tackle pressing industry issues, while the advocacy-driven program—partnered with Technical Assistance Movement for People and Environment Inc. (TAMPEI)—will highlight the role of engineers in serving communities. With the call “Building the Core: By and for the People,” the symposium amplifies the message that engineering must not only be about infrastructure but about the lives shaped by it. Inspirational talks, including “People at the Core: Reshaping the Nation through Integrated Engineering” by Rep. Chel Diokno of Akbayan Partylist, aim to move participants to action.

Finally, on September 26, the summit culminates with the National Civil Engineering Quiz (NCEQ), known as the most prestigious quiz competition in the field. Teams face off through rigorous rounds that test mastery of technical knowledge, problem-solving, and critical thinking—bringing the week to a close with a celebration of academic excellence. 

As the summit officially begins, the work does not stop. Yet through the collective effort of passionate civil engineering scholars, NCES is already proving to be more than a gathering event. It is becoming a movement— a breaking of new ground to reshape the core of nation-building.

For future updates and announcements on NCES 2025, stay connected through its official Facebook page: facebook.com/ncesummit.