St. Mary’s College of Quezon City (St. Mary’s College, St. Mary’s, SMCQC) is a Catholic school for both boys and girls. It is administered by the Religious of the Virgin Mary, the first pontifically approved congregation for women in the Philippines. It is located along Mother Ignacia Avenue, formerly Cebu Avenue, in Quezon City. It provides Preparatory, Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary education. SMCQC is one of the oldest and also one of the most native institutions that offers formal education for girls in the Philippines. In 1684, Mother Ignacia, the Foundress, and her beatas started educating young Filipinas as part of their mission as a foundational community. In 1725, they opened a boarding school for girls which became known as Colegio del Beaterio. This also marked the first step towards formal education for the school. The Colegio del Beaterio was opened to Yndias and Chinese mestizas. These include Creoles and pure Spanish girls. The secondary department used to be exclusively for girls until schoolyear 1997-1998, it started to accept male enrollees. However, the male enrollees should have graduated from Saint Mary's College of Quezon City, Primary department. St.