CHED is encouraging students to avail of the government's educational assistance programs.
The Commission on Higher Education has encouraged students that are planning on going to college to utilize the educational assistance programs that are being offered by the government.
Due to COVID, 19 more families are struggling to get by. Students can take advantage of the college assistance programs that are being offered to them.
The government is offering free programs to help students continue their education in this hard time. This information came from Estevez who is the director of the Unified Student Financial Assistance System that deals with Tertiary Education.
There are programs under the Republic Act 10931 that was signed by President Rodrigo Duterte in 2017. This act allowed students to have access to free higher education programs, additional student loan programs, and tertiary education subsidies.
To get free higher education a student needs to enroll in a state university or college program. They can also be enrolled in a school accepted by the CHED program. Students can take any entrance exams for free.
There are some exemptions for students. They may not have to pay admissions fees, athletic fees, pay for computer access, pay for development and entrance, handbooks, any labs, library fees, medical registrations, and any fees for a school id.
If a student is taken a specialized program they will still need to pay for expenses related to the course. They may need to pay for learning experiences and any fees from their lack of progress or negative behaviors.
Under the free programs, there are 266,950 students enrolled. The total fees have reached over $1 billion.
Also read:
CHED Scholarship Guide 2024
The government is looking to continue assistance into the second semester.
College students can now apply for the Tertiary Education Subsidy to help support the cost of education and any related expenses.
Students can get up to 60,000 per year based on financial need. They may also live in a city that does not have a public university.
This program will allow those that are enrolled to be reimbursed up to 40,000 and those in private higher education schools can get up to 60,000. They will get a one-time reimbursement of up to 10,000 to cover any licensure exams.
Students that have disabilities can get an additional 30,000. There was almost 52,000 student enrolled with aid totaling over 1.069 billion.
For students that do not qualify for free education, they can benefit from the student loan programs. They can get up to 60,000 with zero percent interest if they follow the repayment terms.
Out of the 174 students that applied for the loan there were 270 that were approved.
The education department grants millions of dollars in interest-free loans a year.
There are hopes that more students will take place in these assistance programs. To find out more information a student can visit the UniFast page on Facebook. They can also find more information at the official website at
https://unifast.gov.ph/
The Unifast organization wants to strengthen and expand to help more students. They are funded by the Student Financial Assistance Program for tertiary education. This organization provides educational assistance to both public and private schools.