MANILA, Philippines - Medical students in eight state universities and colleges (SUCs) will receive a full tuition subsidy this school year, an official of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said yesterday.
CHED commissioner J. Prospero de Vera said eight SUCs offering Doctor of Medicine programs will receive a total of P317.1 million to cover the tuition of its new and continuing students.
Covered by the program are medical students enrolled in University of Northern Philippines, Mariano Marcos State University, Cagayan State University, Bicol University, West Visayas State University, Mindanao State University, University of the Philippines (UP) in Manila, and the UP School of Health Sciences in Palo, Leyte.
The program is separate from the P8-billion free tuition program for undergraduate students in 114 SUCs nationwide.
“This initiative is a response to the continuing lack of doctors in the country caused by the high cost of medical education, overseas migration, and brain drain,” De Vera said.
“The Duterte administration wants to solve this problem by subsidizing the tuition of medical students and facilitating their residency and practice in the different parts of the country,” he added.
To qualify in the program, medical students must pass the admission requirements of the SUC, maintain a general weighted grade of at least a passing grade determined by the university, carry a regular academic load and complete the degree within the period allowed in the university.
Beneficiaries of the program will be required to render one year of return service in the Philippines for every year of cash grant received.
They can serve as doctors in government or private hospitals, local government health facilities or become doctors to the barrios.
De Vera said the return- service system is already in place for all medical and other health-related courses in UP.
“It is designed to ensure that students stay and serve in the country after graduation in exchange for the public subsidy given for their education,” he added.