SUCs implement stricter admission policies

State colleges and universities (SUCs) are implementing stricter admission policies this year to manage the influx of students who want to avail themselves of free higher education.

Philippine Association of SUCs president Tirso Ronquillo said government-funded schools have to implement “relatively stricter” admission policies to prevent overcapacity.

“We cannot accept beyond our capacity,” he said during the regional caravan in Southern Tagalog for Republic Act 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act last week.

“It still depends on our capacity, the number of our classrooms and the number of our teachers. We cannot accept beyond our capability of accommodating them. If we (do), the school will suffer,” he added.

Around 1.3 million students from 112 SUCs and 78 CHED-recognized local universities and colleges (LUCs) are expected to benefit from the initial implementation of the free higher education law, according to the Commission on Higher Education.

CHED officer-in-charge J. Prospero de Vera III earlier warned schools against accepting students beyond their capacities.

While the influx of students is a good indicator that the new law is attracting more high school graduates to proceed to college, De Vera said SUCs and LUCs should ensure that the quality of education will not be affected.

“I have been telling the SUCs and LUCs in the past months not to unduly expand their enrolment because if they do, they will put into motion a lot of problems that will come later on,” he said.

De Vera noted that the practice of not accepting all interested applicants is not new, citing the case of the University of the Philippines which accepts only around 15 percent of entrance examinees.

Access to disadvantaged students

To ensure that disadvantaged students will get access to SUCs and LUCs, De Vera said the free higher education law provides for the implementation of affirmative action programs.

He said the program aims to increase intake of students from public schools, poor households and communities, indigenous groups and students with disabilities.