‘Most Caraga SCUs have raised tuition

BUTUAN CITY, Philippines – Most state-run colleges and universities in the Caraga region have raised their tuition and other school fees, the regional office of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) said yesterday. Dr. Julius Sol Jamero, chief administrative officer of CHED-Caraga, said the recent cut in the annual budget of state-owned colleges and universities in the region forced them to raise fees. “Besides, in as far as determination of the collection of tuition and other fees, CHED has a limited role or even no role at all in determining tuition fee hikes in state colleges and universities as long as consultations have been made with parents and students,” he said.

Jamero said all state colleges and universities in the region have implemented income generating programs to augment their budgets but these were not enough.

Jamero, however, could not explain in detail the increase in tuition and other fees in colleges and universities in the region.

In the Caraga State University (CSU), a freshman taking up Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT) will have to pay a tuition fee of P10,000, up from P4,000 collected last year. CSU has two campuses, the Cabadbaran City Campus and Ampayon, Butuan City Campus.

There are 14 government owned colleges and universities in the region.

Nine private colleges and universities, meanwhile, were allowed to raise tuition and other school fees: Fr. Saturnino Urios University (FSUU), St. Joseph Institute of Technology (SJIT) and Asian College Foundation, all in Butuan City; Agusan del Sur Colleges in Agusan del Sur province, New Northern Mindanao Colleges in Agusan del Norte; STI-College and Surigao Education Center in Surigao City; De la Salle John Bosco College and Southern Technological Institute of the Philippines in Surigao del Sur.

In Central Luzon, 35 out of 185 private colleges and universities were allowed to raise tuition fees by P50 per unit this coming school year.

The CHED regional office in the province of Pampanga said proceeds from the tuition increase would be used to raise the salaries of teachers and upgrade facilities.

CHED regional director Dr. Virginia Akiate said 36 colleges and universities in Central Luzon actually sought approval for tuition increase. Only one petition was declined.

Akiate said the 35 schools which were allowed to increase tuition were required to submit a certificate of intended compliance with their proposal to use the funds to raise the salaries of their teachers and improve school facilities. Akiate noted that 70 percent of tuition fees in colleges and universities are usually used for the salaries of teachers, while 20 percent is used to upgrade the facilities. Only 10 percent is claimed as profit.

“We hope the number of enrollees in private colleges and universities would not decrease due to tuition fee hike. But we have to understand that private schools need to upgrade their facilities in order to cope with the times,” she said. Akiate said all of the petitions for tuition increase went through the proper process.

CHED rules stipulate that private schools can only raise tuition fees after consultation with the sectors concerned. Schools seeking tuition increase must inform CHED 15 days before they consult students, parents, alumni, and student organizations. –-‘Ben Serrano (The Philippine Star) with Ding Cervantes