ARE you smart but poor, and struggling to get a college education?

The Commission on Higher Education (Ched) will support the education of 13,455 incoming first-year college students nationwide for school year 2023-2024 under its Ched Merit Scholarship Program (CMSP) that provides assistance to cover tuition and a stipend for living expenses even for students studying in private colleges.

This marks a return for new applicants of the scholarship program after the Ched suspended receiving new applications last year amid funding limitations.

Ched chairman J. Prospero de Vera III opened the application process for the CMSP this school year in a memorandum dated Feb. 21, 2023, that also set the deadline for the submission of applications at May 31, 2023.

Eligible for the government-funded scholarship are Filipino citizens who are graduating high school students or high school graduates with a general weighted average (GWA) of at least 96 percent for the Full Merit Program and 93 to 95 percent for the Half Merit Program, especially those who are underprivileged and homeless, persons with disability, or are solo parents or their dependents.

Additionally, the students must take up any of the Ched-recognized priority undergraduate programs whether in private higher education institutions (HEIs), state universities and colleges (SUCs), or local universities and colleges (LUCs).

The financial assistance amounts to P120,000 annually under the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (Pesfa) for those who qualify for the full merit program and study in private HEIs as the aid covers P40,000 for tuition and other school fees, a P70,000 stipend and a book/connectivity allowance of P10,000.

For those qualified for the Half Pesfa, the annual aid is P60,000.

Those studying in SUCs and LUCs will not pay any tuition or other school fees, so the annual assistance will be just P80,000 for the full program and P40,000 for the half program, which will be under the State Scholarship Program or SSP.

Interested students would have to submit their applications and documents to the Ched regional office in their area via the online modality, De Vera said.

Ched said those wishing to apply may avail themselves of only one government-funded financial assistance program, or lose their eligibility.

Ched Memorandum Order 10, series of 2021, lists Ched’s priority courses as those relating to Science and Mathematics, Information Technology Education, Engineering and Technology, Architecture, Business and Management, Health Profession Education, Maritime Education, Social Sciences, Teacher Education, and the Multi and Interdisciplinary Cluster (which refers to Agribusiness, Agro-Forestry, Data Science and Analytics, Disaster Risk Management/Climate Change, and Renewable/Sustainable Energy).

In the school year 2022-2023, Ched did not accept new applications for the Ched Merit Scholarship Program, citing the budget for the program provided in the 2022 General Appropriations Act as only being able to cover the continuing scholars.

Ched also suspended the application for a new batch of scholars for school year 2020-2021 under its merit-based programs and prioritized the need-based programs, to support the government’s efforts in responding to the coronavirus disease pandemic.

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Ched to provide scholarship aid to over 13K incoming freshmen