Private schools want CHED to lift tuition cap

An organization of private schools demanded yesterday that the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) lift the cap on tuition increases in all schools in the Philippines, saying this has prevented private universities from improving their standards.

In a press conference, Coordinating Council of Private Educational Associations (COCOPEA) president Vicente Fabella said the improvement of private schools has suffered due to the constraints that have prevented them from increasing their tuition and other fees.

According to Fabella, president of Jose Rizal University, CHED’s policy of limiting tuition hikes has badly affected the improvement of facilities and teachers’ salaries, which in turn has had adverse effects on the quality of education in private schools.

"CHED right now is pushing for the tuition fee cap. We cannot increase beyond inflation rate," he said.

Fabella said the consequences of the tuition ceiling cannot be felt until after four years, when this year’s incoming college freshmen have graduated.

"The effect will be very clear down the road. Students right now, when they graduate, are expected to have global skills — which means their skills must be good when compared with other countries even if they are working locally," he said.

Fabella pointed out that "if we limit the amount of money schools can invest in education, the skills won’t happen in four years (and) they will not be globally competitive."

He said their group is ready to have a dialogue with CHED officials on possible new guidelines to improve the quality of education, especially at the tertiary level.