TESDA comes up with tamper-proof cards

MANILA, Philippines - The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will issue tamper-proof cards to vocational graduates who passed the national competency assessment.

TESDA director general Joel Villanueva said certified tech-voc graduates will have a new “badge” as proof of their expertise in certain skills starting Aug. 1.

“The new ATM-sized card would serve as the National Certificate (NC) or Certificate of Competency (CoC) of technical vocational training graduates and skilled workers,” Villanueva said. 

He said the paper-based NC or CoC is one of the requirements being sought by recruitment agencies, private companies as well as foreign employers for Filipino workers.

The card contains the photo and name of the graduate, the certificate number, the date issued and the date of validity of the card. It will also have the logo of the issuing authority to prevent alteration or duplication. Shown at the back are information regarding the graduate.

 Each card costs P100. Only TESDA regional and provincial offices nationwide are authorized to issue the cards.

Villanueva said previously issued paper-based NC and CoC to all TESDA graduates will remain valid.

Graduates of tech-voc courses are required to undergo competency assessment to be a certified graduate.

Last year, a total of 1,055,576 tech-voc graduates and skilled workers underwent assessment.  Of the number, 936,007 were certified by TESDA.

Villanueva explained the NC is issued when an individual has demonstrated competence in all units of competency. A COC, on the other hand, is issued to graduates who have satisfactorily demonstrated competence on a cluster of units of competency.