The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) is presenting to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. the guidelines for the cash-based Bagong Pilipinas Merit Scholarship Program, which will target low- to middle-income families.

“Mayroon siyang PhP634 million to cover 20,000 slots and this is across the country. We are scheduled to present the guidelines mamaya kay President BBM kasi ito ang kanyang number one na ibinigay sa amin sa bagong administrasyon ng CHED,” CHED Chairperson Dr. Shirley Agrupis said in a Palace press briefing on Tuesday.

The merit-based scholarship encourages students to enroll in the government’s priority programs either in private or state-funded universities and colleges.

Scholars enrolling in state universities and colleges (SUCs) in Metro Manila could get a PhP25,000 per-semester stipend and a PhP4,000 book and connectivity allowance, for a total per-semester benefit of PhP29,000, Agrupis said. The stipend is lower for scholars enrolled in SUCs outside the National Capital Region.

Those studying in private universities within NCR can receive a tuition fee subsidy of PhP75,000, a PhP25,000 stipend, and a PhP4,000 book and connectivity allowance.

The total annual support for students enrolling in private universities is set at PhP208,000 for those in the NCR and PhP98,000 for students outside the NCR.

The slot selection will be done per region, determined by the formula developed by CHED, Agrupis explained.

“We already have here the number of senior high schools per region, and then we designated the top five (students), kasi this is, I call it the triple A scholarship program, based on the general weighted average, iyong top five ang kukunin namin,” she said.

“Mayroon na po silang pag-asa na matupad ang kanilang mga ambisyon at makatulong sa pagbuo ng Bagong Pilipinas,” Agrupis also said. | PND