424 Students May Lose Their Scholarship Due to 'Pass All' Policy, Says CHED

According to a press release dated Wednesday, August 12, 424 recipients of the Merit Scholarship Program (CMSP) of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) are in danger of losing their scholarships if the higher educational institutions (HEIs) will not provide them with numerical grades for the second semester of the 2019-2020 academic year.

Unlike the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) and Tulong Dunong grants, the CMSP is awarded to students based purely on academic performance, thus CMSP scholars are required to maintain a general weighted average (GWA) of the following:

• at least 85% or its equivalent for full scholars
• at least 80% or its equivalent for half scholars

According to CHED Chairman J. Prospero E. De Vera III, "the problem was caused by HEIs (higher education institutions) who did a 'pass all' policy in their 2nd semester...If the HEIs will not give them numeric grades, what will be the basis to determine if the students will get financial assistance from the government?"

CHED has therefore written to the presidents of the following HEIs who have adopted a 'pass all' policy, to urge them to immediately provide numerical grades:

• Saint Mary’s University
• Bataan Heroes Memorial College 
• De La Salle University – Dasmariñas
• STI College Rosario
• University of the Philippines Los Baños
• Cavite State University
• Mary Help of Christians College-Salesians Sisters Inc.
• Ateneo de Naga University
• Partido College
• Pili Capital College, Inc.
• Bicol State College of Applied Sciences and Technology
• University of the Philippines – Visayas
• Mindanao State University – Iligan Institute of Technology
• Mindanao State University – Naawan
• Polytechnic University of the Philippines – Sta. Mesa, Manila
• University of Baguio
• Mindanao State University – Marawi

The 17 schools have until October 30, 2020 to submit the students' numeric grades to the CHED Regional Offices (CHEDROs), in order for CHED to properly evaluate the students' GWAs and determine their scholarship eligibility.