Angara wants gov’t help Filipino students pursuing education abroad
Senator Juan Edgardo M. Angara on Friday said he is set to file a bill that would provide assistance to Filipino students who want to pursue a college education overseas.
In a press release, Mr. Angara said he wants to expand the scope of Senate Bill 961 or the proposed Pensionado Act, which he filed in 2019, “to cover high school graduates.”
The senator noted that the high cost of education abroad prevents Filipinos from pursuing higher education in prestigious universities overseas.
“Once they have earned their degrees, these scholars can bring back home what they have learned and use these for our benefit in a form of knowledge transfer,” Mr. Angara said.
The proposal mandates the Philippine government to extend support to outstanding college graduates “who are employed and wish to pursue advanced studies overseas.”
Under the measure, a so-called Pensionado Program would be established under the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), which shall gather all fellowships, scholarships, and training grants sponsored or extended by foreign governments and agencies and local organizations “intended for advanced studies in international centers of advanced learning, scholarship and research.”
The measure also creates a national secretariat which will “assist in the negotiations with the sponsors of fellowships, scholarships and grants, and provide continuing assistance to the scholars.”
“The bill provides for the selection of 24 fellows annually — three from each priority discipline/industry field of the eight vital disciplines or areas of specialization identified by the CHEd, in consultation with the National Economic and Development Authority as frontiers or new areas essential for pushing the economic and social development thrusts of the country,” Mr. Angara said.
Under the bill, grantees will receive assistance in the form of three years leave with pay, including allowances and other benefits; round-trip airfare and other expenses required for foreign travel; a clothing allowance; a monthly stipend; books/instructional materials/research allowance; and health, travel and insurance fees.
“The cost can be shared by the foreign government, institution or organization and the national government. We shouldn’t see this as an additional expense but rather an investment on our youth,” Mr. Angara said.
The bill also seeks to create a national network of specialized institutes for advanced studies, which would “provide returned scholars an office, laboratory, library and conference facilities for their continuing activities.” — Kyle Aristophere Atienza
