The plenary hall of the House of Representatives. (INQUIRER.net file photo)
MANILA, Philippines — A bill that allows individuals to use their acquired occupational knowledge, experience, and achievements as credits for their tertiary education units has been approved by the House of Representatives on third and final reading.
During the session on Monday, House Bill (HB) No. 9015 or the Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) was approved after 251 lawmakers voted in the affirmative, with none voting against it or abstaining.
If enacted, the bill would allow professionals who have been working for at least five years to use their skills and experience they to shorten their path to a college degree — by subtracting it from the total number of credits required before they can graduate.
Under the proposal, a professional would qualify for the ETEEAP if they are:
- a Filipino citizen, whether in the Philippines or abroad
- 23 years of age
- has at least five years working experience
- certification of having passed the Accreditation and Equivalency Assessment conducted by the Department of Education
- employment certificates
- birth certificate issued by the Philippine Statistics Authority
- resume/ curriculum vitae/ personal data sheet
- service record or employment certificate signed by employer
- job description signed by employer
- transcript of records
Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, the said program would allow people who have not finished their schooling to use an alternative education program to complete their college education.
“The ETEEAP refers to the alternative education program in the Philippines that allows working professionals who were either unable to finish their college education or were completely unable to advance into college for different reasons to earn a bachelor’s degree without going through the traditional schooling method,” Romualdez said.
“Institutionalization of ETEEAP give this laudable policy permanence, meaning more Filipino professionals will benefit from it in the coming years,” he added.
HB No. 9015 is the latest version of HB No. 5728, filed by Tingog party-list Reps. Yedda Marie Romualdez and Jude Acidre.
Last January, when the bill was approved at the House committee on higher and technical education, Acidre said flexible learning would provide a different avenue for the attainment of educational degrees.