Three Cebu universities to hike tuition this year

Three major universities in Cebu City will increase tuition by at least 6.5 percent this coming 2012-2013 school year.

The move followed an earlier announcement of 26 private elementary and secondary schools in Central Visayas to raise their tuition for the coming school year.

The University of San Jose Recoletos (USJ-R) will implement a 6.5 increase in tuition, the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) will implement a 7 percent raise, and the University of San Carlos (USC) will hike tuition in all levels by 10 percent.

The University of the Visayas will only collect a 5 percent  increase  in tuition of incoming first year students. The increase, however, excludes those freshmen taking up Law, Medicine and Dentistry courses in UV.

Four other major universities, however, won’t implement any increase. These are the University of Cebu (UC), South Western University (SWU), Cebu Normal University (CNU) and Cebu Technological University (CTU).

The Office of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED, however, said that it couldn’t release the names of the schools which had pending applications for a tuition increase until May.

In a random check with the school authorities, officials from the Cebu Institute of Technology-University confirmed the 7 percent increase.

They said this would apply to all levels from pre-school to tertiary levels.

They said that in CIT-U engineering courses, the rates would increase from P18,191 in the previous school year to P21,358.69/semester in the coming school year.

While in Nursing course, the rate will be raised from P28,383 to P30,361.

Noe Quiñanola, comptroller of USJ-R, said the 6.5 percent increase in all levels was mainly for the increase of the salaries of the teachers and personnel of the school.

The USC Accounting office for its part also confirmed that 10 percent increase would be collected in all levels.

Dr. Gil Jumao-as, budget officer of the University of the Visayas, said the 5 percent tuition adjustment would only apply to the incoming first year students in the elementary, secondary, and tertiary levels.

For the University of Cebu, Rudy Aviles,  Instructional Media Service Director, said the school wouldn’t implement any increase because of its commitment to help the poor and even those students coming from middle class families.

Aviles said this coming school year, the school would even give additional slots for scholars.

SWU president Elsa Suralta said it’s not time yet to ask for another increase since the school already increased tuition two years ago.

Suralta said they also wanted to help the students to finish their studies knowing the financial difficulties at this time.

For CTU, Jerlito Letrondo, executive assistant to the president, said the school was subsidized by the government and so it would be all right not to seek for an increase.

CTU students will only have to pay P7,500 per semester in all courses.

For CNU, Edwin Monsanto, CNU accountant, also said that the school wouldn’t seek an increase because it, too, was subsidized by the government.

CNU students in education and other courses will just pay around P3,000 except for nursing wherein the students will have to pay ranging from P15,000 to P18,000 per semester.

Students, however, in CTU and CNU will have to pass the entrance exam and other screening processes before they will be enrolled.

Meanwhile, Aaron Pedrosa of the Freedom from Debt Coalition criticized the schools implementing the tuition increase.

“Private schools have chosen to be oblivious of the plight of Filipino families amid the incessant rising cost of commodities and utilities in applying for a new wave of increases in tuition and other fees ,” Pedrosa said.

“We call on the government to take a more proactive role in regulating tuition increase applications and to abandon its deregulation philosophy. We need government where it matters,” Pedrosa said.