TWO hundred eighty-one Batangueños aspiring to become scientists and engineers will enter college with a Department of Science and Technology – Science Education Institute (DOST-SEI) scholarship stamp after passing the undergraduate scholarship examination administered nationwide on October 15, 2017.
The country’s premier science scholarship program, back after a two-year pause due to the implementation of the K-12 Curriculum, announced 8,994 new qualifiers for its RA 7687 and Merit Scholarship programs. Among the total number of passers, 281 were Batangueños, (188 RA 7687 Qualifiers and 93 Merit Qualifiers).
This year breaks the record as the number of qualified students reached the highest mark since the DOST-SEI scholarship program started in 1958, surpassing 2015’s 5,303 qualifiers by 69.60 percent.
These new S&T scholars, as well as the on-going scholars, will be enjoying the new stipend rate at P7,000/month across all disciplines. They are also entitled to tuition fee subsidy; book allowance; MS/PE clothing allowance; one economy-class roundtrip fare per year for those studying outside of their home province; and group accident insurance.
The scholarship qualifiers must enroll in any of the University of The Philippines campus; or in state universities and colleges; or private higher education institutions recognized by the Commission on Higher Education as Centers of Excellence or Centers of Development; or with Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines Level III accreditation for the S&T priority programs they will enroll in. The list of priority S&T programs can be found in the SEI website.
DOST-SEI scholars are required to render service in the country preferably along their fields of specialization after graduation for a period equivalent to the number of years they enjoyed the scholarship as a return service. SEI maintains its resolve that this strategy allows the country’s industries to have “the best minds” to do their services and products.
RA 7687 Scholarship Program is given to gifted students who belong to economically disadvantaged families while the Merit Scholarship Program is given to a family whose socio-economic status exceeds the average.
Dr. Josette T. Biyo, DOST-SEI Director, said the scholarship programs are particularly structured for potential science and mathematics professionals. DOST scholarship will provide greater opportunity as they pursue their science degrees and careers.
“DOST scholarship has always been geared towards using S&T to serve the Filipino people,” Biyo said. “We hope our new qualifiers would take on that challenge as early as now”, she added.| – #BALIKAS_News
