Article By Lovely Rose A. Bolante (Project Technical Staff)
TACLOBAN CITY, Philippines—The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Central Office, in collaboration with partner institutions, officially conducted the UCAS Regional Roll-out: Expanding Access to Higher Education yesterday, April 23 (25) and today, at Hotel Estrella, Tacloban City. This convention is under the first league of a four-part regional initiative aimed at introducing the Unified College Admission System (UCAS).
The roll-out forms part of the dissemination efforts under the CHED-funded project “Empowering Equity Target Students: Enhancing Access and Success in State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) across Regions I, VIII, and XII.” It aims to strengthen implementation readiness among SUCs, ensuring that the UCAS platform is well understood and effectively used before its formal launch.
A key highlight of the event was the convergence of the three regional project teams leading the implementation of the CHED-funded project in their respective regions. Representing Region I was the team from Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU), led by Prof. Kenneth Bayani. Region VIII was represented by Samar State University (SSU), under the leadership of Prof. Sherrie Ann C. Labid. Meanwhile, Region XII was represented by the University of Southern Mindanao (USM), headed by Prof. Marcos Monderin. These teams collaborated closely to share updates, harmonize dissemination efforts, and enhance the functionality and usability of the UCAS platform.
This activity supports CHED’s broader “Paglaum kag Pagdaug” initiative, which promotes equitable access and improved student support systems across SUCs, especially for equity target learners.
Key national and regional officials are present at the event, including Director Sylvette Gunigundo of the Office of Planning, Knowledge Management, and Research (OPKRM) from the CHED Central Office, and Ms. Jamie Sese, Project Technical Staff, who joined virtually via Zoom. The CHED Regional Office VIII was represented by Dr. Catherine Iglesias, standing in for Regional Director Maximo Aljibe.
Various SUCs from across Eastern Visayas are present today including Leyte Normal University (LNU), Northwest Samar State University (NwSSU), Visayas State University (VSU), University of Eastern Philippines (UEP), Eastern Visayas State University (EVSU), Southern Leyte State University (SLSU), Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT), Eastern Samar State University (ESSU), and Biliran Province State University (BiPSU).
Following this two-day assembly, the UCAS roll-out will continue at the following clusters:
- Luzon Cluster: April 29-30, 2025 at DMMMSU-ICC, Bacnotan, La Union
- Visayas Cluster B: May 5-6, 2025 in Iloilo City (Venue: TBA)
- Mindanao Cluster: May 7-8, 2025 in General Santos City, South Cotabato (Venue: TBA)
Through this initiative, CHED aims to unify and streamline the college admission process nationwide, ensuring that no learner is left behind.