The Davao City government has started accepting applications for its scholarship programs to support 200 indigent and deserving students who want to proceed to tertiary education or take up medical and law courses for schoolyear 2022 – 2023.
Scholarships are offered through the city government’s Scholarship on Tertiary Education Program (STEP), the Medical Education Assistance Program, and the Law School Assistance Program.
Educational Benefit Systems Unit (EBSU) Technical Assistant Emilio D. Domingo Jr., in an interview on Davao City Disaster Radio Thursday, said that applications for scholarship programs are accepted from June 15 to 24, 2022.
Domingo said that a booth in front of the Davao City Planning and Development Office (CPDO) has been opened to accept applications and supporting documents.
Domingo said that maximum of Php25,000 is allocated per scholar per semester for the STEP program.
He said that eligible scholars for tertiary education may choose the course and the school where they will enroll. Applications for state universities, however, are not accepted.
On the other hand, full and half scholarships are offered for Medical and Law schools.
“Meaning sa full bayaran nato ang ilang tuition ug miscellaneous plus naa silay 20,000 na book allowance para sa mag med ug para sa mag law school 8,000 nga book allowance. Kung half-scholarship ang meaning ana half sa tuition and miscellaneous ang bayaran and half sa benefit sa book allowance nimo (Full scholarship means that their tuition and miscellaneous will be paid and Php 20,000 book allowance for Medical School and Php 8,000 for Law school. Half-scholarship this means half-tuition and miscellaneous will be paid and half of the benefit for book allowance),” he said.
Domingo said that applicants should also pass at least a 93 percent general average for incoming college students and 85 percent for medical and law school and they must have no failing grades. A one-child policy will also be implemented.
“Sa atong policy once naa kay failing grade automatic ka ma-terminate. Daghan kaayo moreklamo nganong taas kaayo ang grade requirement 93 percent. Taas gyud na siya pero once mopasok naka sa STEP program wala naka’y gina-maintain na grado passing grade nalang (In our policy, once you have a failing grade you are automatically terminated. Many are complaining why the 93-grade requirement is so high. It is really high but once you enter the STEP program you don’t have to maintain a grade, what is only required is the passing grade),” he said.
Domingo said that the qualification for a full or half scholarship is a result of an assessment of the grade requirements and the economic status of the family.
“Mag matter na didto kuntahay pareha mo 93 ang nipasa nimo nga grade, magmatter pud na sa economic status sa family. Makita namo nga daghan ka’g igsuoon daghan ug ginapa-eskwela. Ang trabaho sa imong ginikanan ginakonsider pud na siya sa pag-assess. So depende na sa result sa assessment kung asa ka pwede ma-belong (Example, two of you have 93 grade, the economic status of the family will also matter. If we can see that you have many siblings in the family, and all of you depend on your parents for education, the job of your parents will also be considered. So it would really depend on the result of the assessment where you will belong),” he said.
Domingo said that the city scholarship programs have already produced eight successful lawyers in the last Bar exams and 40 medical doctors since the assistance started in 2018. CIO
