The most important social justice program of the Duterte Administration, Republic Act (RA) 10931 also known as the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act (UAQTEA) is now fully felt by millions of students enrolled in State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) and Local Universities and Colleges (LUCs) with the release of the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES), one of the core components of the Law with funding of PhP16 billion from the national government.
The TES is given to poor but deserving students who are enrolled in the 112 state universities and colleges (SUCs) and 78 local universities and colleges (LUCs) and whose names appear in the Listahanan 2.0 or the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) list of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD). TES beneficiaries in public universities get PhP40,000/year that they can use for books, transportation, supplies, room and board fees and other education-related expenses.
All students in SUCs and LUCs enjoy free tuition and miscellaneous fees since June 2018. The TES is an additional benefit given to financially-needy students.
Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and Unified Student Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education (UniFAST) Chairman J. Prospero E. De Vera III explained, “Last month, we released PhP567 million for the stipends of 13,760 continuing Expanded Student Grants-in-Aid Program for Poverty Alleviation (ESGPPA) scholars. Today, we are releasing the checks for SUCs and LUCs so they can give the stipends of 117,133 new TES beneficiaries”.
Based on CHED-UniFAST data, the following universities have the largest number of TES grantees:
TOP 10 STATE UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES
| Rank | Region | No. of TES Grantees | Name of SUC | Amount |
| 1 | Region 9 | 3,997 | Jose Rizal Memorial State University | 164,676,400.00 |
| 2 | Region 9 | 3,104 | Western Mindanao State University | 127,843,600.00 |
| 3 | Region 8 | 3,079 | Eastern Visayas State University | 126,854,800.00 |
| 4 | Region 7 | 2,959 | Cebu Technological University | 121,910,800.00 |
| 5 | CARAGA | 2,936 | Surigao Del Sur State University | 120,963,200.00 |
| 6 | Region 4 | 2,871 | Batangas State University | 118,285,200.00 |
| 7 | Region 6 | 2,606 | Capiz State University | 107,367,200.00 |
| 8 | Region 7 | 2,602 | Bohol Island State University | 107,202,400.00 |
| 9 | Region 8 | 2,462 | University of Eastern Philippines | 101,434,400.00 |
| 10 | MIMAROPA | 2,209 | Romblon State University | 91,010,800.00 |
TABLE 1. TOP 10 STATE UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES WITH TES GRANTEES
TOP 10 LOCAL UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES
| Rank | Region | No. of TES Grantees | Name of LUC | Amount |
| 1 | Region 4 | 1,204 | Kolehiyo ng Lungsod ng Lipa | 49,604,800.00 |
| 2 | Region 11 | 435 | Monkayo College of Arts, Sciences and Technology | 17,922,000.00 |
| 3 | Region 10 | 375 | Opol Community College | 15,450,000.00 |
| 4 | Region 10 | 363 | Gov. Alfonso D. Tan College | 14,955,600.00 |
| 5 | Region 5 | 358 | Caramoan Community College | 14,749,600.00 |
| 6 | Region 5 | 348 | Baao Community College | 14,337,600.00 |
| 7 | Region 4 | 311 | Laguna University | 12,813,200.00 |
| 8 | Region 12 | 288 | Makilala Institute of Science and Technology | 11,865,600.00 |
| 9 | Region 6 | 282 | Passi City College | 11,618,400.00 |
| 10 | Region 5 | 280 | Ligao Community College | 11,536,000.00 |
TABLE 2. TOP 10 LOCAL UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES WITH TES GRANTEES
Responding to the instructions of Chairman De Vera, some SUCs, like Cagayan State University have already given out the stipends of students for the first semester. Fr. Ranhilio Aquino, Vice President for Administration and Finance proudly reports this on his Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/rannieaquino/posts/2334663056563304
President Danilo Abayon of Aklan State University has organized and oriented grantees under the TES Grantees Organization (TES GO) and will release stipends right after the Christmas break. Dr. Abayon posted the event on his Facebook page with students and their parents in attendance: https://www.facebook.com/danilo.abayon/posts/10217714879679298
Finally, Dr. de Vera called on administrators of SUCs and LUCs to put in place guidance counseling, tutorials and other student support services to ensure that TES grantees will be able complete their degrees.
“This is the best Christmas gift given by President Rodrigo Roa Duterte to our poor but deserving students, let us ensure the implementation of RA 10931 is executed promptly and benefit those that need it most,” ends the CHED Chair.
For more information on the procedures of the grant of TES benefits, please visit www.ched.gov.ph/unifast or email unifastsecretariat@ched.gov.ph.
(signed)
J. PROSPERO E. DE VERA III, DPA
Chairman
Commission on Higher Education