Only 1 out of 5 graduate from maritime programs on time — CHED data

MANILA, Philippines — Only around one out of five students enrolled in the Philippines' maritime education programs have graduated on time, according to the Commission on Higher Education's latest data, with lack of training opportunities on ships cited as a main factor for the low completion rate.

Only around 19% of all those who enrolled in the country's two main maritime education programs in the school year 2018-2019 have graduated from the course as of 2022-2023, Jorel Ramirez, CHED's officer-in-charge for the division that handles maritime education, said during the House appropriations committee's deliberation of the proposed 2025 budget last week.

Ramirez said that out of the estimated 27,000 who enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation program in 2018, just 3,301 graduated four years later. 

Meanwhile, the Bachelor of Science in Marine Engineering program only produced 2,948 graduates despite having 11,000 enrollees four years ago in 2018.

Both programs prepare students for careers as marine deck officers and marine engineers, respectively. The programs span four years, including three years of academics and a one-year shipboard training.

Rep. Ron Salo (Kabayan Partylist) expressed concern over the "low success rate" in maritime programs as this is already down from the low 33% reported last year. 

Asked to provide the success rate of the eight state universities and colleges (SUC) providing maritime education programs, Ramirez said in Filipino the commission had no data specific to public universities, saying: "but because we just have 8 SUCs [with maritime programs], it does not matter that much."

Salo pressed CHED further, saying: "I really doubt that." 

"I'm asking because we know this is a relevant issue, especially for private maritime institutions. Even if we lump them together with SUCs, just 14% (sic) graduate from them," Salo said in Filipino. 

"Why is the percentage this low?" the lawmaker asked.

Ramirez explained that one of the reasons behind the low graduation rate is that the the Philippines does not have enough ships to provide maritime students with onboard training, and their numbers are still growing.

"We produce