Eighteen private and public colleges and universities in Western Visayas, including those in Bacolod City and Negros Occidental, are seeking tuition fee increases for school year 2014-2015, Assistant Director Rex Casiple of the Commission on Higher Education, said yesterday.

Casiple added that more institutions are expected to apply for tuition fee hikes since the deadline for submission of applications is April 1 yet.

Casiple, one of the speakers at the ASEAN Economic Community Integration 2015 forum, said that, based on their records, Bacolod City and Negros Occidental have the most number of applications for tuition fee hikes.

He said the institutions seeking tuition fee hikes claimed in their applications that they need it to increase the salaries of their faculty members, improve their facilities like their libraries and laboratories and acquire additional facilities.

However, not all of these applications for tuition fee increases will be immediately granted, as CHED will conduct a thorough evaluation and ensure that the applicant-institutions have fully complied with the requirements set by the commission, Casiple added.

Under CHED rules, institutions seeking tuition fee increases should have no deficiencies in the programs they are offering and that the management has conducted a dialog with the students, faculty, alumni representatives and parents.

CHED also requires institutions to submit a break down as to how the tuition fees will be utilized and that such increase should not be more than ten percent over the present tuition cost.

Casiple said there are times when the commission allows an increase of more than ten percent from present tuition fees, so long as the institution-applicant can justify it.

He said CHED ordered the closure of seven tertiary education programs being offered by some universities and colleges in the Western Visayas last year after they failed to comply with the requirements of the commission and for the poor performances in licensure examinations.

Most of the closed courses were business-related, and in elementary and secondary education, he said.*APN

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