MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Grade 10 students from private schools only have until February 15 to apply for the senior high school (SHS) voucher program.

The program is the government’s subsidy for students who will pursue SHS in private high schools, local universities and colleges (LUCs), state universities and colleges (SUCs), as well as technical and vocational schools. 

The February 15 deadline set by the education department applies to students from private schools who are not Education Service Contracting (ESC) grantees and will enter SHS in June, as the government fully implements the K to 12 program.

In a statement on Friday, February 5, Education Secretary Armin Luistro said the voucher program will help ease the financial load of parents as they send their children to study for two more years in high school.

ESC grantees, as well as public school students who will complete Grade 10, will be considered automatic beneficiaries and can enroll, if they wish, in private high schools, LUCs, or SUCs.

“If you belong to these two categories, you need not apply because you are automatically covered,” Luistro explained.

ESC grantees are students already pursuing their secondary education in private schools through the financial assistance of the government. The ESC is under the Government Assistance to Students and Teachers in Private Education or GASTPE. 

Meanwhile, the application of private school students for the voucher program will be subject to an assessment of their socioeconomic status. Students will be informed if they are eligible for the program before they complete Grade 10. 

Qualified applicants who will become voucher program beneficiaries may receive the following:

*HUCs (based on 2010 figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority): Angeles, Bacolod, Baguio, Butuan, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu City, Davao City, General Santos, Iligan, Iloilo City, Lapu-lapu, Lucena, Mandaue, Olongapo, Puerto Princesa, Tacloban, Zamboanga City

The value of the voucher will be released on a per semester basis to the school where the recipient will enroll, and not directly to the students.

“The SHS Voucher Program will only cover two years regardless of the number of years it takes for the student to finish SHS,” the education department said in the statement.

The vouchers will only be valid if redeemed within the first semester of the school year immediately after the student completes Grade 10.

DepEd has also partnered with mobile giants Globe Telecom and Smart Communications to send public advisories through text messages informing subscribers about the senior high school voucher program. 

The first batch under the K to 12 program – an estimated 1.2 million to 1.6 million students – will enter Grade 11 in 2016 and Grade 12 in 2017. (READ: INFOGRAPHIC: 10 things about K to 12)

But critics want the K to 12 suspended, citing the voucher program as one of their concerns. (READ: 2015: Protest against K to 12 at its loudest, reaches the Supreme Court)

According to them, the voucher program only proves that the country’s public education system is not capable of implementing two more years of high school. – Rappler.com