Education in the Philippines

The Philippine Educational System is basically influenced by the American System having English as the medium of instruction.

As a start, we have pre-school (optional) followed by 6year- elementary school (Grades 1 to 4 considered as primary and Grades 5 to 6 as intermediate) then followed by a 4 year-secondary or simply called high school. Classes commences in June, coinciding with the onset of rainy season and ends in March same time with the start of the summer months. Summer classes (normally required for academically challenged students) if required starts April that approximately runs for 6 weeks else the student takes the two-months summer break.

Tertiary level follows, a collegiate course which varies from 4 years or more, depending on the baccalaureate course. Majority of Philippine educational institution still offers a 2-semester and summer schedule. 1st semester begins in June and last for 18 weeks followed by a short 2-3 week semestral break on mid-October while 2nd semester is a bit shorter than 1st semester because of the Yuletide break and sometimes the early onset of Holy Week (Philippines is the only Christian country in this part of the world). Similarly there is a 2-3 week semestral break before the start of the 6-week summer class. Summer classes for college students may mean taking advance courses or back subjects, this is the time to take bridge courses in case one decide to shift from one course to another. There are Metro Manila collegiate schools that offer trimesters (3 terms per year - no summer classes) and even one experimenting quarterm (4 terms a year - no summer classes ).

Some high school graduate or dropouts opt to take non-baccalaureate course instead like short technical and trade skill courses. These courses runs from a few months to two years. Most graduate hope to join the labor force at once and when already earning on their own some pursue a college degree. This idea gave birth to a government program called ladderized education launched in the recent years.

A piece of advice- Always refer to the Commission of Higher Education when choosing the school you want to go to but choosing a course really depends on the student, enroll only with an accredited institution.

Educational institution is either public or private.

Public or government owned institution provides lower tuition fee since it is fully or partially subsidized by either the national or local government whereas; Private schools are for those willing to pay more, these institutions are further classified into sectarian and non-sectarian.

Elementary and Secondary levels fall under the jurisdiction of Department of Education (DepEd) while tertiary level fall under CHEd. Stand alone trade schools are normally tied up with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).