BAGUIO CITY – The Philippine Military Academy (PMA) will be accepting some 400 new cadets composing the PMA Class of 2020 by April 1, 2016 during the scheduled reception rites.
Maj. Gen. Donato San Juan II, PMA Superintendent, said that this year’s quota is higher than the 350 regular quota of the Academy annually in order to guarantee that there will be a higher survival rate of the class by the time they graduate from the premier military school in Asia.
“We want to make sure that there will be a higher survival rate among those who entered the Academy and those who will graduate from the institution. We want to give the opportunity for those who have the potentials to become future leaders of the military and the country,” San Juan stressed.
The qualified applicants for cadetship have been already given the appropriate notices to undergo the required physical and medical tests at the AFP Medical Center before being notified to report to the Academy during the scheduled reception rites after having passed the rigid tests.
For over a decade now, PMA has become the breeding ground of responsible and dedicated military officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines and dynamic leaders of the nation because of the morals and character that were inculcated to them during their 4-year stint inside the hallowed grounds of the Academy.
According to the PMA official, the Academy continues to mold cadets into becoming dedicated military officials through enhancing their character, instilling the need for them to excel in their academics, to improve their morals and make sure that they are physical fit for the job that is awaiting them on the field.
The plebes to be received by the Academy will undergo a rigid besat barracks training for two months before being formally incorporated as part of the cadets corps by June and subjected to recognition by October.
San Juan claimed there is an increasing trend in the number of applicants interested to enter the premier military school that is why the institution does not expect a decline in the annual number of examinees wanting to enter the Academy and avail of the free education offered for those who will be able to meet the quota.
The national government spends at least P2 million for every cadet upon entering the Academy and up to graduation in order for them to become full pledged military officers of the armed forces. The amount is used for their subsistence, allowance, uniforms among other miscellaneous expenses.
The PMA entrance examination is held every August in almost 37 testing centers nationwide in order to tap interested applicants from Batanes to Tawi-tawi to take the chance to be able to have the chance to become future leaders of the nation.
By Dexter A. See
