BONTOC, Mountain Province – The State-run Mountain Province State Polytechnic College (MPSPC) is ready for the upcoming visit of accreditors from the prestigious Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines (AACCUP), Inc., an organization that accredits programs which meet standards of quality education, on June 23 to June 26 of the current year.
The said state college prepared for the second survey visit in Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master in Business Administration, and Master in Public Administration. Also, for the first survey visit of AB Political Science and preliminary survey visit of Master in Science Education and Master in Teaching Science.
Because accreditation is an evaluation by peers, the external accreditors are mostly faculty members from higher education institutions and non-government organizations who were trained to assess and evaluate the compliance of schools to the standars of quality education. The team of accreditors will be coming from different state universities outside Cordillera like Tarlac State University (TSU), Rizal Technological University (RTU), Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology (NEUST), University of Rizal System (NEUST), Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP), Philippine Normal University (PNU). Among them are Prof. Lucila O. Sunga, Prof. Lorna S. Dimatulac, Dr. Jeremias F. Buraga, Prof. Eric G. Claudio, Dr. Agnes M. Macaraeg, Prof. Virginia D.C. Ancheta, Prof. Geraldine R. Fullado, Engr. Consolacion S. Lagman, Dr. Raquel G. Ramos, Prof. Maria Lourdes R. Fernandez, Dr. Elizabeth A. Amurao, Dr. Jeremias F. Buraga, Prof. Eric G. Claudio, and Prof. Ruel A. Avilla.
The accreditors will be using the accreditation survey instruments as a tool in the assessment of programs. The decision in the evaluation process is a team decision especially in the award of accreditation status to the courses that were applied for accreditation.
Accreditation is viewed as a process by which an institution at the tertiary level evaluates its educational activities, in whole or in part, and seeks an independent judgment to confirm that it substantially achieves its objectives, and is generally equal to comparable institutions.
Currently, accreditation in state colleges and universities is by program. A program is defined as a course or a group of related courses packaged in curriculum and leading to a graduate or undergraduate degree.
Aside from program-focused, accreditation is based on standards of the accrediting agency, which are normally higher than those set by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and other appropriate agencies like Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). This is voluntary on the part of the higher education institution that may want to be accredited.
The accreditation closely examines a program through ten general criteria distributed in ten areas. Among the ten areas are Vision, Mission, Goals and Objectives (VGMO); Faculty; Curriculum and Instruction; Support to Students; Research; Extension and Community Involvement; Library; Physical Plant and Facilities; Laboratories; and Administration.
Since accreditation is performed, this will now lend prestige to accredited schools, justified by the possession of quality standards and commitment to maintain these at a high level; help parents know which program they may send their children to for quality education; make possible for those proposing funding and all those who are to fund to know what to support and how much support is needed; and make possible for an evaluated program to know its strengths and weaknesses, and in what aspects it needs to develop.
MPSPC designated taskforce are assigned for each area but over-all coordinated by Dr. Geraldine L. Madjaco, Dr. Gina L. Lacaben, and Dr. Marcelino P. Gaqui, Jr.
As of the present, MPSPC accredited programs for undergraduate are: level III for Bachelor of Secondary Education (BSEd) and Bachelor of Elementary Education (BEED); level II for Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering (BSCE), Bachelor of Science in Geodetic Engineering (BSGE), Bachelor of Science in Office Administration (BSOA), Bachelor of Science in Agro Forestry (BSAF), and Bachelor of Science in Criminology (BS Crim); level I for BS information Technology (BSIT), BS Electrical Engineering (BSEE), BS Hotel and Restaurant Management (BSHRM), BS Accountancy (BSA), Bachelor in Agricultural Technology (BST), BS Forestry (BSF), and BS Nursing (BSN), and candidate status for AB Political Science (AB Pol Sci). On the other hand, for graduate programs, level II for MA Education (MAED); and level I for MP Administration (MPA) and Master in Business Administration (MBA), and Doctor of Education (Ed.D.).
The accreditation of the MPSPC programs is part of the institution’s preparations for university hood by the start of next year pursuant to rules and regulations handed down by the Commission on Education (CHED).
By: MICHELLE F. LENGWA-ASTUDILLO and JIMMY A. ASTUDILLO, JR.