Growing up in a low-income family, 23-year-old Danica Carreon thought she would never achieve her dream of becoming an engineer.
But, thanks to the scholarship offered by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Carreon was able to pursue a degree in civil engineering.
“The DOST scholarship changed my life in ways I never imagined. Coming from a low-income family, I once thought that pursuing a degree in civil engineering would be out of reach,” shared Carreon.
Now working as a project engineer for a private firm in Cebu City, Carreon attributes to DOST her chance at a better life.
“When I became a DOST scholar, it was as if a door to my dreams had finally opened. It wasn’t just financial aid, it was hope. It gave me the freedom to focus on my studies without constantly worrying about financial needs,” Carreon said.
Scholarship promotion
Central Visayas is one of the regions in the country with a high number of DOST scholarship passers or qualifiers.
“Daghan gyud ta’g mga passers, qualifiers kay ato pu’ng gibuhat, gi-intensify pud nato ang promotion. Ang ato gyung mga scholarship personnel nanuroy gyud sila sa lain-laing municipalities,” Abando said.
(We have a lot of passers, qualifiers because that’s what we’re doing, we’ve also intensified the promotion. Our scholarship personnel have been going around the municipalities.)
Abando said they aim to have scholars in each local government unit.
“Ang ato man gyud target na dapat kada municipality naa gyu’y scholars,” he said.
(Our target is that every municipality should have scholars.)
DOST in Central Visayas has partnered with state universities in the region in promoting the scholarship, especially those offering secondary education.
There are a total of 2,527 DOST undergraduate scholars as of December 2024, while 1,848 new incoming scholars passed the examination in 2024. For the school year 2024 to 2025, there were a total of 966 DOST scholars who graduated .
DOST scholars are required to maintain their grades up to at least 80 percent rate. If the scholars are unable to accomplish this, their scholarship can potentially be terminated.
However, Abando said scholarship termination in Central Visayas remains low.
DOST scholarship benefits include a monthly living allowance of P8,000 and P40,000 per academic year for tuition and other school fees.
Scholars also receive a book allowance at P10,000 per year, clothing allowance for 1st semester of First Year only at P1,000, thesis allowance at P10,000, group health and accident insurance and transportation allowance for those studying out of their home province, among others.
For the full list of DOST scholarship benefits and the various scholarships offered by DOST, visit https://www.dost.gov.ph/products-and-services/s-t-scholarships.html. (JJT/PIA7)
