Expanding scope and influence of physics education and research in the Philippines

Since 2007, the Philippine government, through the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), has been working with higher education institutions (HEIs) in the country to accelerate the development of new Filipino PhD graduates specializing in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by providing graduate scholarships and facilitating the sharing of human and physical resources. Despite such initiative, a study has shown that the national rate of production of high-level human resources has remained low, with a graduation efficiency rate of 48.13% to 56.34% during the first decade of implementation. One cited reason is the lack of good universities offering science and technology (S&T) graduate programs. Out of the more than 1900 HEIs in the country, the DOST lists only eleven universities for possible placement of S&T scholars. Of these, only five have PhD programs in physics. Following significant improvements in the faculty roster, other HEIs have taken steps to craft new graduate physics programs. Through partnerships with national agencies and private institutions, as well as collaborations with international counterparts, new areas of research are being explored and developed.