Taking that one great leap towards their dreams, approximately 97,000 grade 12 high school students from all over the Philippines took the Department of Science and Technology – Science Education Institute’s (DOST-SEI) 2024 Undergraduate Scholarships Qualifying Examination held last April 6 and 7 in 205 testing centers nationwide.

This year’s total number of examinees increased by more than 20% as compared to last year’s 79,585 exam takers. According to the officer-in-charge of the DOST-SEI Engr. Albert G. Mariño, 10,000 slots are waiting to be filled by new scholars for 2024.

The passers of the qualifying examination will join the current roster of about 40,000 scholars supported by the Institute and shall be entitled to benefits, including a monthly stipend of Php 8,000.00, tuition fee subsidy of up to Php 40,000.00 per academic year for those who will enroll in private universities and colleges, Php 10,000 learning  materials and/or connectivity allowance, Php 10,000 thesis allowance, one economy-class roundtrip fare per year for those studying outside of their home province, for the duration of their chosen science and technology degree program.

The scholarship qualifiers must pursue a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree program in any of the priority science and technology fields of study at a state university or college or any private higher education institution that is recognized by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) as a Center of Excellence or Center of Development or with Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines Level III accreditation for the degree program that a qualifier intends to enroll in. The list of priority S&T programs can be found on the DOST-SEI website: www.sei.dost.gov.ph.

The DOST-SEI continues to invest in its scholars and works to keep the scholarship a competitive and prestigious offering. At the beginning of 2024, the Institute implemented an increase in the scholars’ monthly stipends, from Php 7,000.00 to Php 8,000.00 for the undergraduate scholars; from Php 25,000 to Php 30,000.00 and from Php 33,000 to Php 38,000.00, for the master’s and the PhD scholars, respectively.

Engr. Mariño encouraged the students to seize the opportunity of being a scholar, which can be life changing. “This scholarship opportunity can transform the lives of our youth. And as we develop more fresh talents to become part of the S&T workforce, we will help our country gear towards development that is equitable and inclusive,” he added.

The 2024 DOST-SEI Undergraduate Scholarships list of qualifiers shall be announced in June or July of this year on the DOST-SEI’s official website and social media page, as well as on selected newspapers.