CHED renews Ateneo's Autonomous status for 2024-2027

Ateneo de Manila University has once again been granted Autonomous status by the Philippine Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

CHED, in its Memorandum Order No. 7, Series of 2024, identified Ateneo de Manila as among 77 private higher education institutions (PHEIs) with Autonomous status, valid from 16 September 2024 to 15 September 2027.

Meanwhile an additional 15 PHEIs have been granted Deregulated status, according to the same CHED memorandum.

The granting of Autonomous and Deregulated status for PHEIs confers to a college or university special privileges and benefits, including determining and prescribing curricular programs; exemptions from regular CHED monitoring and evaluation; and granting of honorary degrees.

Autonomous institutions also get priority in receiving grants and subsidies.

In return, they are expected to help non-Autonomus and non-Deregulated institutions through quality assurance development and mentoring programs, as a way to elevate the quality of higher education in the country.

The current cycle covers PHEIs' performance and achievement from 1 July 2019 to 15 September 2023. CHED noted that the COVID-19 pandemic affected the schools' ability to meet specific indicators, and these were taken into consideration.

The Commission noted, however, that it is "crucial" for the grantees to "achieve exemplary performance" so that their status can be renewed in 2027.

Achieving Autonomous status requires institutions to fulfill requirements and achieve at least 80 points in three criteria:

• Commitment to Program Excellence (30 points)
• Excellence in Instruction, Scholarly Works, and Community Engagements (40 points)
• Institutional Quality and Excellence (30 points)

The policies and guidelines for granting Autonomous and Deregulated status are outlined in CHED Memorandum Order No. 6, Series of 2023.