A Pulse Asia survey commissioned by Senator Win Gatchalian said 98 percent of Filipinos are in favor of free tuition in public universities.
The survey said this trend extends across all economic classes: 99% in Classes ABC, 97% in Class D, and 100% in Class E; as well as across geographic regions such as the National Capital Region (NCR) at 98%, Balance Luzon at 96%, Visayas at 99%, and Mindanao at 100%.
The survey was conducted from September 10 to 14 and involved 1,200 respondents.
The increase in the number of graduates is the top reason whyFilipinos support free tuition in public universities, which according to Gatchalian may highlight the respondents’ belief that a college degree is the path towards a higher quality of life and better opportunities.
When asked why they support free college tuition, more than half (51%) of the survey’s respondents said that it results in more graduates.
Specifically, 52% of respondents from Classes D and E, and 45% of those in Class ABC believe that free tuition in public universities leads to more graduates.
Of the 1% who are not in favor of free tuition in public universities, nearly half expressed concerns about the quality of education, while another 47% mentioned the issue of underfunding in public universities, the survey said.
Gatchalian has pointed out that because of the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act (Republic Act No. 10931) or the free higher education law, which he co-authored and co-sponsored, youth participation in higher education has increased.
He noted that from 2018 to 2022, when the free higher education law was already in effect, the progression rate from senior high school to college surged to an average of 81%.
For Academic Years (AY) 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 — before the Free
Higher Education Law was implemented — the progression rates from high school to college stood at 54% and 62%, respectively.
