2025 IJRSE – Volume 14 Issue 14
Available Online: 7 August 2025
Author/s:
Cuevas, Jai Anthony
Holy Angel University, Philippines (jcuevas@hau.edu.ph; jaianthonycuevas@gmail.com)
Abstract:
In accordance with Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Memorandum Order No. 13, series of 2017 (CMO 13, s. 2017), this analysis examines the discrepancy between required faculty qualification standards and actual institutional practices in two private higher education institutions (HEIs) that offer the Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology (BSMT) program. The study evaluated graduate education barriers, institutional support systems, and compliance levels using a documentary research design based on constructivist and pragmatic philosophical viewpoints. Significant gaps in faculty qualifications were found; only 55.55% of BSMT faculty in School A and 27.27% of faculty in School B, respectively, hold relevant master’s degrees. This is significantly less than the 50% compliance threshold that CHED and accrediting bodies recommend. Five major issues were found through thematic analysis: a lack of qualified faculty, a lack of institutional support, faculty prioritizing work abroad, structural and financial obstacles to graduate study, and a weak correlation between quality assurance results and faculty development. These problems highlight organizational and systemic constraints that impede the application of policies and the enhancement of educational quality. Report suggests implementing retention-sensitive policies, conducting participatory policy reviews, integrating graduate qualifications into internal quality assurance frameworks, institutionalizing structured faculty development programs, and encouraging access to regional CHED-recognized graduate programs. Improving faculty qualifications is a strategic necessity for raising the caliber of instruction, accreditation status, and reputation of BSMT programs in Philippine higher education, rather than just a compliance issue. However, more extensive research is advised to confirm these results in various institutional settings.
Keywords: faculty qualification, CHED Memorandum Order No. 13 s. 2017, BSMT program, faculty development
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2025.25237
Cite this article:
Cuevas, J. A. (2025). Bridging the gap: An analysis of the shortage of academically qualified faculty in Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology programs in higher education institutions. International Journal of Research Studies in Education, 14(14), 147-166. https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2025.25237