CHED Approves Doctor of Medicine Programs in 5 State Universities for AY 2026-2027 (List Here)
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has approved Doctor of Medicine programs in five state universities nationwide, with implementation set to begin in Academic Year 2026-2027.
Are you an aspiring doctor looking for an affordable medical education closer to home? Good news – CHED has just expanded access to medical education through state universities in different regions of the Philippines.
Why Did CHED Approve These New Medicine Programs?
According to CHED, the approval forms part of the government’s efforts to increase the number of healthcare professionals nationwide. The Philippines currently has only around 7 physicians for every 10,000 people – below the minimum benchmark of 10 doctors per 10,000 population recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO).
The expansion is part of the implementation of the “Doktor Para sa Bayan Act,” which aims to increase the number of physicians, particularly in underserved and geographically isolated areas.
List of State Universities with New Medicine Programs
Following an evaluation by CHED’s Office of Programs and Standards Development and the Technical Panel for Medicine, the following five state universities were found compliant with the requirements for Doctor of Medicine programs:
- Visayas State University (VSU) – Leyte
- Eastern Samar State University (ESSU)
- University of Eastern Philippines (UEP) – Northern Samar
- Benguet State University (BSU)
- Cotabato State University – Cotabato Regional Medical Center School of Medicine (CCSU-CRMC)
CHED allows the universities to launch the first two levels of their Doctor of Medicine programs in Academic Year 2026-2027.
What Does This Mean for Aspiring Doctors?
The newly approved programs are expected to bring medical education closer to students in Eastern Visayas, the Cordillera Administrative Region, and Central Mindanao – reducing the need for aspiring doctors to relocate to major cities just to pursue medical training.
Notably, Benguet State University will become the first state university in the Cordillera Administrative Region to offer a medical degree program.
With this latest approval, the government has now established at least one state university with a medicine program in every region of the country – except for the newly created Negros Island Region, which CHED has identified as a priority area for future expansion.
According to CHED, expanding medical program offerings in state-funded institutions ensures that aspiring and deserving doctors from diverse regions can pursue their medical dreams locally – ultimately strengthening the country’s healthcare system and community-based health service delivery.
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