Continuing Professional Education in the Philippines in FMDS Let's Talk it Over

Dr. Rufo Mendoza guested in the Faculty of Management and Development Studies (FMDS) 7th let’s talk it over lecture series held on 25 June 2013 at the UP Open University. He discussed the rules and regulations of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) in the Philippines.

Dr. Mendoza expounded on what CPE is all about and why professionals should continue to enhance their respective professions. According to Dr. Mendoza, the aim of CPE is to enhance and raise the technical skills and competence of professionals. CPE has now evolved to Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

He further informed the attendees that the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) has 46 professional regulatory boards covering various disciplines. These boards are responsible in monitoring the CPE/CPD requirements of their respective professionals, based on the mandate of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, R.A. 8981, otherwise known as the PRC Modernization Act of 2000, and Executive Order No. 220, Directing the Adoption of the Code of Good Governance for the Professions in the Philippines.

Each board has its own CPE/CPD Council chaired by any member of the board. It has two members, the first is either the President or Officer of the accredited professional organization and the second is either the President or Officer of the association of deans or heads of colleges/universities offering the course. The CPE/CPD Council is empowered to monitor periodically the implementation of programs/activities. This is done to find out if the program or activity submitted is implemented or not.

Dr. Mendoza further discussed accreditation of providers and programs as well as self-accreditation of professionals, if the activity he or she attended was offered by a non-accredited organization or program. A provider can be a natural person or a professional group or organization. A program covers activities that will enhance the competence of the professionals, and can be filed only by accredited providers.

A provider or a program should file application forms for accreditation and pay the prescribed fees. Dr. Mendoza also discussed the qualifications of a provider and the requirements for programs exhaustively.

Likewise, the program or activity matrix was explained clearly. Any professional can earn CPE/CPD credit units for a training program (seminar, conference or convention) that he/she attended, or served as resource person, panelist or reactor, and facilitator or moderator. A professional can also earn credit units for a subject finished for a degree, or the degree itself, be it masteral or doctoral, and residency or fellowship. Moreover, he or she can earn units by accomplishing a distance learning module or presenting a technical paper or publishing an article in a professional journal. He or she can further earn credit units by being the author of a book, monograph, or journal article; as editor of a book or professional journal; as peer reviewer of a book or journal article; as well as author of a research, innovative program or creative product. If he or she has participated in a postgraduate training or study tour, produced an invention or held a professional chair, then credit units can also be accredited to him or her.

Dr. Mendoza also emphasized the sanction given to providers who do not comply with prescribed rules and regulations; submit false reports; commit substantial deviation from approved program; and commit such other acts that the CPE/CPD Council find in violation of the interest of the program.

He also cited two bills, one pending in the House, and one filed in the Senate, to further enhance the continuing education of the professionals in the country.

Dr. Mendoza is a Professional Lecturer at FMDS. He is currently the Vice-Chair of the Board of Accountancy, and Chair of the Continuing Professional Development in Accountancy of PRC.

For further details, he invites everyone to visit www.prc.gov.ph.