If the country were to enter a state of martial law or armed conflict and travel restrictions were imposed on DOST scholars, what will happen? Will we be able to seek refuge to other countries?
I’ve been thinking about some areas where DOST-SEI could do better, especially from a scholar’s perspective. So far i’ve been reading the following challenges:
- Getting a DepEd endorsement
- Getting a stem job
- Delayed stipends
- VERY LOW STIPEND (they haven’t changed in 5–6 years despite massive inflation) which is diabolical to have a return service of 4 years.
- Lack of clarity in the return service agreement and expectations. Specifically, guidelines on how to defer, etc.
- Reconsider the travel clearance requirement every time — it’s time-consuming for both the office and students, and that effort could be redirected toward improving scholarship services
- Lack of representation and more consistent consultation with scholars, instead of relying on a purely top-down approach
- Lack of streamlined decisions…one regional office seems to say and do a different thing in a similar issue
This scholarship program has been running for 65+ years and yet it still has not solved the brain drain in the country. Maybe the solution to the brain drain is not tying down your most excellent young scientists for four years after graduation? Is the program really addressing the lack of scientists in the country?
Genuine question—has anyone here looked into what we can actually do about the delayed DOST stipends?
Not just following up emails or waiting for updates, but like… do we have any “real” options? Because at the end of the day, this is a contract. We’re expected to meet all our obligations on time, but when stipends are delayed for months, is that something we can formally question? Has anyone tried to explore if this could count as a breach of contract, or if there’s any legal path at all?
Also, I feel like part of the problem is that we’re completely unorganized.
We all experience the same thing—delays, lack of clear timelines, uncertainty—but we deal with it individually. There’s no central group representing DOST scholars, no collective voice, and no involvement from us when it comes to how the program is actually implemented.
So I’m wondering:
Would it even be possible to form some kind of scholars’ association or union? Nothing extreme, just something that can actually represent us and push for accountability with what is happening.
Has anyone tried organizing something like this before?
Right now, it feels like we just wait and hope things improve. But if we had some form of collective voice, would that help?