Repatriated overseas Filipino workers now have a new digital pathway to finish their college degrees, following the launch of an online enlistment system under the government’s flagship academic equivalency program.
The Commission on Higher Education (CHED) unveiled the ETEEAP National Registration and Onboarding for Lifelong Learning Overseas Filipino Workers, or ENROLL OFWs, a centralized platform that allows migrant workers to register and undergo pre-assessment for the Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) regardless of where they are in the world.
CHED Chairperson Shirley Agrupis said the system will operate through a combination of online registration portals and on-site kiosks located in partner higher education institutions across the country.
“The objective is to improve employment readiness, enable career mobility, and support the reintegration of OFWs,” Agrupis said. “Taken together, these initiatives reflect a more responsive and coordinated approach to workforce reintegration that aligns education, labor, and migration systems in a more practical way.”
Agrupis disclosed that 1,409 OFWs are currently enrolled under ETEEAP while still based abroad — primarily in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States — taking programs in engineering, business and finance, allied health, and education, among other fields.
To support the system’s rollout, CHED has partnered with the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), the Commission on Filipino Overseas, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).
The launch was held at the Design + Arts Campus of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde during the “ETEEAP Sa Bagong Pilipinas Forum: Pag-angat ng Kasanayan, Paghubog ng Kinabukasan.” Benilde has offered ETEEAP since 2004 and currently holds CHED-deputized programs in Hospitality and Luxury Management, Information Systems, Music Production, Production Design, and Dance.
“We saw early on that education must evolve. It must meet learners where they are, and must honor the diverse [paths] they took toward excellence,” Benilde Chancellor Benhur Ong said. “Through the years, [we have] worked to refine and strengthen its ETEEAP offerings, ensuring that they are rigorous, relevant, and responsive to industry demands.”
DOLE Assistant Secretary Joel Gonzales, who also addressed the forum, outlined labor department support for returning OFWs, including skills development, employment facilitation, and livelihood and entrepreneurship programs.
“ETEEAP recognizes the skills and experience of our workers,” Gonzales said. “DOLE ensures that these are translated into real opportunities, jobs, livelihood, and protection.”
The ENROLL OFWs system is designed to identify qualified OFW profiles, facilitate the application process, and carry out expedited processing through interagency coordination. A live demonstration of the platform was led by CHED Executive Director Cinderella Filipina Benitez-Jaro and Benilde ETEEAP candidate Judy Ann Melo, an Italy-based professional enrolled in Hospitality and Luxury Management.
