20 April 2015 – A delegation from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) headed by Chairperson Patricia B. Licuanan conducted a partnership mission to France on April 13 and 14, following the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Philippines-France cooperation in the area of Higher Education and Research during the visit of French President François Hollande to the Philippines on February 26.

Dr. Licuanan was accompanied by Dr. Reynaldo B. Vea, President of the Mapúa Institute of Technology; and Dr. Myrna S. Austria, Vice Chancellor for Academics of De La Salle University.

During their mission to France, the CHED delegation was able to meet with officials from the French Ministry of National Education, Higher Education and Research and 10 French universities, higher education institutions (HEIs) and research institutes, such as the National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO), Université Nouvelle Sorbonne Paris 3, the Catholic University of Lille, the Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po), IAE Montpellier School of Management, Université Blaise Pascal,Clermont-Ferrand, the Paris Institute of Earth Physics (IPGP), the National School of Administration (ENA), the National Institute for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the Association of University Institutes of Technology (ADIUT).

These meetings allowed the CHED delegation to further strengthen mobility programs for students and faculty as well as to identify steps toward the mutual recognition of degrees with French HEIs. Possible collaboration in joint research projects, dual-degree programs and sandwich programs were also discussed.

Over 60 cooperation agreements exist between Philippine and French HEIs. According to French statistics, around 300 Filipino students come to France every year for their studies in various fields such as Business and Finance, Fashion, International Relations, Public Management and Culinary Arts, among others. END