The MOH has signed a special agreement with Cebu Doctors University to encourage more Palauan students to try the schools in the Philippines.
“Students may apply to Cebu Doctors’ University, and once they get accepted, they can apply for scholarships from Palau National Scholarship Board,” Masayuki Adelbai, Special Assistant to the Minister of Health, said. He added that the MOH is willing to help them every step of the way.
Adelbai shared that unlike students who study in the US, students who go to school in the Philippines usually return to Palau to work.
“Because there is not much job opportunities in the Philippines,” he said. “Thus, we eliminate the so-called brain drain.”
Negotiations about the tie-up between MOH and Cebu Doctors’ University started two years ago, but Adelbai said they went to the Philippines two weeks ago to seal the agreement. He said everything is ready, and all they have to do is find students who are interested.
At present, Belau National Hospital has 22 doctors, but in 10 years, Adelbai said, most of them will have retired already. “We need new doctors and medical professionals,” he stressed.
The MOH believes that Palau needs to be more proactive in recruiting students to get into medical schools. What the ministry wants to do is to have an early recruitment of kids in high school and offer them better opportunities.
Not many students know about this opportunity, added Adelbai. That’s why he even started calling parents that he knows just to inform them about it.
There are many ways to apply for loans and scholarships, Adelbai stressed. “It’s easy for Palauans to apply for loans, we can afford it,” he said. What’s difficult for them, he added, is finding students who are willing and interested.
“Sadly, some kids would rather drink beer under the coconut tree than study,” noted Adelbai. But he’s hoping that the arrangement with the school in the Philippines will take off.
Cebu Doctors’ University offers medicine, nursing, medical technology, radiology technology, physical therapy, pharmacy, respiratory therapy and other paramedical courses. Interested applicants may visit the Ministry of Health for details of application.
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