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| (Image Source: Facebook/Batangas State University, The National Engineering University) |
With the vision of accelerating engineering education transformation and ensuring globally competitive Filipino engineers, the National Outcomes-Based Engineering Education (OBEE) Training Series (Batch 3) officially held last October 14-17, 2025 at Belmont Hotel Mactan in Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu, gathering engineering deans and program chairs from 37 higher education institutions (HEIs) across Visayas and Mindanao. Spearheaded by the Center for Innovation in Engineering Education - CIEE of Batangas State University, The National Engineering University (BatStateU The NEU), the four-day training continues to strengthen institutional capacity in engineering education across the country.
In his welcome remarks during the series leg's opening day, BatStateU President and PASUC President Dr. Tirso A. Ronquillo, ASEAN Eng., underscored the critical role of engineering education in nation-building, citing the OBEE Training Series as a key strategy to equip Filipino engineering educators and managers with global competence and local relevance. Delivering a compelling keynote address, CHED Commissioner Hon. Desiderio R. Apag III, D.Eng., PCPE challenged participants to rethink traditional education systems and embrace innovation. Quoting Charles Kettering — “If you have always done it that way, it is probably wrong.” — he called on engineering educators to move beyond outdated methods and realign curriculum and instruction with the demands of a rapidly evolving world. Also setting the tone for the four-day training was CIEE Director and Assoc. Prof. Divina Gracia D. Ronquillo, ASEAN Eng., who presented the Training Overview and emphasized OBEE as a transformative mechanism for curriculum alignment, faculty development, and institutional excellence.
The OBEE National Training Series forms part of Component Two of the National Engineering Education Development (NEED) Program which BatStateU implements through the CIEE. The NEED Program is a comprehensive initiative designed to strengthen institutional capacity and academic leadership in adopting outcomes-based education systems aligned with international accreditation and quality assurance standards. The program targets six strategic outcomes: profiling the Philippine engineering education landscape, strengthening OBEE nationwide, accelerating engineering program accreditation, re-engineering the engineering curricula, ensuring engineering faculty excellence, and enhancing research collaboration in engineering. By capacitating HEIs to implement OBEE more effectively, the training series not only builds knowledge but also empowers a movement to modernize engineering instruction and produce future-ready Filipino engineers. The OBEE National Training Series – VisMin Leg featured expert-led workshops, strategic planning sessions, and collaborative exchanges — designed to empower HEIs to craft outcomes-based engineering programs that are globally competitive and locally responsive.
The third batch of the OBEE National Training Series gathered distinguished resource experts from the Center for Innovation in Engineering Education and the College of Engineering at BatStateU The NEU, together with partners from the Universiti Teknologi Malaysia’s Centre for Engineering Education (UTM CEE) and the Philippine Technological Council (PTC). With each batch, the OBEE National Training Series affirms its role as a nation-shaping platform, equipping engineering educators to lead change, drive innovation, and build a resilient, sustainable, and future-ready Philippines.
