25 July 2014
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) will soon issue ATM-sized plastic cards that would serve as the National Certificate (NC) and/or Certificate of Competency (CoC) of technical vocational training graduates and skilled workers.
In a memorandum circular, Secretary Joel Villanueva said the new cards, which would be available starting August 1, would be the new badge to show one's expertise on a certain skill or set of skills when applying for a job.
Villanueva, TESDA Director General, said the issuance of the new card aims to continuously strengthen the certification program "to ensure the integrity, reliability and validity of the National Certificate and/or Certificate of Competency issued to competent skilled workers."
Currently, TESDA issues the paper-based NC or CoC.
Graduates of tech-voc courses are required to undergo competency assessment to be a certified graduate. In 2013, there were a total of 1,055,576 tech-voc graduates and skilled workers who underwent assessment. Out of this, 936.007 were certified.
"The recognition of the paper-based NC or CoC has gained ground through the years. The document is one of the requirements being sought by recruitment agencies, private companies and foreign employers for Filipinos wishing to work here or abroad," Villanueva said.
"We will begin introducing the plastic card that is more handy and durable. The issuance of high-quality, tamper-proof certificates made of polyvinyl material will address this concern," he added.
The card will contain the photo and name of the graduate, the certificate number, the date issued and the date of validity of the card. It will also have the logo of the issuing authority to prevent alteration or duplication. At the back, it will have information such as the basic competencies and core competencies of the graduate.
Each card will cost P100. All TESDA regional and provincial offices nationwide are authorized to issue the cards.
The card will not replace the paper-based NC and CoC previously issued to all graduates. Interested certified workers, however, may avail of it in addition to the regular paper-based certificate.
The National Certificate is issued when an individual has demonstrated competence in all units of competency that comprise a qualification, while a Certificate of Competency is issued to individuals who have satisfactorily demonstrated competence on a particular or cluster of units of competency.
To encourage skilled workers to undergo competency assessment, TESDA has been conducting the National TVET Competency Assessment and Certification (NATCAC), targeting 60,000 beneficiaries all over the country, since May of this year up to October.
The NATCAC is open to technical vocational graduates and trainers, workers and returning overseas Filipino workers in need of the National Certificate for possible employment or promotion. The assessment under NATCAC is free.
Thousands have already benefitted from TESDA’s free competency assessment and certification in the past years.
Sample of the tamper-proof card that TESDA will issue starting August that will serve as the National Certificate and Certificate of Competency of tech-voc graduates.
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