Capitol to fund 40 medical students through 'Study Now, Serve Later'

At least 40 aspiring doctors from Cebu City will soon receive full medical education support under Cebu Province's expanded scholarship program with Cebu Normal University (CNU) and Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC).

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The initiative is part of the Cebu Provincial Government's “Study Now, Serve Later” program, which will shoulder the tuition of qualified students enrolled at the CNU-VSMMC College of Medicine starting this year.

In a press conference held last February 18, Governor Pamela Baricuatro said the province allocated funds for the scholarship through the educational fund and the Office of the Governor, with plans to increase the allocation in the coming years.

Under the agreement, the province will sponsor about 40 medical scholars annually.

The assistance will cover students who are not accommodated under the national Medical Scholarship and Return Service (MSRS) program, also known as the Doktor Para sa Bayan initiative.

VSMMC Chief of Hospital Dr. Gerardo Aquino said the medical school has been offering free medical education since 2021 through national government support, but the number of available scholarship slots has steadily declined.

From more than 50 MSRS slots when the school opened, the allocation dropped to 24 and was further reduced to only nine for this academic year.

To sustain the admission target of 50 students per year, the provincial government will now fund the remaining 41 scholars.