The price of prestige: How the race for degrees dilutes Philippine education

Academia has always been a place of struggle. But what many fail to realize is that the nature of this struggle has changed drastically over the decades. In the 1970s to 1990s, few teachers in the Philippines held master’s or doctoral degrees. Back then, universities hired faculty members based on expertise rather than credentials—some even without finishing college, yet deeply respected for mastery of their craft.

But things changed when the Commission on Higher Education began requiring a master’s degree as the minimum qualification to teach in tertiary education. The Department of Education (DepEd) soon followed, requiring graduate units or degrees for promotion. What began as a move toward professionalization has, ironically, created a new marketplace of credentials. The demand for quick promotions and academic legitimacy fueled the rise of diploma mills—institutions that sell degrees with little to no academic rigor. Behind this phenomenon lies a deeper issue: the corporatization of education, where degrees are treated as commodities and symbols of status rather than evidence of learning.

In today’s educational system, an advanced degree is often equated with competence and leadership. Those with “Ph.D.” or “MA” after their names are seen as more diligent, capable, and deserving of higher positions. In DepEd, these degrees open doors to promotions; in higher education, they are entry tickets to teaching posts. Titles have become markers of prestige—so much so that some educators insist on being addressed as “Doctor,” believing the title itself signifies authority and intellect. But beneath these glittering titles lies an uncomfortable truth.

Graduate education in many institutions has become alarmingly shallow. Reports from teachers and students reveal that some graduate classes consist almost entirely of student reports, with instructors barely teaching. Research papers are recycled—or worse, written by artificial intelligence. And some “fly-by-night” institutions even promise master’s degrees in less than a year, and doctorates in two. This culture of haste has cheapened higher education. Yet, can we really blame the teachers who resort to these shortcuts? Many are victims of a neoliberal system that treats education as a means to climb bureaucratic ladders rather than a space for intellectual growth. Graduate school has become an exhausting ordeal—filled with power-tripping panels, unreasonable requirements, and little institutional support for working professionals.

For teachers in the provinces, elite education remains geographically and economically out of reach. In their context, an “instant degree” is not merely convenience—it is opportunity. Still, the consequences are dire. When graduate degrees can be bought or earned through minimal effort, academic standards collapse. When promotion outweighs learning, education becomes transactional. And when institutions prioritize quantity over quality, the very foundation of our intellectual community erodes.

The question, then, is not simply about individual ethics but about systemic failure. How can we expect quality education when both educators and administrators participate in this cycle of deceit? How can we rebuild academic integrity when policy rewards possession of degrees rather than the pursuit of wisdom?

The crisis in Philippine education is not just about diploma mills—it is about the commodification of knowledge itself. Until we rethink what it truly means to be “educated,” the titles we so proudly display may signify not enlightenment, but the bankruptcy of our educational ideals.

Sensei M. Adorador,

sensei.adorador@gmail.com