- The Philippine Military Academy (PMA) has officially been accepted as an associate member of the ASEAN University Network Quality Assurance (AUN-QA), marking a significant step towards global military education and academic excellence.
- The PMA aims to align its programs with global standards, incorporating new methods and technologies to maintain a competitive edge in the military sector. The move also supports curriculum internationalization and partnerships with allied military academies.
- As the first military academy in ASEAN to join AUN-QA, PMA will participate in quality assurance training and capacity-building activities, with plans for full membership evaluations by April 2025.
The Philippine Military Academy (PMA) said it has been formally accepted as an associate member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) University Network-Quality Assurance (AUN-QA), the culmination of its journey to becoming world-class military education and academic excellence.
The (AUN-QA) Network was established to "realize the mission of harmonizing educational standards and seeking continuous improvement of the academic quality of universities in the ASEAN region".
"PMA needs to align our education and training programs, as well as operational procedures, with global best practices, enhancing our graduates' effectiveness and professionalism", PMA Superintendent, Vice Admiral Caesar Bernard Valencia said.
"This initiative also incorporates new methods and technologies, ensuring the Academy's competitive advantage within an increasingly complex military environment through internationalization of curriculum, mobility of faculty and cadets, and partnership with allied military academies", he added.
Coincidentally, the accomplishment was three weeks after Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. approved the revised Bachelor of Science in Management major in Security Studies curriculum of the PMA, which will be implemented for the first time by the PMA Class of 2029.
The PMA announced it started building the foundation for the accreditation in 2023 by delegating academic staff to attend AUN-QA training workshops. It said that these engagements developed capacity and internal structures to equip the institution to integrate into the regional academic quality network.
Later this year, early this year, the PMA announced that it formally applied for associate membership and is now accepted, reiterating its "commitment to international standards of quality assurance in higher education." The associate membership has been approved by April 30, 2025. The PMA announced that it is the very first and sole military academy within ASEAN to receive associate membership status under the AUN-QA.
It is part of an increasing number of AUN-QA member institutions in Southeast Asia that comprise 71 from the Philippines (including PMA), two from Brunei Darussalam, 12 from Cambodia, 36 from Indonesia, seven from Malaysia, 12 from Myanmar, three from Singapore, 20 from Thailand, one from Laos, and 61 from Vietnam.
Being an associate member, the PMA has officially been acknowledged as 'committed to maintaining the principles of quality assurance in higher education in ASEAN'.
The PMA stated that associate members, being not yet externally assessed or fully accredited, can still join AUN-QA training, capacity-building activities, and regional networking. It stated that full membership entails institutional or program evaluations, which the academy is now gearing up for as part of its quality roadmap.
