earlier, the graduation rate for TVET remained around 90 percent with a relatively low drop-out rate in recent years. The completion rate was slightly higher for enterprise-based training programs compared to other programs.

The survey tracked individuals who graduated from vocational training programs several years prior and were already in the labor market. As a result, tracking activities involved a substantial amount of effort in contacting, locating and interviewing the trainees in the sample.<sup>23</sup> Simultaneously, an institution survey was conducted to collect information from the sample TVIs on enrollment records, programs, and institutional costs.

The sample was screened and filtered based on the consistency between actual and reported programs in which trainees enrolled. The number of trainees from the Provincial Training Center, Mariveles in Bataan was substantially reduced from 194 to 140 due to survey implementation challenges and poorly maintained institutional records. The resulting effective sample size was 833 with 362 trainees from the DTS and 471 trainees from the RPs. A look at yearly enrollment numbers highlights a relatively stable balance between the DTS and RPs across the survey period (Table 3).

The survey asked sampled graduates of both the DTS and RPs for their impression of various benefits related to the training they received from TESDA. Graduates of the DTS reported higher levels of employment opportunities and earnings compared to graduates of the RPs. The DTS graduates also reported that their skills, confidence levels, attitudes relevant to work, and earned trust from their employers and colleagues were effectively enhanced. The reported impacts were consistently higher among the DTS graduates compared with the RPs graduates (Figure 2).

While both current salary and employment status figures appear higher for the DTS graduates, the differences are not significant between the two groups in the survey data (Table 4). However, there are greater employment opportunities after training completion among the DTS graduates compared to the RPs graduates. The employment rate of the DTS graduates in the survey is high, which corresponds with the employment rate officially reported by TESDA.

Basic characteristics of former trainees between the DTS and RPs were compared in order to assess the potential impact of alternative factors (Table 5). The data demonstrate a higher average age and a greater number of males among the RPs graduates compared to the DTS graduates. Years of schooling (the total number of years spent in formal elementary and high schools), post-secondary vocational training, and tertiary education is nearly the same between graduates of both programs.

The general average grade at HS graduation (Grade 10) is also nearly the same between the DTS and RPs graduates. The distribution of the raw general average HS grades of the survey sample is comparable among the two groups (Figure 3). The general average grade, reported from 1 to 100point scores, is computed by dividing the sum of all final grades by the number of learning areas. Students with final grades of at least 75 in all learning areas can earn high school certificates and be promoted to the next level. For example, a general average HS grade of close to full point (100 points) is necessary to enter the most prestigious universities in the country.

> 23 The selected TVIs provided lists and contact information for the graduates who were randomly chosen for the survey sample.

8