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Guide · Step 2 of 10

CHED policy, simplified

Three documents. One clear direction.

Two 2012 memorandum orders and a 2014 handbook shape OBE in Philippine higher education. Here is what each one asks, in plain language, and what it means for your programs.

  1. 2012THE POLICYCMO No. 46Sets outcomes-based and typology-based quality assurance for Philippine higher education.Applies to: All HEIs
  2. 2012THE ENGINEERING STANDARDCMO No. 37Makes OBE concrete for every HEI offering engineering programs, in six repeating steps.Applies to: HEIs offering engineering
  3. 2014THE PLAYBOOKCHED OBE HandbookShows faculty how to cascade outcomes and keep every course aligned.Applies to: Leaders and faculty

The big picture

The policy says what. The playbook says how.

CHED’s two OBE anchors work as a pair. Read them together and the expectation becomes a working method.

THE POLICY

CMO 46, s. 2012

THE PLAYBOOK

CHED OBE Handbook, 2014

Role
The what and the why
The how
Key ideas
Quality is what graduates can actually do. HEIs are judged by their type and mission.
Outcomes cascade from institution to program to course.
Aim
A lasting culture of quality, not one-time compliance.
Every course keeps outcomes, learning tasks and assessment aligned.

CMO 46 sets the expectation. The Handbook shows faculty how to deliver it.

CMO No. 46, s. 2012

Quality is what your graduates can actually do.

CMO 46 is CHED’s policy-standard for quality assurance through an outcomes-based and typology-based approach. Three ideas carry the whole policy.

  • Outcomes-based QA

    Quality is what graduates can actually do.

    Programs are judged by demonstrated learning, not by inputs alone.

  • Typology-based QA

    Judged by type and mission.

    Institutions are assessed against what they set out to be, not one template.

  • Culture of quality

    Improvement, not one-off compliance.

    Evidence feeds a continuing cycle of review and action.

What it means for your institution

  • Define the outcomes each program promises, and gather evidence that graduates reach them.
  • Read quality against your own type and mission, not a single template.
  • Treat review as a cycle: evidence, decision, action, and a check on its effect.
  • Keep a record that shows the whole story, from approved outcome to improvement action.
CMO No. 37, s. 2012

Engineering programs: promise it, then prove it.

CMO 37 sets CHED’s policies, standards and guidelines for establishing an OBE system in every HEI that offers engineering programs. It works in six steps that repeat as a cycle.

The testEvery engineering program must show that its graduates achieve the outcomes it promises, so that graduates meet internationally acceptable standards for engineering practice.

  1. 01Mission & visionSet direction
  2. 02Program objectivesSet direction
  3. 03Program outcomesDesign
  4. 04Curriculum mappingDesign
  5. 05Teaching & learningDeliver & check
  6. 06Assessment & evaluationDeliver & check
Continuous quality improvement: results feed the next cycle

Why engineering first? CMO 37 places Philippine engineering education in a global context: Washington Accord members have shifted accreditation from input-based review to outcomes-based education, asking programs to show that graduates reach an acceptable level of knowledge, skills and attitudes. See accreditation context.

CHED OBE Handbook, 2014

From mission to marked work: one unbroken line.

The Handbook on Typology, Outcomes-Based Education and Institutional Sustainability Assessment is the practical companion to CMO 46. It asks for two movements.
1Outcomes cascade down
  1. InstitutionVision, mission and graduate attributes
  2. ProgramCapabilities expected at graduation
  3. CourseOutcomes each course develops
2Every course stays aligned
Outcomes, learning tasks and assessment, each linked to the other two.OutcomesLearningtasksAssessment

Change one, check the other two.

The full chain, as CHED frames it

  1. Vision & mission
  2. PEOs
  3. POs / PLOs
  4. CLOs
  5. Assessments

Every assessment maps to an outcome. Every outcome maps to institutional intent. Each assessment is tagged with the course outcomes and cognitive levels it measures. The structure is clear; the real challenge is keeping that alignment visible across many programs.

From policy to practice

Three questions turn policy into a course.

Every OBE course design comes back to these. Answer them well and you are already doing what the policies ask.
  1. 1

    Outcome

    What can the learner do by the end of the course?

    Learn how
  2. 2

    Evidence

    What task will show that the learner can do it?

    Learn how
  3. 3

    Improvement

    What will we change when the evidence shows a gap?

    Learn how

A completed syllabus tells us what we taught. Assessed work shows what learners achieved.

Clearing up confusion

Five common misreadings, and the facts

  • MisreadingOBE is a one-time compliance exercise.

    FactCMO 46 aims for a lasting culture of quality: evidence feeds continuing improvement.

  • MisreadingAttendance and course completion prove an outcome.

    FactAssessed work against agreed criteria shows what learners achieved.

  • MisreadingEvery course outcome should map to every program outcome.

    FactMap a CO only to the POs the course truly develops.

  • MisreadingEvery program uses exactly the same labels.

    FactLabels can differ slightly between program PSGs: PO or PLO, CO or CLO.

  • MisreadingSuggested roles and timelines are CHED mandates.

    FactThey are good practice for discussion. Always confirm requirements against official CHED issuances.

Glossary

The OBE vocabulary, decoded

Every acronym you will meet in CHED’s OBE documents, in one line each.
OBE
Outcome-based education: designing teaching and assessment around what learners can demonstrate.
CMO
CHED Memorandum Order, a policy issuance from the Commission on Higher Education.
HEI
Higher education institution.
PSG
Policies, Standards and Guidelines for a specific program or discipline.
VMG
An institution’s Vision, Mission and Goals.
PEO
Program Educational Objective: what graduates achieve a few years after graduating.
PO / PLO
Program (Learning) Outcome: what graduates can do at graduation.
CO / CLO
Course (Learning) Outcome: what learners can do by the end of a course.
CO–PO alignment
The mapping that shows which course outcomes build which program outcomes.
Attainment
How well learners achieved an outcome, based on assessed evidence.
Rubric
A scoring guide describing the criteria and levels of quality for a task.
Closed loop
An improvement cycle where the action, the owner and the effect are all recorded.
QA
Quality assurance.

Read the originals

Official CHED documents

Policy references current as of 6 October 2026. These summaries simplify the originals; always confirm requirements against the latest CHED issuances and your program’s PSG.

Continue the guide

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