BS Fisheries is a licensed profession in the Philippines, and the licence has been reorganised fairly recently. Until 2019 the field was regulated by a Professional Regulation Commission resolution and the passer was called a "fisheries technologist." Since Republic Act No. 11398 the profession is statutory and the title is fisheries professional. If you are trying to work out whether this degree has a board exam, the answer is yes - and here is the rest of what the programme involves.
The order that governs the degree
The current standard is CHED Memorandum Order No. 33, series of 2021, "Policies, Standards and Guidelines for the Bachelor of Science in Fisheries." It was adopted under Republic Act No. 7722 by virtue of Commission en banc Resolution No. 086-2018 dated 6 March 2018, and it supersedes the earlier pre-K-12 policy for the programme.
The order fixes the degree name as Bachelor of Science in Fisheries and aligns it to Level 6 of the Philippine Qualifications Framework. It also states the policy basis plainly: the programme supports the Fisheries Code of 1998 (Republic Act No. 8550), which commits the state "to ensure the rational and sustainable development, management and conservation of the fishery and aquatic resources in Philippine waters."
Two practical notes. Private institutions must secure government recognition and authority from CHED before offering the programme, and all schools with an existing BS Fisheries programme had to shift to an outcomes-based approach under this PSG. And, as with every CHED PSG, schools may design a different route to the same outcomes - so unit counts below are the minimum and the template, not a fixed national syllabus.
The four fields of study
CMO 33 organises fisheries into four fields, and unlike some science degrees there is no split into majors. Every graduate is meant to be competent across all four:
- Aquaculture - farming fish and other aquatic plants and animals in fresh, brackish and marine water
- Capture Fisheries - fishing gear, methods and operations
- Post Harvest Fisheries - handling, processing, safety and quality
- Aquatic Resources Management - ecology, stock assessment, coastal and resource management
The programme outcomes read the same way: develop, operate and manage aquaculture production systems; use fisheries resources with innovative methods that are responsible and sustainable; apply post-harvest practices compliant with international food safety and quality standards; and manage and protect the integrity and quality of aquatic ecosystems.
The 173-unit breakdown
| Component | Units |
|---|---|
| General Education | 39 |
| Foundation (core) courses | 26 |
| Professional (major) courses | 76 |
| Electives | 18 |
| Physical Education | 8 |
| National Service Training Program | 6 |
| Total | 173 |
Foundation courses (26 units) are hard science, and they are front-loaded: Inorganic Analytical Chemistry (5), Organic Chemistry (5), Biochemistry (3), Microbiology (3), Botany (5) and Zoology (5). If chemistry and biology are not your strengths, this is the part of the programme to be honest with yourself about - the first two years in CHED's model programme of study run 25, 24, 23 and 20 units per semester, with two 5-unit science courses in most of them.
Professional courses (76 units) are where the degree becomes fisheries: Aquaculture (5), Aquatic Ecology and Resources (5), Ichthyology (5), Fisheries Management (5), Capture Fisheries (5), Post Harvest Fisheries (5), Oceanography (3), Fisheries Meteorology (3), Aquaculture Engineering (3), Fish Genetics and Breeding (3), Physiology of Aquatic Organisms (3), Coastal Resource Management (3), Fish Nutrition (3), Fish Health Management (3), Fishery Product Safety and Quality (3), Fisheries Laws Policies and Institutions (3), Fisheries Extension (3), Fisheries Entrepreneurship (3), Project Development and Management (3), Research Design and Methodologies (3), a 3-unit Special Problem or On-the-Job Training, and a 1-unit Seminar.
Electives (18 units) are the specialisation lever. CHED's list runs from Hatchery Management, Fish Stock Assessment and Philippine Fishing Ground through Fisheries Biotechnology, Phycology and Marine Machineries to Fish Processing Plant Management, Product Development and Value Addition, GIS and Remote Sensing for Fisheries, Fisheries Trade and Marketing, and Ornamental Fish Culture and Marketing. Schools may add electives that address regional fisheries concerns, but the order caps those off-list electives at not more than nine units.
The one thing the unit table hides is how practical the delivery is meant to be. CMO 33's sample means of curriculum delivery includes conducting pond culture and hatchery trials, evaluating potential culture sites, preparing design and cost estimates for hatcheries, ponds, cages and pens, fabricating fishing gear, participating in commercial and municipal fishing operations, and visiting fishing ports and fish landings. A school that cannot get you to water is not delivering this programme.
The licence: from fisheries technologist to fisheries professional
The regulatory history is worth knowing because you will still see the old title in older PRC documents and school brochures.
The old arrangement. The Board of Fisheries was created by PRC Resolution No. 2000-664, series of 2000, using the Fisheries Code of 1998 as its legal basis. The Board's own Resolution No. 01-A (23 April 2003) promulgated the syllabi for the licensure examination for Fisheries Technologists, whose four subjects were Aquaculture, Capture Fisheries, Post-Harvest Fisheries, and Aquatic Resources and Ecology. That resolution records that the first examination was scheduled for 1 and 2 October 2003.
The current law. Republic Act No. 11398, the Philippine Fisheries Profession Act, now governs. Its stated aims include upgrading the standards of fisheries education and having CHED develop curricular programmes that meet the profession's standards.
Under RA 11398:
- Examination requirement (Sec. 13). All applicants for registration must undergo and pass a written examination, given at least once a year on dates the Commission designates.
- Scope (Sec. 14). Four fields: Aquatic Resources and Ecology; Aquaculture; Capture Fisheries; Post-Harvest Fisheries. The Board may re-cluster, rearrange, modify, add or exclude subjects, and may recommend curricular changes to CHED.
- Who may sit (Sec. 15). Philippine citizenship or citizenship of a reciprocating state; good moral character; no conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude; and a graduate of at least a bachelor's degree in the field of fisheries from a recognised school, college or university here or abroad.
- Rating (Sec. 17). A weighted general average of at least 75%, with no grade lower than 60% in any subject. An examinee who clears the 75% average but drops below 60% in one subject is allowed to re-take that subject.
- After passing (Sec. 20). A certificate of registration is issued, and the professional identification card is renewed every three years subject to the Continuing Professional Development Act (Republic Act No. 10912).
There is one provision that should influence where you enrol. Section 19 lets the Board, through the PRC, recommend that CHED closely monitor a school whose passers fall below eight percent of its candidates in three consecutive examinations - and recommend closure of the fisheries programme if that happens across five successive examinations. Ask any school on your shortlist for its recent licensure performance. Our PRC board exam requirements guide covers the filing side, and courses with board exams puts fisheries in context with the other licensed programmes.
Examination dates move every cycle and are set by PRC resolution, so check the PRC website for the current schedule rather than a figure you read in a forum.
Where fisheries graduates work
CMO 33 names the specific areas graduates are employed in, across government, industry, academe and non-government organisations:
- Fisheries resource management
- Fisheries research
- Fisheries extension service
- Fisheries entrepreneurship
- Fisheries industry management
- Fisheries education
- Fisheries engineering
- Fisheries nutrition
- Fisheries biotechnology
In practice, that means the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and its regional offices, local government agriculture and fisheries offices, aquaculture and feed-milling companies, fish processing and export plants working under food-safety regimes, hatcheries, coastal resource management projects, and state colleges of fisheries.
The order also lists the allied programmes it considers adjacent - Biology, Zoology, Botany, Chemistry, Aquatic Sciences, Environmental Science, Food Science, Biotechnology, Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine. If you are between options, that is a useful map; our BS Forestry guide and BS Environmental Science guide cover two neighbouring degrees in the same CHED discipline cluster, and BS Marine Transportation covers the very different seafaring route that people sometimes confuse with fisheries.
What we are not going to tell you
Three things you will see quoted online that we will not repeat, because there is no source that makes them true nationally:
- A single tuition figure. Most BS Fisheries programmes sit in state universities and colleges and state fisheries colleges, where eligible students are covered by the free higher education law; a few sit in private institutions. Ask each registrar.
- A passing rate for "the" fisheries board. National passing rates change every cycle and per school. PRC publishes them with each release.
- Next cycle's exam date. PRC sets the master schedule by resolution each year.
The short version
BS Fisheries is a four-year, 173-unit programme prescribed by CHED Memorandum Order No. 33, series of 2021, built around aquaculture, capture fisheries, post-harvest fisheries and aquatic resources management, with a chemistry-and-biology-heavy first two years and 18 units of electives for specialisation. It leads to a genuine PRC licence under Republic Act No. 11398, the Philippine Fisheries Profession Act: four examination fields, a 75% weighted average with no subject below 60%, and a licence renewed every three years. Choose a school with water access, working hatchery and processing facilities, and a licensure record it is willing to show you.
Sources
- CHED Memorandum Order No. 33, s. 2021 - Policies, Standards and Guidelines for the Bachelor of Science in Fisheries (Bicol University mirror of the signed CMO)
- CHED - CMO No. 33, series of 2021 listing
- CHED - Sample or Suggested Curriculum Aligned to Outcomes-Based Education for Bachelor of Science in Fisheries (earlier PSG)
- LawPhil - Republic Act No. 11398, "Philippine Fisheries Profession Act"
- Supreme Court E-Library - PRC Board of Fisheries Resolution No. 01-A, promulgating the syllabi for the Fisheries Technologist licensure examination
- Supreme Court E-Library - PRC Resolution No. 2000-664, creation of the Board of Fisheries
- Professional Regulation Commission - Table of Qualification and Documentary Requirements for Licensure Examinations
