Rules on Corps of Professors, Philippine Military Academy

Policy, purpose, and coverage

Executive Order No. 237 establishes a Corps of Professors within the Philippine Military Academy.
Executive Order No. 237 covers members of the Corps of Professors and governs their appointments, placement, seniority, promotions, temporary promotions, and utilization during war or national emergency.
Section 1 treats Corps of Professors membership as regular officers in a separate promotion list known as the Corps of Professors promotion list.
Section 1 provides that Corps of Professors members are in addition to the authorized numbers of commissioned officers by grade for the Regular Force under Section 3 of Republic Act No. 291.

Key definitions and grade structure

Section 2 defines “Grade” as a gradation of commissioned officers, where “grade” refers to permanent grade unless otherwise qualified.
Section 2 defines “Seniority” as the relative positions of officers as indicated in the Corps of Professors promotion list.
Section 3 establishes commissioned grade symbols tied to Philippine Military Academy officer equivalents:
- 0-6 — Colonel or Navy Captain
- 0-5 — Lieutenant Colonel or Commander
- 0-4 — Major or Lieutenant Commander
- 0-3 — Captain or Lieutenant, Senior Grade
- 0-2 — First Lieutenant or Lieutenant, Junior Grade
- 0-1 — Second Lieutenant or Ensign

Corps of Professors promotion list

The Corps of Professors promotion list is the permanent basis for the relative seniority of Corps of Professors members, subject to exceptions in Section 9(e).
As of January 10, 1956, the Corps of Professors promotion list, as amended, is the basis of all subsequent lists made under Executive Order No. 237.
Officers in the list are arranged by grade order: 0-6, then 0-5, then 0-4, then 0-3.
Within the same grade, seniority is determined by order of names on the list: the earlier name is senior, and the next name is senior next below, continuing throughout the list.
The Chief of Staff must cause all changes (including separations, appointments, promotions, loss of rank by court-martial action, and other changes by operation of law or regulations) to be entered on the approved promotion list, and the corrected list must be published to the Armed Forces at least once each year.

Academic leadership assignments

The Dean of the Corps of Professors is designated from among Corps of Professors members and must be senior in academic rank and military grade to all other members of the Corps of Professors.
The academic ranks of other Corps of Professors members descend as: professor, associate professor, and assistant professor.
For each academic department, a Corps of Professors member is designated as Head, who must be senior to all other Corps of Professors in that department.
For each course of instruction in the approved academic curriculum, only one Corps of Professors member may be appointed as Course Director for that course.

Appointment and promotion rules

Initial appointments are made by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation of the Chief of Staff, Armed Forces of the Philippines, assigning both an academic rank and a corresponding military grade.
No initial appointment in the academic rank of professor is allowed unless the applicant possesses a doctoras degree in the field of study for which appointment is to be made.
No initial appointment in the academic rank of associate professor is allowed unless the applicant possesses a masteras degree in the relevant field of study.
The President’s initial appointments proceed to specific academic-rank-to-grade concurrency for certain ranks:
- Professor — concurrent grade 0-5
- Associate professor — concurrent grade 0-4
- Assistant professor — concurrent grade 0-3
Commissioned officers of the Armed Forces of the Philippines may be appointed to the Corps of Professors upon their own application; their commissioned grade on appointment is their same commissioned grade held on the appointment date, subject to the same academic-rank grade relationship when applicable.
The Chief of Staff may detail for specified periods qualified AFP officers as instructors in the Philippine Military Academy faculty; such detailed instructors:
- are not separated from their assigned arms and services by reason of the assignment, and
- are not subject to the rules and regulations in Executive Order No. 237 applicable to Corps of Professors members.
Placement in the Corps of Professors promotion list for later appointments is governed by Section 8:
- If appointed to a higher grade than the commissioned grade held at appointment, the officer is placed at the bottom of officers of that grade.
- If appointed in the same grade, placement is immediately below the most junior officer of that grade who has the same or longer accumulated service in such grade.
“Accumulated service in grade” is the sum total of active service rendered in the permanent grade in the Regular Force and/or Reserve Force.
Acting academic faculty service credited for initial placement and grade promotion computations:
- Acting professor/acting associate professor/acting assistant professor service credited as active service in grades 0-5, 0-4, and 0-3, respectively, when later appointed in the corresponding academic ranks and grades.
Promotions in grade and academic rank follow the timelines and eligibility conditions in Section 9:
- Professor (0-5) → promoted to 0-6 upon eight years accumulated active commissioned service in grade 0-5, with at least six years satisfactory service in the Corps of Professors; 0-6 is the highest permanent or temporary grade in the professor academic rank; promotions to 0-6 require confirmation of the Commission on Appointments.
- Associate professor (0-4) → promoted to 0-5 upon seven years accumulated active commissioned service in grade 0-4, with at least five years satisfactory service in the Corps of Professors.
- An associate professor promoted in academic rank to professor must also be promoted to the next higher military grade on the effective date of academic-rank promotion, regardless of the length of service in grade if the officer is in grade 0-4, or upon completion of seven years accumulated service in grade 0-5 with at least six years satisfactory service in the Corps of Professors.
- Assistant professor (0-3) → promoted to 0-4 upon five years accumulated active commissioned service in grade 0-3, with at least four years satisfactory service in the Corps of Professors.
- An assistant professor promoted in academic rank to associate professor must also be promoted to the next higher military grade on the effective date of academic-rank promotion, regardless of the length of service in grade if in grade 0-3, or upon completion of six years accumulated service in grade 0-4 with at least five years satisfactory service in the Corps of Professors.
When an officer is promoted to the next higher grade under Section 9(a), 9(b), or 9(c):
- all officers in the same grade and same academic rank who are senior to that officer are also promoted to the next higher grade together with the promoted officer if found qualified by the Corps of Professors promotion board, notwithstanding promotional requirements.
Designation of Dean and Heads; seniority advancement:
- The Dean and Heads of academic departments are designated by the Chief of Staff upon recommendation of the Superintendent of the Philippine Military Academy.
- When a vacancy exists and a member is designated as Dean, that member is promoted in grade or advanced in seniority—whichever is necessary—to give seniority over all other members, regardless of length of service in grade.
- When a vacancy exists and a member is designated as Head, that member is promoted in grade or advanced in seniority—whichever gives seniority over all other members assigned to that academic department—regardless of length of service in grade.
- These seniority-changing promotions must not result in exceeding the highest commissioned grade authorized for their respective academic ranks.
- On the date of designation, the Dean must have served at least five years as a member of the Corps of Professors, and a Head must have served at least three years as a member of the Corps of Professors.
Board for promotion in academic rank:
- The Chief of Staff appoints a board for a term of two years.
- The board must meet at least once annually to consider eligibility for promotion in academic rank and submit recommendations to the Chief of Staff.
- The board consists of the Dean plus at least four other members who are not members of the Corps of Professors and who are senior in permanent and temporary grade to any officer being considered.
- Recommendations are based on academic and military qualifications, experience, performance of duty, present assignment, potentiality to service, specific recommendations of the academic department heads when applicable, and other pertinent factors deemed by the board.
- Promotions in academic rank are made only upon recommendation of the board and approval by the Chief of Staff.
Promotion approvals and boards for grade:
- Promotions in grade require approval of the President of the Philippines.
- Promotions to grades in Section 9(a), 9(b), 9(c), 9(d), and 9(e) are recommended by a promotion board composed of at least five officers who are not members of the Corps of Professors, appointed by the Secretary of National Defense for a term of one year.
- The boards’ operation and recommendations are subject to the relevant provisions of Sections 5(a)(3), 5(a)(4), 5(a)(5), 5(a)(6), 5(a)(7), 5(a)(8), and 5(c) of Republic Act No. 291.
- The board may defer for promotion any officer it deems not fully qualified even after completion of service-in-grade requirements under Section 9(a), 9(b), and 9(c); when deferred, the provisions of Sections 7(e) and 7(f) of Republic Act No. 291 apply.
Faculty service credit for promotions:
- Satisfactory service in grade at least 0-3 as an academic faculty member of the Philippine Military Academy is credited as service rendered in the Corps of Professors, but the credited amount may not exceed four years.
Temporary promotions for outstanding performance:
- A Corps of Professors member with outstanding performance may be temporarily promoted—upon recommendation of the Dean through the Superintendent—irrespective of length of service in grade to the next higher military grade without vacating permanent grade.
- The temporary promotion must not result in exceeding the maximum military grade for the officer’s academic rank.
Pay and retirement-equivalent rights; separation for delay in advancement:
- Except as otherwise provided, Corps of Professors members receive the same pay, allowances, retirement privileges, and similar rights as regular officers.
- Associate professors and assistant professors who are not advanced in academic rank after completing nine years and seven years, respectively, in those academic ranks are separated from the service without prejudice to separation or retirement benefits provided for in Republic Act No. 340.

Emergency utilization and wartime detailing

When the President of the Philippines declares a national emergency or in time of war, any Corps of Professors member whose services are needed to carry out the Armed Forces’ mission may be detailed with the arms or services where the President decides the member is best qualified.
If the situation does not warrant the continuous operation of the Philippine Military Academy, all Corps of Professors members must be detailed to arms and services where they are best qualified.
No transfers of Corps of Professors members to any other arm, branch, service, or promotion list are permitted in the emergency utilization context described above.

Repeal clause and related issuances

Executive Orders Nos. 361 and 643, dated August 6, 1941 and November 21, 1953, respectively, are revoked.