ACCEPTABILITY, ATTAINABILITY, RELEVANCE, AND CHALLENGES ENCOUNTERED BY THE STAKEHOLDERS ON GRADUATE SCHOOL PROGRAMS: BASIS FOR ENHANCEMENT PLAN

Facing rapid technological and professional evolution, higher education institutions, particularly the Graduate School at Cagayan State University Aparri, struggle to maintain and enhance the standards of their programs. This study aimed to evaluate the acceptability, attainability, and relevance of the graduate school programs and the challenges encountered by stakeholders, serving as a vital basis for an institutional Enhancement Plan. Employing a descriptive exploratory case analysis, the methodology involved gathering data from stakeholders including faculty, current students, and alumni of the CSU Aparri Graduate School. Respondents were selected using stratified random sampling to ensure diverse representation across different program types. Salient findings indicate that the graduate programs are overwhelmingly rated as Highly Acceptable and Highly Relevant to stakeholders' personal growth, professional development, and industry needs, reflecting strong alignment with current demands. However, despite this high relevance, the programs' attainability is rated only Moderately Attainable. This lower rating is primarily attributed to significant financial constraints faced by students and increasing challenges associated with complex academic requirements, particularly thesis and dissertation completion. The primary recommendation derived from these findings is for the University Administration to establish a dedicated, aggressively marketed, need-based scholarship fund to directly mitigate the identified financial barriers.