# Philippines school counselor recruitment initiative > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/philippines-school-counselor-recruitment-initiative > Updated: 2026-08-23T02:56:57.000Z. Sources: 3. Developments: 2. The Philippine Department of Education (DepEd) is implementing measures to address a critical shortage of mental health professionals in public schools, driven by the mandates of Republic Act 12080, the Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act. Initially, the DepEd launched a nationwide recruitment campaign for 10,000 School Counselor Associate I positions to improve student support and campus safety. This effort aimed to bridge a significant gap where the counselor-to-student ratio was approximately 1:6,700, far below the international benchmark of 1:250. Following these efforts, the national government proposed a ₱802 million budget for 2027 specifically to fund the hiring of 2,021 new personnel, including 1,800 School Counselor Associates and 221 School Division Counselors. Officials emphasized that increasing these numbers is essential to combat rising cases of bullying, violence, and psychological challenges among students. ## Timeline ### 2026-08-23: Philippines to fund 2,000 new school guidance counselors The Philippine government is addressing a severe shortage of guidance counselors in public schools by proposing a ₱802 million budget to hire over 2,000 new mental health support staff. 3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/philippines-to-fund-2000-new-school-guidance-counselors ### 2026-07-25: Philippines launches hiring drive for 10,000 school counselors to strengthen student mental health DepEd is hiring 10,000 school counselor associates under new CSC‑approved standards to address a severe counselor shortage and boost student mental‑health support in the Philippines. 2 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/philippines-launches-hiring-drive-for-10000-school-counselors-to-strengthen-student-mental-health --- Cite as: Philippines school counselor recruitment initiative. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/philippines-school-counselor-recruitment-initiative