The group said, under the new curriculum, it would take a student five years to finish the course from the current four years because of additional subjects.
Additional subjects mean parents would have to shell out more money for tuition, lab fees and books.
"Do not overburden the students. Wala na nga silang oras sa sarili. What kind of graduates would we be producing?" said Fr. Antonio Samson, president of Ateneo de Zamboanga.
School officials expressed concern that pending tuition increase would affect the number of students interested to take up nursing.
"Kung dati 1,000 baba yun kasi hindi sila handa sa dagdag gastos," said Dr. Amelou Reyes, president Philippine Women's University.
Under the new curriculum, students would have to spend an additional 561 hours in their required learning experience or hospital hours.
Cocopea said under the old curriculum, students are already having difficulty finding suitable hospitals. It added that the additional hours would only exacerbate the logistical problem of schools.
The group warned it will ask for a temporary restraining order with the Supreme Court if CHED continues to turn a blind eye on the repercussions of the new curriculum.
CHED, meanwhile, defended the proposed curriculum. It said that it already compromised with school officials that they would be given a year to implement the new curriculum.
"The commission en banc has decided that nursing schools that are ready to adopt and implement the new curriculum can, those who cannot they are given one year," said Dr. William Medrano, CHED Chief Operating Officer.
The commission asserted that changing the curriculum is their way of further improving the quality of nursing education in the country.
"The technical committee only wants to enhance the skills of our nurses and to improve further the quality of nursing education," said Medrano.
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