From Flight Attendant to Aviation CEO: How ETEEAP Helped Sahl Andrew Onglatco Complete His Degree
Many professionals spend decades building successful careers without ever completing a college degree. While experience opens many doors, there often comes a time when unfinished education becomes a personal goal rather than simply a missing credential.
For Sahl Andrew Onglatco, founder and CEO of an aviation training institution, earning a bachelor’s degree became a promise he wanted to keep—not only for himself but also for his children and the students he leads.
His story is one of many examples showing how the Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) gives experienced professionals in the Philippines a legitimate pathway to earn a college degree based on years of work experience.
Sahl Andrew Onglatco during his graduation from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde through the ETEEAP.
A Successful Career, Yet Something Was Missing
According to Onglatco, he came from a modest family raised by a single mother. Despite financial challenges, his mother managed to send him to good schools.
However, life took him in a different direction.
He shared that while he was still an undergraduate, Philippine Airlines was hiring, and at only 20 years old, he grabbed the opportunity. Like many working Filipinos, his career progressed much faster than his education.
Years later, he had already achieved what many aspire to accomplish.
He became the CEO of Sky AeroTrade Flight Academy, an aviation training institution that has trained hundreds of aspiring pilots and aviation professionals.
Yet despite his accomplishments, he admitted there was still something missing.
“All my achievements right now will not be complete without that diploma”- Sahl Andrew Onglatco.
That statement summarizes a feeling shared by many experienced professionals who have built successful careers but never had the chance to finish college.
A Promise to His Children
One of the most touching moments in his story was not about business or aviation.
It was about family.
According to Onglatco, he has three children. As they grew older, he wanted to encourage them to finish their education.
But he felt he could not confidently tell them to complete college when he himself had not finished his own degree.
He explained that earning a diploma gave him the confidence to look his children in the eye and tell them:
“I’ve done it. It’s possible. You just have to push it through.”
His journey became more than personal achievement—it became an example his family could follow.
Onglatco with his family
Going Back to School as a CEO
Returning to school after years in the workforce was not easy.
Onglatco explained that he wears many hats.
Besides managing an aviation academy and supervising employees, he also became a student once again.
According to him, wearing his Benilde student ID was a humbling experience.
He said that inside the college, titles no longer mattered.
He was not a CEO.
He was simply another student.
He described it as an eye-opening experience that taught him patience, humility, and respect.
As he explained, no matter how successful a person becomes, once they become part of an educational institution, they must accept the responsibilities of being a learner.
He believes this lesson was just as valuable as earning the diploma itself.
Leading by Example
Onglatco now leads an aviation academy with more than 300 enrolled students.
Many graduates of their institution eventually work for airlines, while some even return as instructors.
As the head of an educational institution, he realized something important.
He asked himself:
How could he encourage students to finish their education if he himself had not completed his own?
According to him, leaders should always lead by example.
That realization became one of the strongest motivations for returning to school.
Today, when he tells aspiring pilots to complete their education, he speaks from personal experience.
Why ETEEAP Made It Possible
Perhaps the most significant part of Onglatco’s story is why he chose the ETEEAP pathway.
He admitted that returning to a traditional college program would have been almost impossible.
Between running a company, managing employees, and wearing multiple professional hats, attending a conventional four-year program simply did not fit his responsibilities.
According to him:
“If there’s no ETEEAP, I don’t think I would go back again to the normal course of education.”
Instead, the program allowed him to have his years of professional experience assessed while completing the academic requirements needed to earn a bachelor’s degree.
This is exactly what ETEEAP was created for.
The program recognizes that learning also happens in the workplace, not only inside classrooms.
Professionals still undergo assessments, portfolio evaluations, interviews, and competency validation before a college awards a degree.
It is not a shortcut.
Rather, it is a government-recognized alternative learning pathway for experienced professionals.
Watch Sahl Andrew Onglatco Share His ETEEAP Journey
Embed the YouTube video immediately after explaining how ETEEAP made his degree possible.
What His Story Says About ETEEAP
Stories like Onglatco’s demonstrate why ETEEAP has become an important educational opportunity in the Philippines.
Many Filipinos began working before completing college because of financial responsibilities, career opportunities, or family obligations.
Years later, they have already become managers, entrepreneurs, supervisors, teachers, engineers, or executives.
ETEEAP acknowledges that these professionals have gained valuable competencies through years of practical experience while still requiring them to satisfy academic standards established by higher education institutions.
Onglatco’s experience reminds us that success and education do not have to compete.
Sometimes, they simply happen in a different order.
Finished unfinished
For Sahl Andrew Onglatco, earning a diploma was never just about adding another achievement to his résumé.
It was about completing an unfinished chapter of his life.
It allowed him to become a stronger example to his children, a more credible leader to his employees, and a lifelong learner despite already reaching the highest levels of his profession.
His story also illustrates an important truth about ETEEAP.
The program does not replace hard work—it recognizes it.
For experienced professionals who once believed their opportunity to earn a college degree had already passed, stories like Onglatco’s show that it may simply be waiting for the right pathway.
Did You Know?The Expanded Tertiary Education Equivalency and Accreditation Program (ETEEAP) is a Philippine educational program that allows qualified professionals with significant work experience to earn a college degree after their competencies are evaluated by authorized higher education institutions. Applicants must still meet institutional requirements and undergo assessments before a degree is awarded.
Sources: Interview with Sahl Andrew Onglatco published by De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde on YouTube, and publicly available professional information from Sahl Andrew Onglatco’s LinkedIn profile. Statements in this article are based on Onglatco’s own narration in the interview and have been summarized and reported for educational purposes.
