For teachers, advancing professionally and getting job promotions are essential because they encourage hard work and high-quality work. Promotion affects employee performance significantly, and professional development has a significant positive effect on teachers' work commitment while achieving this is consistently coupled with challenges; this study was to identify the challenges teachers encounter in their pursuit of job promotion and growth as professionals. The research sample comprised thirteen participants at the Philippines' Division of Misamis Oriental at the Tagoloan Central School selected through purposive sampling and used a qualitative methodology with a phenomenological research design. There were thirteen participants by purposive sampling. The data were collected using an interview guide and then subjected to the Moustakas data analysis approach. Online and in-person interviews were employed to collect the data. The study emerged with four themes: inadequate motivation and guidance from superiors; lack of knowledge about job promotion; low self-efficacy in one's ability to develop oneself, particularly in professional development; lack of budget to finance professional development; and prioritizing needs of their family. Thus, teachers encounter obstacles in their professional growth and job advancement. It suggests that supervisory leaders should always encourage teachers to look for opportunities for professional advancement. Encourage teachers to pursue further study, always inform teachers about job promotions available, and mentor teachers on the necessary papers. Administrators are the backbone in assisting teachers in pursuing chances for career advancement and professional development. Therefore, this area should be attention as an administrative goal and mission so that there will be no teacher that retires in lowest as teacher 1.