He earned his PhD in Psychology at Massey University in Wellington, New Zealand under the New Zealand ASEAN Scholarships (now Manaaki). He finished his MA in Psychology (Clinical Psychology) at the University of the Philippines Diliman and his BA major in Psychology at the University of the Philippines Visayas. He received specialised training in disaster mental health at the Hyogo Institute for Traumatic Stress in Kobe, Japan.

He is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Traumatic Stress and of the editorial review board of Chronic Stress. He was one of the associate editors of the Philippines Journal of Psychology (2023-2025). He was an Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR) Young Scientist (3rd batch). He is a member of the American Psychological Association, Asian Association of Social Psychology, International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies, and the International Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP), where he also serves as collaborator of the Task Force for Terrorism and Peacebuilding. He currently serves as the president-elect of the Clinical and Community Psychology Division (Division 6) of the IAAP.

Dr Guilaran was the chairperson of the Division of Social Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas from April 2022 until March 2025.