Student buys house three years after graduation

MANILA, Philippines - Bryan King, a 2008 Informatics graduate, took a two-year diploma course in Informatics, hoping to fast-track his career. Within three years of working as a programmer, Bryan has already bought his family a house in a private subdivision in Cagayan de Oro.

Experience is the best teacher, we’ve been told, and the only lessons we truly need to know are the ones taught outside the classroom. While that may be true, there are also educational institutions that prepare students for the real world with classes that come close to what a typical IT employee might deal with on a daily basis.

While competent teachers and hands-on use of a school’s topnotch facilities would help, a specially designed, ladderized program gives students the necessary knowledge and skills most IT companies are looking for without having to wait for junior or senior year. This is the British system of education adopted by Informatics and supported by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority of the Philippines.

“Technical vocational education and training (TVET), is by itself a viable career option as it is rapid, flexible, jobs-oriented, and competency-based,” says TESDA director general Joel Villanueva. “A ladderized education system will provide TVET trainees and workers with the opportunities for career and educational progression as well as facilitate the establishment of a seamless and borderless education and training system that allows mobility in terms of flexible entry and exit into the education system,” he adds.

The goal is to teach students specialized courses as early as their freshman year and let them earn a certificate after finishing several modules. This paves the way for early employability and an option to study further to earn more certificates, diplomas, or a bachelor’s degree.

For Bryan King, a two-year diploma course in Computer Science and Programming was just what he needed to get ahead of the game. “Ever since I was little, I always dreamed of having a job related to computers. Informatics’ two-year courses are focused. You will learn a lot in a short span of time because you take up major subjects right away,” he shares.

Within three years of graduating, Bryan was able to fulfill another one of his dreams: to buy a house for his family. “My dreams came true as I got a job right away even before I graduated. I was able to buy the things I wanted and help my parents financially. There might be some people like me who are in a rush to get hired.   With Informatics, it’s possible,” says Bryan.

Roel “Shan” Cabaluna Jr., on the other hand, recently graduated from a diploma course in Multimedia and Internet. The son of separated parents, Shan had asked his father to support him for a two-year course due to financial constraints. “I chose to study in Informatics because, not only is it an international school, it also offers courses that make you employable right away,” he says.

Like Bryan, Shan was hired even before he graduated. “With the right skills, if you are determined and hardworking, you can achieve what you want in two years,” says Shan.

Informatics Philippines boasts the highest employment rate among all the information technology schools in the country. In 2010, the TESDA Job Absorption Rate Review for IT training graduates reported that students who finish with Informatics Philippines have a 70 percent chance of getting hired within six months after graduation.

“With our ladderized program, a student can already pay for his own tuition with a good-paying IT job. In as short as several months, he will have already earned back the same amount he spent as tuition for his degree,” says Leo Riingen, CEO of Informatics.

Informatics grants certificates in technical and vocational programs, one-year programs, three- and four-year bachelor’s degrees, and two-year international and advanced diplomas. Students now have the option of learning the ropes in their chosen IT field before junior and senior year; mastering career skills begins in freshman year and more skills are introduced as they progress. It’s almost like on-the-job training even before the job.