A school in Makati City unveiled its plan to offer courses on network engineering, cyber security and cloud computing to prepare their students to become “game changers” once they join the job market.
Founded in 2002, iAcademy is a college in Makati City’s central business district. It describes its students as “game changers” as they undergo an experience and outcome-based training to become versatile individuals who are prepared to dive in professional industries with competency and knowledge.
“Meaningful learning is attained when there is a purpose behind it; more so when students discover that purpose themselves. We challenge the students to solve real-world problems in our community through our project-based learning,” assistant principal for senior high school Mel Obedoza said.
While it is primarily known as an IT school, iAcademy also offers courses in computing, business and design which are primed to prepare students for the demands of the professional world with a variety of facilities and resources specific for every program.
“Next year, we’re gonna’ be offering Bachelor of Science in Computer Science [with] specialization in Cloud Computing…We’re gonna’ be offering specialization in Cloud Computing because we have a partnership with Amazon Web Services,” Mitch Andaya, dean of School of Computing, said.
“We’re gonna’ be certifying our students for ethical hacking. We’re gonna’ teach them about the network engineering, cyber security,” Andaya said.
“The best preparation [for the students] is to really involve the industry. iAcademy is strong in terms of our industry partnerships. And majority of our faculty members are industry workers,” he said.
The school, which also offers academic and technical vocational tracks for senior high school, is equipped with computer laboratories boasting of the latest softwares to further determine their students’ growth especially in the field of business. It also has other specialized rooms such as a lightbox room and fashion design and sewing room for the design students.
“There is a study that 80 percent of the careers that our students will be having for the next 10 years have not yet been invented. So how do you teach that not yet been invented?” Mark Meily, dean of Arts and Design, said.
The school is known for being the first IBM Center of Excellence in the Asean region. It is a partner of Solar Entertainment for Project Runway Philippines that showcases their fashion design and technology program.
“We decide to offer courses based on what the world economy demands. Courses offered in iAcademy are responsive to the needs of the times in the sense that it provides real-world training and authentic learning experiences to students, so that they are not just merely consumers but makers, designers, and leaders of the different industries,” iAcademy vice president for academics Francis Jacob Aragon said.
