IBM Helps Students Through P-TECH

American multinational information technology company, International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation strengthens its ways to help students acquire decent education through P-TECH.

P-TECH or Pathways in Technology Early College High School is a groundbreaking public education model that aligns education with workforce development challenges.

On August 12, 2019, the Philippines became the sixth (6th) country in the world to open P-TECH.

“The way P-TECH work is that we identify industry partners for each program and we work with the specific school, there could be a set of industry partners for each of the schools,” said Lope Doromal, Chief Technology Officer, IBM Philippines.

P-TECH students can graduate as little as four years with public high school diplomas and no-cost, public two-year university degrees aligned to industry needs.

High schools and universities coordinate with industry partners, which provide workplace experiences, including paid mentorship and internships. Nothing is ever guaranteed, but when students graduate, companies already know them, and can make hiring decisions with confidence.

“Parts of what we do in P-TECH is to identify what are the job roles that they have within the company that they are willing to offer to someone to finish a college degree,” Doromal added.

Meanwhile, IBM Philippines Chief Marketing Officer Agnes Africa said that P-TECH integrates the students’ education.

“What it is essentially is we do something for the high school curriculum to be able to integrate some college subjects on,” Africa said.

P-TECH helps to strengthen regional economies and disadvantaged populations with a workforce better prepared for what IBM calls “new collar” jobs — skilled, tech positions that don’t necessarily require a traditional, four-year college degree. While skilled and experienced with specific programming languages and technologies, P-TECH graduates are also prepared for a lifetime of learning and workplace adaptability.

This new education model is getting a foothold in the Philippines with the first P-TECH now opening in Taguig City, in partnership with Taguig City University, IT Interaction Philippines and IBM, which co-created the model in 2010 in New York City.

The Philippines is in good company, as of now 18 countries have announced the intent to open or have already opened P-TECH schools, such as the U.S., Singapore, Taiwan, and South Korea.

Two hundred P-TECHs are expected to be in operation by the end of 2019, with more than 75 community colleges and 600 industry partners affiliates. (MLC)