IN 2024, Brigham Young University (BYU)-Idaho granted more than 2,000 students with computer and information science degrees. The school is in Rexburg, a town of 40,000 residents and an unlikely place for a computer-science boom.
Computer and information science rank fourth most popular field of study in the US and had grown six-and-a-half times as fast as the average discipline over the past decade.” (The Economist, June 1, 2026)
While artificial intelligence is radically changing the nature of work and the use of computers, some colleges and universities continue to sell “old” computer/IT courses.
The Philippines has about 1,000 schools offering bachelor’s degrees in IT and computer science. In 2019-2020, these institutions produced 47,000 graduates, less than half produced the year prior. (Maria Mercedes T. Rodrigo, ACM Inroads, Vol. 15, No. 1, March 2024)
That number has probably doubled since.
Rodrigo reported senior industry executives claiming that "certain universities produce world-class graduates, while others are almost unrecognizable as CS, IS, or IT professionals.”
The deficiencies cited by industry are in “programming, networking and distributed computing, algorithms using current languages, data engineering, virtualization, software engineering, cloud technologies, and better basic skills should be updated and taught by skilled teachers — soft skills like presentation, ability to work with others, ability to document, and to develop code.”
The university CS and IT curricula should be updated due to “rising demand for cybersecurity solutions, expanding use of cloud computing, increasing applications of blockchain technology, advancements in robotics and automation, and growing adoption of artificial intelligence.”
To demonstrate AI integration last spring, San Jose State University (California) president Cynthia Teniente-Matson used her avatar to welcome new enrollees.
Naga College Foundation
Meanwhile, after guesting Naga College Foundation (NCF) President Mario
Villanueva at the recent AmCham Talent Summit, I asked him how the academe is coping with AI integration.
NCF is a higher education institute (HEI) in Naga City with 18,000 students taking elementary to PhD courses and an extension school for nursing and technical micro-credentials. It has the highest percentage of passers among Bicol schools at the recent CPA licensure exams, 12 percent higher than the national average.
It also had two teams among the remaining top 40 of more than 100 entries currently competing in the Asean AI Hackathon in Vietnam.
“National adoption of AI tools in the academe is below 50 percent,” Villanueva said. “Majority of HEIs lack formalized framework on ethical usage of AI and have not fully redesigned the curriculum or trained the faculty.”
He added: “Funding and access to advanced technology is concentrated in the National Capital Region and large urban universities. Meanwhile, 17 million or 33 percent of occupations are exposed to AI, 61 percent of jobs can be augmented by AI, and 14 percent of total Filipino workforce face displacement due to slow upskilling. Therefore, we at NCF are focusing on curriculum overhaul, micro-credentialing, lifelong learning ecosystem, and human centric skills development.”
Villanueva laid down NCF’s strategies for AI integration: “Strong industry-academe linkages; Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) integration; focus on digital literacy and information and communication technology (ICT); and holistic student development.
“Henceforth, all NCF students will graduate with training and skills in AI. We are using AI in teaching our students, and we are teaching them how to use AI in various courses. We will soon offer a BS in Artificial Intelligence, with the help of global experts in AI.”
To ensure seamless AI integration, Villanueva said, “We are setting up AI labs in our campuses. We are also developing a program that will help our teachers design appropriate curricula for emerging skills required by the industry. While we continue to offer four-year collegiate courses approved by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED), we have improved our agility and flexibility to supplement these courses with micro-credential and lifelong learning programs, including diploma courses that will carry Tesda certificates, and ‘badges’ from our partner international institutions or large multinationals that can provide meaningful apprenticeship training and experience to our students.
“Some of our students will graduate with industry-needed skills, with a diploma or certificate for a two-year college education, a Tesda NC certificate, and a badge from our partner institutions. These students can pursue further studies, even as they work full-time, and be awarded with college or even post-graduate degrees, which we are offering right now.
“We have never drifted from our mission since the founding fathers of NCF opened its gates almost 80 years ago — to provide affordable world-class education to Bicolanos and other Filipinos,” said Villanueva.
“As a caring institution, we shall also continue to develop our non-teaching staff to reach their potential, redesign their work, reskill and upskill them, review our staff development and rewards systems, involve them in matters affecting their jobs, and encourage a culture of excellence and service to the nation,” he added.
Ernie Cecilia is chairman of the human capital committee and the publications committee of the American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines; chairman of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines’ TWG on labor policy and social issues; and past president of the People Management Association of the Philippines. He can be reached at [email protected]