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| (L-R) iACADEMY School of Business and Liberal Arts Dean JV Padua, Senior High School Principal Paolo Noceda, Vice President for Academics Cecilia Sy, School of Computing Dean Kiko Napalit, School of Design and the Arts Dean Jon Cuyson (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/iACADEMY) |
iACADEMY held a successful media day event in its Makati campus last January 23, 2024 where the deans and faculty of the renowned institution for computing, business, and design education showcased its world-class equipment, curriculum, and innovative approach to Game Development, Animation, and Multimedia Arts with the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Augmented (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR), and more. Members of the media took notice that iACADEMY, the leader of innovative education for the past 22 years, won the Computing Track at the Huawei ICT 2023-2024 National Championship last December. A competition for aspiring game developers, the win had set the stage for iACADEMY to join the Huawei regional game development competition this April at a yet-to-be-determined venue in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Boasting a 96% employment rate for its graduates, iACADEMY iterated that various career paths await its computing and design students not just in the game development industry but also in the highly demanded fields of animation, multimedia arts, artificial intelligence, software engineering, web development, data science, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. Attended by Vice President of Academics Cecilia Sy, Dean of School of Computing Kiko Napalit, Dean of School of Design and the Arts Jon Cuyson, Dean of School of Business and Liberal Arts JV Padua, and Senior High School Principal Paolo Noceda, iACADEMY highlighted its milestones thus far in its non-traditional approach to education. Furthermore, the event tackled the looming career opportunities in augmented and virtual reality. Following the demo, iACADEMY deans gamely answered questions from the media about the institution’s plans, job placements, and the career opportunities that await students after they graduate.
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| iACADEMY professor Hamil Buyco conducts VR demonstration (Image Source: Orange Magazine TV/iACADEMY) |
• Kiko Napalit, Dean of School of Computing: “We can thrive in game development because number one, Filipinos are great at design. The designs that our students are making are at par with international standards. With sufficient support from the government and the private sector, iACADEMY will take the Philippine game development industry to new heights. We will be at the forefront of game development with GDAP (Game Developers Association of the Philippines) members being professors at iACADEMY. We have so many talented students in game development and many of their games such as Bayani, Unspoken, and Far Away From Home are already out in the market.The most recent competition we joined was the Huawei ICT (Information and Communications Technology) 2023-2024. We had one team join and they won the nationals. Now they are going to Jakarta, Indonesia, to participate in the regional competition.”
• Jon Cuyson, Dean of School of Design and the Arts: “A lot is going on internationally in virtual and augmented reality. What we do at iACADEMY is prepare them for the incoming career opportunities in the country. As educators, we mold them and give them the information they need. That way, they are prepared when they go out in the real world. The key players in animation such as Team App Animation Studios, Toon Boom Animation, Top Peg Animation, and Creative Studio — virtual, and augmented reality are present in how we design the curriculum. Whatever needs to be changed, they will be there. We hold meetings with them every term to see how updated our curriculums are so that we are always current. We are always updated. We promote inter-school collaboration, we are in touch with CHED (Commission on Higher Education), and with other regional schools. We have iACADEMY Cebu so it opens up lots of opportunities for collaboration not just in Manila. We are the leaders and pioneers of teaching students AR and VR.”
• Cecilia Sy, Vice President for Academics: “In the beginning, iACADEMY faced the challenge of making )a mark in a world where established colleges already held sway in the educational landscape. Undeterred, we embraced the challenge and set out on a path of innovation and specialization. Offering niche programs initially met with skepticism, but through strong industry partnerships, we not only weathered the storm of criticism but emerged triumphant. Over the past two decades, iACADEMY’s success has been shaped by these key elements; our commitment to innovation, strategic partnerships, and the invaluable support of our media partners. Today, we stand at the forefront of education, fostering an environment where creativity, technology, and knowledge converge to shape the future. Our goal now extends beyond achieving a 96% job placement rate. We aspire to make a global impact, preparing students not just for local success but for a world where borders are blurred, and opportunities are limitless.”
