CCDC pilots first Australian virtual internship program in Northern Luzon

TWENTY-SEVEN STUDENTS from Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC) will be the first among tertiary schools in northern Luzon to pilot the virtual internship program of Sydney-based Education Centre of Australia (ECA), the leading higher education provider in the South Pacific region.

CCDC formalized the partnership in late April of this year with the Sydney-based institution through ECA representative Gerard Felipe, whose parents are actually from Tublay, Benguet.

The Benguet-based school is the third Philippine tertiary institution to enter a partnership program with ECA after Manila-based Mapua University and Far Eastern University.

Felipe, the first youth mayor of Frankston, Australia in 2018, also had initial discussions with La Trinidad and Baguio-based tertiary schools for the internship program endorsed by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED).

GOING BACK TO ROOTS. Former Australian youth mayor Gerard Felipe (second from left), whose parents are from Benguet, formalized an international internship program as representative of an Australia-based institution with La Trinidad-based tertiary school, CCDC, represented by its President Sherry Junette Malaya-Tagle (second from right). Also in the photo are Gerard’s relatives Novelette and Joriel Felipe.* (Photo courtesy of CCDC)

The students, who are taking undergraduate and post-graduate studies, will undergo a 4-week experiential learning with Australia-based and international companies through remote learning, said CCDC President Sherry Junette Malaya-Tagle.

The students are currently enrolled in the following in bachelor’s degrees: Accountancy, Entrepreneurship, Secondary Education, and Criminology. There are also three students enrolled under Masters in Business Administration and Masters in Public Administration.

Graduation and recognition rites are scheduled tentatively on August 1 at the Benguet Provincial Capitol with government and CHED officials expected to attend.

After the graduation, ECA will assist students in potential employment with their partner companies, said Tagle.

Under the program, interns will also get to interact with other students from the University of South Wales in Australia and universities in other countries enrolled in the program.

Tagle said CCDC alumni and private sponsors helped augment the program cost, making the program possible.

“This is a big opportunity for our students and this is part of achieving our shared goals of providing as many quality and relevant learning experiences for our students,” said Tagle.*

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