Seminar Overview

This school activity is the most enjoyable experience for every student here in the university. This is the time when we explore the real world of careers that we will take in the near future. This will give us the ideas and glimpse of information technology and computer science students’ future jobs. It is a privilege to visit some of the Philippines’ prestigious Information Technology related companies such as Accenture, IBM, Toshiba and PLDT. I am also glad that we could visit the main office of Ideaspace, which helps young Filipino technopreneurs in achieving their dreams to to be successful in the field of Technopreneurship. We are able to join their on-going contest too. Visiting the leading schools in the Philippines such as Ateneo de Manila University and University of the Philippines is a rare opportunity too. Visiting their computer science departments was fascinating. Last but not the least, being a part of Y4IT or Youth Congress on Information Technology, the biggest conference in information technology is an overwhelming experience too. We are able to listen to the success and motivational stories by the guest speakers that will encourage and guide us as we go on. This Field Trip and Seminar subject is all about learning while having fun

Day 1

September 8, we were earlier than expected when we arrived in Manila. We waited for few minutes for the bus that we will be riding or the rest of our trip. Since we are early, we are not going to eat inside the bus while travelling, good news for me because I am still dizzy because of the flight. Our first destination is the nearest McDonalds for our breakfast. However, when we got there, I still did not eat my breakfast. I still do not feel well, damn motion sickness. After our breakfast, we will be having our company tour and our first target is the company Accenture Inc. located at Eastwood City. After our seminar there, we traveled to Kenny Rogers at Katipunan, Quezon City for our lunch. I am hoping that we will have our meals in restaurants like this and not on fast food chains just like in our breakfast. We are going to two company tours for today so after our lunch, we went to IBM located in Ayala Technohub, still in Quezon City. We were divided into two groups for the tour, and I belong to the second batch. As the first batch went for the tour, we enjoyed for a while inside the bus. They have a videoke set inside the bus so we took our chance to sing our heart out. It was fun. After an hour, the first batch came back; it means we are up for the tour. The seminar only took an hour, but it was more fun than we had in Accenture. I will tell you why later. After IBM, we went to Trinoma to have fun and kill some time. It was our facilitator’s idea because traveling at 6 to 7 in the evening will give us the experience of a heavy Manila traffic. We were instructed to be back at 8:30 pm. As we entered the mall, I went to the restroom and released some loads in there. I have to prepare myself for an all-you-can-eat buffet for dinner. I also bought a pack of Strepsils for my sore throat. It was I, Jean and Jp grouped together as we stroll inside the mall. When we saw that the time is only few minutes before 8:30, we decided to go back in the bus. As we went out, we figured that we got out in the other side of the mall, too far from our bus. Therefore, we started asking on security guards outside to tell us where the main entrance is. We were running as fast as we could. Our classmates were calling and texting us, adding the pressure. When we got into the bus, I think it was already 8:40, our facilitator scolded us, but it was still a fun experience though. The next destination is the Great Eastern Hotel in Makati City. It was a buffet indeed and I ate a lot. After our dinner, we went to Kabayan Hotel, which is located in Pasay City. We will stay there for the next for days. We were expecting that there will be six people in a room just as planned but we were paired because the available rooms are a room for two. My roommate is Jp. It was quite uncomfortable at first, but since we have the only rooms that got TV so I think it is still cool. After a few hours of arranging things and visiting other rooms, we watched TV and went to sleep.

What I Learned

This is the part where we are going to explain what we have learned in the company tour so here it is. I have learned in Accenture Inc. that such company exists and until now, I still do not have a clear idea what do they actually do in their company. All know now is they provide solution for the companies who have software program needs. About IBM, I just enjoyed when they introduced to us there new program called Bluemix. As far as I know it is a program that you can use to build another programs, but in a more convenient way.

What I liked

Our hands-on activity with the IBM software BlueMix. I know that someday, that program will be a great help for us.

What I didn’t like

None so far

Day 2

September 9, woke up five in the morning because we will be travelling early for the next company visit. My sore throat is still here. We do not have bathrooms inside our rooms. The bathrooms are located outside. There are many showers and toilets because it is the only bathroom in the seventh floor. The shower is nice; they have a hot and cold shower. After taking a bath, I dressed up and went to the hotel café for the breakfast. We were given meal stubs for our breakfast. I do not usually have the appetite for breakfast when it is still too early but the breakfast served looks good and I ended up eating more. We finished our breakfast but the bus has not arrived yet so we waited in the lobby. Some of my classmates witnessed a snatcher in action. Reminding them how rough Manila is. It serves as a lesson for us too. Few minutes later, the bus arrived. Our next destination is PLDT in Mandaluyong. The first half of that seminar was the history of PLDT and telling us how rich Manny Pangilinan is. The second half is the technical services that the PLDT offers. We saw their advanced technology for fast internet services and they also provide software programs. We also saw a giant screen where they monitor the current events that may affect the services that they provide. After the tour, we had our lunch inside the bus. Then at 2:00 pm, we reached our next destination, the Ideaspace at Makati City. In Ideaspace, we were told what Ideaspace does show the previous successful ideas that won their contest. They have also announced that their contest is actually going on and the deadline for submissions is on January 15, 2015. The good news is if we are able to submit in the contest, we can pass our Technopreneurship subject. They also gave us t-shirts afterwards. After our tour in Ideaspace, we went to Divisoria to buy some pasalubong souvenirs and we will have our dinner there. I was tempted to buy shoes in there because when I will buy that kind of shoes in Davao, the price will be doubled. We returned to the hotel after our shopping.

What I learned

We have learned the history of PLDT and what kind of other services that they offer. At first, I thought that PLDT is only providing services for telecommunications and internet access but they also do programming for hardware devices and other software programs. In Ideaspace, we have learned that most of the contest winners were successful abroad.

What I liked

The presentation of PLDT products and facilities were very cool. I thought that I could only see those things in movies.

What I did not like

None so far.

Day 3

September 10, I woke in the morning and I still have a sore throat. I got up took a bath and wore the shirt that was given to us by Ideaspace. It was agreed that it is the one that we will wear on our next destination. We are going to the Y4IT seminar at SMX Convention Center, still in Pasay City. It is a three-day seminar but we are only going to attend the first day. When we got into the SMX Convention, we were given IDs and freebies from the seminar. Along with the freebies is a little brochure, which has the details of the program and the speakers for the seminar. When I was reading the brochure, I saw my student paper entry in their contest with my name under it. For me it was enough even if I did not presented my entry into the poster session. Because technically, I am the only one who made it there in our school. We stayed for a while inside the convention; we just waited our facilitator to finish his speech. After that, we went outside to visit the booths and get more freebies. It was 12:00 noon and it is lunch break, we had our lunch in a restaurant named Taste Asia just near from the convention. After we had our lunch, we went back to the convention center. Just like before, we were not in the seminar area. We are far more interested on the given freebies by the booths. At 5:00 pm, the seminar for day one is finished. We are just a few steps away from Mall of Asia (of course SMX is also part of heir property), we killed some time in there before we will eat our dinner. Inside MOA, we just went to their ice skating rink and bought some hopia. As I told them before, there is nothing amazing in MOA, except that it is a very huge mall. Actually, we had more fun on taking pictures outside the mall. After strolling in the mall, we gathered up on a place that we were told to go to wait for the bus. Our next destination is a buffet restaurant named Tramway, located at Roxas Boulevard still in Pasay City. After our dinner, we went to our hotel and prepared for the next tour tomorrow.

What I learned

Unfortunately some of us were not able to listen completely on the speech of the speakers because we re too busy on getting freebies from the booths. However, I have heard that most of them are developers that created a program and it became a successful business.

What I liked

Freebies and the food.

What I did not like

None so far.

Day 4

September 11, the most exciting day. As usual, we prepared for another company visit, which is in Toshiba Storage Device, located at Biñan, Laguna. It was 9:00 am when we got there. The place is very strict about cleanliness that we have to put a shoe cover before we enter their building. It was a very nice idea though; they can save up money from paying janitors. When we got inside, we were held inside a room for a little introduction and then divided into two for a tour inside the building. We were also given clothing and a cap and they say it is what the visitors wear inside the building. Since we are going to see a factory, I was expecting a very large area with big noisy machines that create their products, but I was wrong. The scene they are just like what you see in the movies when they cerate robots. I have a hard time while we are on the building tour because they do not have elevators or escalators, just stairs. It was 11:00 am when we finished the company tour. Just like what I said before, it is the most exciting day, because today we are going to Tagaytay and then into the Enchanted Kingdom. We went to Tagaytay for our lunch, which is at Max’s restaurant. In our location, we could see the Taal volcano. After our lunch, we went to a famous landmark in there, which unfortunately I forgot what the name of that place was. I just remembered that a house was built there to accommodate the visiting of an American president during the time of Ferdinand Marcos. We also bought some souvenirs in there. After that, we went to the most awaited destination, the Enchanted Kingdom. I admit it is the part that I was looking forward since day one. The first ride that we entered was the Rio Grande. We were warned about getting really wet for the ride but it was actually the fun part. The next ride was also involving getting wet which is the Log Jam. I did not expect that it would be scary that time. The rail in which our ride will go down was very steep. However, it was a good idea because it prepared us for the next ride, the Space Shuttle. It was one of their famous attractions and I am so privileged that I was able to ride that one. We spent few more hours on that theme park having fun. At 7:00 pm, we went back to the bus because it was our call time. The theme park was also closing that time. I was expecting for a delicious dinner when suddenly a change for schedule was implemented. We are going to Divisoria again and it made me feel like shirt. We are all exhausted and dizzy because of the theme park and they are still thinking of shopping. However, there is nothing we can do, so we went there and ate our dinner. After Divisoria, we finally went to our hotel to have our rest.

What I learned
Other than cleanliness, I have also learned how hard it is to produce a quality product in Toshiba. The procedures are so delicate that you have to be wearing special suites to avoid contamination of the product and doing many quality checks. Now I know the reason why Toshiba is one of the leading companies who produce quality computer products.

What I liked

The Toshiba tour was also cool. I felt like I was visiting a company in Japan. Everything was in order and they value their company’s ethics. And the Enchanted Kingdom of course.

What I did not like

The Divisoria trip

Day 5

September 12, last day of our FTS. Still tired because of the trip yesterday, I decided not to take a bath, were going home later anyway. Today we will visit Ateneo de Manila University in their Information System and Computer Science Department. Next will be the University of the Philippines in their Department of Computer Science then we will be going to Resorts World Manila to spend some time and then to the airport. Since it is the last day, we checked out in the hotel and brought all of our things with us. I am going to miss this place. We arrived at ADMU about 9 am. When we got inside their campus, you can feel the difference of the environment. We were accommodated by a faculty and lead us to their computer lab. After some few welcome greetings and introduction, a professor went inside the room. She showed us how advanced the gadgets they are using in their department. There was a google glass, Oculus Rift and other gadgets that is very useful in practicing new adaptive usage of software programming. I was also a bit jealous of their internet system because of its speed and the network administrator does not block Facebook. We also went to their shop field with Ateneo printed products. I find it narcissist. It was eleven when we traveled to our next destination. It was lunchtime already and it was decided that we would eat inside the UP campus. Their campus was so huge that you can even see jeepneys inside. We stopped at a place that we could find a place to eat and told to be back after an hour. We found a place that sells cheap viand so we went their and had our lunch. It was 12:30 when we came back to the bus and went to UP’s computer science department. We were welcomed warmly by a lady and gave us a tour in their department. I was fascinated by the style of their specializations in there. Students are sorted in groups according to their specialty and were put inside a room with facilities to pursue their research. In this kind of system, students are focused on their interests and become more interested in their chosen field. I wish that kind of system were implemented in USeP. I could also say that when the gadgets used in Ateneo were in UP, it will be more useful and could be developed for greater usage by the UP students. It was 2:30 when we finished the tour in UP, now we are going to Resorts World. When we got there, I was not interested to go inside because I lacked sleep. I decided to stay in the bus and take a short nap. I woke up and was not aware that it was time to go to NAIA. As usual, we went two hours before the flight. Few hours later, we were riding our plane home. It was not my first time to go to Manila but it is the first time that I felt sad when I left, maybe because the time was well spent and indeed very educational.

What I learned

Our university is quite far from those we visited. Just looking at their facilities, I could say that we are not even close to them and it is a privilege that we have the chance to visit such universities. I also know now the reasons why the researches that made the news were from the works of UP students because they have given the time and facilities to do those works.

What I liked

The specialization system of UP was very cool.

What I did not liked

None

Appendix

What can I recommend for the improvement of the advance seminar program of USEP?

I would recommend that they would read the previous travel reports of those who went before them so they could have the idea of they are going to expect during the tour. Because of that, they can focus to the important details that they should expect during the seminars and tours. Taking notes on important matters is also a great help to remember important details. Asking questions is also a good source of useful information most especially on unclear subjects and topics.

My advice to those who will take their advance seminar program in the near future.

I would like to suggest that if possible, choose Model A. It is because quality IT companies is based in the cities of Metro Manila. And they are the one who could give sufficient information about their own company. Being a part of Y4IT is also one of the advantages of choosing Model A. Though the payments are quite expensive, I assure to you that the payments are all worth it and you can find the trip very educational.