MANILA -- Far Eastern University (FEU) President Michael Alba recalls being "really hurt" by one student, who said during a general assembly that the difficulties in enlisting for subjects was like getting a Jollibee meal for the price of Starbucks.

Alba took the negative feedback as a learning experience from the kind of student that he has sought to rear, 8 years into the job: someone who knows what he or she wants and how to get it.

While on the surface, FEU's course offerings appear the same as its rivals, the near century-old Manila university is integrating concepts such as critical thinking, entrepreneurial spirit, even "moral backbone and sensitivity" to its curriculum, Alba said.

These traits are critical for graduates to thrive in a digital world, and seize the opportunities of a young population and a fast-growing economy, Alba told ABS-CBN News.

"The students, they're more demanding about what they want," Alba said. Like navigating the interface on their devices, students look for a 'user experience' in learning, a 'value proposition' where they get their money's worth, he said.

Alba works with two tablet computers, a Microsoft Surface and an iPad Pro. The Windows slate is his work device, containing a PowerPoint presentation on the urgency to shift to digital, which he presented to a group of college and university heads some days back.

The Apple device is for reading books and scribbling with his Apple pencil. He also has an iPhone and a Fitbit Ionic, all wired to the same campus WiFi that FEU students use.

SEXIEST JOB

On his Surface, Alba runs a program that instantly shows him how students and faculty perform down to the class level. The results are graphed and color-coded green and gold, the university colors.

"The sexiest job right now is data scientist," Alba said, adding he would propose the creation of a data science unit in FEU.

Students should also consider robotics and artificial intelligence. Accounting jobs, for example, will not be the same several years from now as more tasks are automated, he said.

Until a full data science program is offered, Alba said, students, even professionals, can take on the demands of digital jobs by securing certifications for skills such as data analytics and Python, which he described as "the way to go" when it comes to computer language.

"You cannot be a silo in your own discipline. You have to present to the world a unique package to make you marketable," he said.

"Micro-credentials, you cannot just use your curriculum in the schools," he said. "One size fits all doesn't work anymore."

TAKING ON 'DISRUPTION'

Alba, an economist, sees FEU's role as providing affordable, quality education that makes students globally competitive for the "disruptive future."

The current crop of students have the responsibility of taking advantage of the Philippines' demographic dividend: achieving rich nation status or $25,000 per capita GDP before the population starts to age and becomes dependent by 2050.

It's a feat achieved by Singapore and South Korea that's achievable for the Philippines by 2044 if it grows by 5 to 6 percent annually, Alba said.

School administrators have also had to deal with "legislative shocks," the expanded basic education system or K to 12 which meant no freshmen for 2 years and free education in state universities and colleges (SUCs).

"Private HEIs (higher education institutions) engage in a race for quality to stay competitive with SUCs. You cannot compete with free," he said.

While some schools closed, FEU formed a joint venture with the Technological Institute of the Philippines. Elsewhere in the industry, the Ayala and Yuchengco groups merged their education units.

In the end, Alba said students who want careers will look for value and a "user experience," he said.

"Education is an experience good. It's like buying a movie ticket. It's only by going through a movie that you know its value," he said.

"To get students engaged, you have to buy into the mission and vision. You have to sharpen the user experience for it to be transformative and capacitating," he said.