The BLOKC Partners with Mapua School of IT for Blockchain Education

• The BLOKC partnered with Mapua University’s School of Information Technology to provide blockchain education.
• The collaboration will provide Mapua with structured internships, faculty training, curriculum review, blockchain program development, capacity building through hackathons and seminars, and more.
• Mapua currently offers blockchain as a free elective, with plans to make it a specialization in the future.

Blockchain education-focused The Blockchain Lead Organization & Knowledge Center (The BLOKC) recently announced its partnership with Mapua University’s School of Information technology. The collaboration aims to provide the university with initiatives such as structured internships, faculty training, curriculum review, blockchain program development, and more.

The BLOKC – Mapua Collaboration

On April 20, 2023, the two parties signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to help the department reach its goal to become a leading institution in Information Technology. 

 “We believe in The BLOKC’s vision of making the Philippines the Asia’s emerging technologies capital by equipping students and professionals with the relevant skills and igniting the burning passion for nation-building,” Ariel Kelly Balan, the Dean of School of Information Technology department, said in a statement. 

(Read more: The BLOKC Mid-Year 2023: Highlights and Outlook)

Initiatives and Programs Under the Partnership

According to The BLOKC’s blog, the collaboration between the two focuses on a range of initiatives, including a structured BLOKCmates blockchain internship program for Web2 to Web3 growth, and capacity building through hackathons and seminars to foster skill development for students.  

Faculty members and the school curriculum itself will also benefit from the partnership. The BLOKC will provide faculty training, comprehensive curriculum review with industry-standard certifications, and co-create blockchain programs for students. 

(Read more: The BLOKC, Solana Foundation Host Bootcamp for PH Developers)

Mapua Blockchain Elective

Mapua is currently offering blockchain as a free elective for students, according to Dean Balan. However, the department has expressed plans to offer it as a specialization in the near future. The university also looks forward to exploring further joint projects with the blockchain firm for mutual advancement.

Last year, Mapua University collaborated with the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and Digital Pilipinas to establish university-based decentralized innovation centers across the Philippines. These centers aim to promote collaboration between education, industry, and government in emerging technologies like blockchain. The initiative includes the launch of the Think and Tinker Laboratory – Technology Business Incubation (TBI) program, serving as a pilot project for the innovation centers.

(Read more: UP Diliman, TUP, Mapua Among Qualified Teams to Compete in UNBLOKC Hackathon 2023)

The BLOKC Recent Initiatives

Last July, Mapua University was the venue partner for  the 2-day in-real-life Kick-off launch of the Solana Developers Bootcamp. 

The collaboration between The BLOKC and Solana Foundation hosted ten-week boot camp to increase the number of blockchain developers in the Philippines.

BLOKC is also organizing the UNBLOKC Hackathon 2023, which will take place on July 29-30. A total of 14 university teams, a team of professional developers, and a mixed team of students and professionals will be participating in the event. It will also cover discussions on NFTs, blockchain regulation, shift to crypto, web3 growth for traditional brands, blockchain in payments and retail, and gender diversity in the industry.

This article is published on BitPinas: The BLOKC, Mapua School of IT Partner for Blockchain Education

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