Manila, Philippines - Five years into its mission of helping improve the education sector in the country, Bukas marks a momentous milestone of funding over one billion worth of tuition for Filipino students in hopes of a brighter future.
Creating The Future
Bukas, a tech-enabled education financing platform by its parent company ErudiFi, started with the vision of building a better tomorrow for Filipino youth starting with affordable and accessible student loans. Since it started operations in 2019, the student-first brand has helped about 21,000 students in more than 100 partner campuses nationwide. These students represent thousands of families impacted, hopes reignited, and dreams realized.
Its consistent year-on-year growth has been evident in the expanding list of partners locally and abroad that caters to Filipino students and professionals. In Metro Manila alone, Bukas added Ateneo de Manila University, De La Salle - College of Saint Benilde, Far Eastern University - Nicanor Reyes Medical Foundation, NBS College, and St. Bernadette of Lourdes College to its roster. Beyond borders, opportunities open up for Filipino students with international partners including Experience Abroad, International Trainee Network, IE University (Spain), and Hyper Island Asia (Singapore).
More specialized institutions have also been onboarded recently, providing students with options to create their own path without being limited by finances. Partners include Aviair Aviation, Benilde’s SPaCE, MUD Studio, DivergenZ Training and Consulting, and TopRank Review Academy. The demand for Bukas’ services in these institutions is proof that learning experience does not stop when students get their diploma. That being said, Bukas is committed to follow through with its mission wherever the students are in their journey.
“Our position is that there is no amount of technology improvement in terms of education delivery, education management or however education services will improve in the future that will be as important as making sure that the students are there because they can afford to be there. That’s why we have taken a first-principles approach in trying to help solve it, and our way is trying to help provide options,” says Jon Robert Emlano, President of Bukas.
Aside from partner expansion, Bukas continues to grow its services with the launch of gadget loans. With this new product, students can now look forward to owning a personal laptop or tablet without having to borrow from their peers or stay late at night in computer shops just to finish academic requirements. Offering a flexible payment plan for reliable and quality learning devices is a step toward providing students with options to help meet their educational needs on top of ensuring their tuition needs are met first and foremost.
Sa’yo Ang Bukas
By providing alternative options in their studies and career paths, students are now in a more strategic position to take risks and own their future. Even if it does not fit society’s expectations of how student journeys are supposed to look like. With the launch of the “Sa’Yo ang Bukas” campaign, Bukas challenges students to create their own path and pursue their dreams without being held back by finances, stigmas, labels, and timelines.
Through Bukas’ product offerings and a growing community of Walang Hiyang Estudyante (WHE), students who are unashamed (“Walang hiya” in Tagalog) to own their future, Bukas envisions to continue partnering with Filipino students in the years to come as they create a future where they own it, define it, and create it.
(L-R) A Mapúa University student joins the WHE Challenges on campus; Content Creator Macoy Dubs sits down with PHINMA Saint Jude College students for a free career consultation during Bukas' Pamaskong Payo event; Bukas partners with De La Salle University for Frosh Welcoming Week 2024
In her speech during the WHE Awards 2023, Shaira Mae Gabat, a Bukas borrower from Eskwelabs and one of WHE Awardees (The Career Shifter Category), expresses her thanks for Bukas’ help in her unconventional student journey, “This ‘Walang Hiyang Estudyante’ award is a testament that there's no shame in charting your own path, even if it's not the one you first envisioned. Maraming salamat, Bukas, for recognizing the courage it takes to redefine success and for celebrating those of us who dare to follow our own compass.”
With Bukas making history in its fifth year and a roadmap of opportunities ahead, the team is determined to work toward bridging the gaps in Philippine education, and explore new pathways for growth to reach, serve, and empower more students in owning their future.
“I think getting the message of hope out and giving students more options is our primary duty. Because the product will evolve by itself. It’s just the natural evolution of how things are. But the message has to be consistent—that there are options available, and with it, you can finish your education, focus, and have the opportunity to do well in life,” shares Emlano.
About Bukas
Bukas is an education financing platform that provides secure, flexible, and affordable student loans to students and professionals, partnered with leading colleges, universities, bootcamps, training institutions, technical and vocational institutions in the Philippines and overseas. Since 2019, Bukas has helped about 20,000 students with presence in more than 100 campuses nationwide and four international partners. For more information, visit www.bukas.ph.
About ErudiFi
Founded in 2017, ErudiFiis a mission-driven technology company focused on making education affordable in Southeast Asia. Operating as Danacita in Indonesia and Bukas in the Philippines, ErudiFi has helped secure funding for thousands of financially underserved students through tech-enabled partnerships with leading universities and vocational schools in the region. By improving access to education, ErudiFi is driving generational transformation and helping to build a better tomorrow. For more information, please visit www.erudifi.com.
