Out of over half a thousand applicants, San Miguel Corporation (SMC) selected 115 engineering graduates from various local universities to operate its P100 billion Mass Rail Transit (MRT-7) project in 2025.
“MRT-7 promises to be a game-changer for the Philippine transportation landscape," SMC President and CEO Ramon S. Ang stated on Monday, Aug. 21.
"We are confident our young professionals will set new benchmarks in efficiency, safety, and service excellence,” he stressed.
The new graduates — mostly coming from Polytechnic University of the Philippines’s (PUP) Railway Engineering Program the only specialized course of its kind in the country — have already started their training in March, this year.
At the same time, SMC shipped out 40 cadets who topped evaluation tests to South Korea to train under its national railway operator, KORAIL, the local conglomerate's partner in the MRT-7 project.
“Investing in the development of young local talent is part of our commitment to nation-building," according to Ang.
Over 500 applicants underwent panel interviews and screening for the program. This included an aptitude test for train operators and traffic controllers.
SMC tapped South Korea’s KORAIL and the government-run Philippine Railway Institute (PRI) to hone the skills of its new recruits as train operators and traffic controllers.
KORAIL’s corps of railway professors began classroom lectures in Manila in May, with the entire batch of cadets in attendance.
After further performance evaluations, the top 40 cadets were sent to Seoul to continue their training at the KORAIL facility.
This includes hands-on training using a driving simulator, exposure to core technology for driving and operations, railway control systems, first aid and emergency, and familiarization with the railway depot.
Meanwhile, 75 other cadets are undergoing the mandatory Fundamental Training (FT) course of the PRI, the rail transportation research and training center attached to the Department of Transportation (DOTr).
The FT course provides an industry-level knowledge of operations and maintenance, from technical skills and fundamental processes, to fields of specialization within the railway sector.
Cadets who graduate from the course become certified railway professionals such as train operators, traffic controllers, and maintenance personnel.