The roots of the study abroad industry can be traced to growing demand in South Korea in the 1990’s for employees with strong English communication skills. This led South Korean entrepreneurs to seek new possibilities for high-quality but cost-effective methods to acquire English proficiency.
As the Philippines was already a popular destination for tourism, it was known that Filipinos speak English very fluently and use English for all aspects of daily life. This, combined with the naturally attractive settings as well as convenient transportation routes, resulted in the recognition that the Philippines was an ideal place to establish English study abroad centers.
During the 2000s a number of schools opened and saw steady growth of students through positive word-of-mouth from graduates who gained not only improved English but a unique and interesting life experience in an exotic and enjoyable location.
By 2010 the positive reputation had spread beyond South Korea and saw an influx of students from Japan as well as the establishment of Japanese-managed schools designed to cater more specifically to students coming from Japan.
By 2015 the word had spread across Asia and all schools started seeing an increase of students from other Asian nations such as Taiwan, China, Vietnam, and Thailand. This led to a very positive shift towards greater diversity of nationalities at the schools as well as efforts to promote the Philippines beyond Asia as a top global study abroad destination to compete with the traditional destinations such as The USA, UK, Canada and Australia.
By 2018, the global industry is starting to take notice and the recent increase of students from a range of countries including Russia, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Mongolia, and Kazakhstan is a testament to the effectiveness and quality of English in the Philippines.