Hyundai Motor Company has trained three Filipino automotive students in South Korea as part of its 2026 Hyundai Service Talent Academy, a five-day program designed to prepare the next generation of automotive service professionals.
The students, Ace Local, John Palisoc and Joseph Bajar Jr., are all studying automotive servicing at Don Bosco Technical Institute (DBTI) Makati, a partner institution of Hyundai Motor Philippines (HMPH) under its Hyundai Accelerate initiative.
The program gathered 18 students and 10 instructors from academic-industry partner institutions in eight countries across Asia and Europe: Nepal, India, the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, Türkiye, Poland and Singapore.
Held at its Cheonan Global Learning Center, the training provided participants with hands-on instruction in electric vehicle (EV) and battery fundamentals, vehicle communication networks, charging systems, the Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP) and advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS).
The curriculum used actual vehicle components and equipment to help students develop the technical knowledge needed to maintain increasingly sophisticated vehicles. Hyundai service specialists led the sessions, giving participants practical exposure to technologies that are becoming more important as the automotive industry shifts toward electrification and advanced driver assistance.
Beyond technical training, the participants toured several Hyundai Motor Group facilities to better understand how vehicles move from manufacturing to customer service.
At the Hyundai Steel Dangjin Plant, they learned about steel production. They also visited the Hyundai Motor Asan Plant to observe vehicle manufacturing and assembly, and Hyundai Motorstudio Goyang to explore the company’s vehicle lineup and brand philosophy. According to the company, the visits were intended to demonstrate how manufacturing quality, vehicle production and aftersales service contribute to customer satisfaction.
“Cultivating outstanding global service talent means building deeper customer trust in Hyundai Motor worldwide,” said Beom Seok Kang, senior vice president and head of the company’s Global Service Sub-Division. He added that the brand would continue supporting future service professionals through academic-industry partnerships.
The initiative also aims to extend the benefits beyond the participants. Instructors will return to their respective institutions and use what they learned to develop and deliver Hyundai-specific training curricula for future students.
The 18 students, meanwhile, are expected to continue pursuing careers in automotive service in their home countries. For the Philippine participants, the experience complements Hyundai Accelerate, HMPH’s program that provides automotive students with training and career opportunities at select Hyundai dealerships.
Hyundai Motor said it would continue working with educational institutions, overseas subsidiaries and dealer networks to create career pathways for qualified graduates within its global sales and service operations.
Autocar’s Take
This training program offers Filipino automotive students something classroom lessons alone cannot provide: direct exposure to the technology and processes used by a global vehicle manufacturer. The focus on EV systems, charging equipment and driver-assistance technology is relevant as service work becomes more complex. Just as important, the instructor component could extend the program’s value beyond the 18 students who attended.
For Hyundai Motor Philippines, partnerships with schools such as Don Bosco Technical Institute can connect technical education with dealership careers. The real measure of success, however, will be how effectively these skills translate into local jobs and long-term opportunities.
