By Art Santiago

Far Eastern University (FEU) students across all programs are now eligible to apply for a limited number of Adobe Creative Cloud licenses, providing Tamaraws with industry-standard tools in producing high-quality academic and creative outputs, following the Education Technology (EdTech) Office’s announcement via Canvas last October 13.

In an interview with FEU Advocate, EdTech Office Director Catherine Catamora discussed that the effort to provide creative licenses stemmed from the University’s vision of advancing digital skills among its students.

“FEU’s decision to provide Adobe Creative Cloud access to all students stems from our vision of nurturing creativity, innovation, and digital fluency across all disciplines,” the EdTech Director shared.

Catamora also added that in their efforts to adapt to the students’ continuously evolving needs, they eventually decided that such creative license will be helpful to students in enhancing skills they need to prepare them outside of the University.

“As the University continues its digital transformation journey, we recognize that creative and design tools are no longer limited to communication or design courses; they are essential skills for research, presentation, storytelling, and professional readiness in any field,” the director stated.

The creative licenses, initially intended for programs like Communication, Fine Arts, and Applied Mathematics with Specialization in Information Technology, grant access to various professional creative tools such as Photoshop, Adobe Acrobat, Premiere Pro, Illustrator, and more.

Furthermore, Catamora noted that this initiative will help students across all programs elevate their academic presentations, reports, and digital storytelling through the professional tools from Adobe Creative Cloud.

“Creativity is universal, and these tools help bridge technology with expression and impact. For example, Business [Administration] students can design compelling marketing collaterals, Education majors can create interactive teaching materials, and Science[-inclined] students can visualize research data through infographics or motion graphics,” she added.

However, the EdTech Office Director clarified that the licenses are currently on a first-come, first-served basis through a centralized registration system directly managed by their office.

“Because [the] Adobe [Creative Cloud] licenses are limited, they will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. We encourage students to register early using their FEU email accounts to ensure eligibility and proper activation,” Catamora explained.

After submitting their registration, students will receive an activation email directly from Adobe with login instructions, which will be valid for an entire academic year, and the EdTech Office will review renewals in the succeeding academic years.

Meanwhile, with the announcement of the availability of the creative licenses, many students, although not aware at first, were delighted to learn about the opportunity of gaining access to the Adobe Creative Cloud.

Second-year Communication student Gab Fernando mentioned the significance of the creative license, especially to non-design programs in improving their output.

“Malaking tulong siya sa mga (It’s a big help especially to) minor subjects na mayroon ang mga [programs] na hindi naman talaga (that have programs that are not really) art-inclined, like sa paggawa ng mga (in creating) presentation or visuals,” she commented in a separate interview with FEU Advocate.

Additionally, the creative license offers students an opportunity to save money while improving their outputs through Adobe Creative Cloud’s professional counterpart.

“Since may bayad siya originally, premium access [‘yung makukuha namin]. Hindi siya katulad nung sa CapCut na limited lang, mas HD [High-Definition]. ‘Tsaka mas maraming perks (Since it is initially purchased, we get premium access. It’s not like CapCut, which is limited; our outputs will be more HD, and it has many perks),” Fernando remarked.

Similarly, first-year Medical Technology student Chi Pastor shared her excitement in a separate interview about the availability of the creative license to non-design programs.

“Actually, mas makaka-improve siya kasi mas mama-manipulate mo ang mga activities or output mo. And makaka-help siya na mag-expand and mag-explore ng mga ways para ma-improve ang creativity sa outputs (It helps improve because you can manipulate your activities and output better. It helps to expand and explore different ways to improve creativity in outputs),” Pastor mentioned.

Both students expressed that since the Adobe Creative Cloud has a wide array of professional tools, they hope to have training materials rolled out by the EdTech Office to assist them in fully utilizing the platform.

In addition, both Fernando and Pastor look forward to other initiatives the EdTech Office has in store for improving student experience. Specifically, with the premium access to Canva—another helpful resource in improving academic output.

The EdTech Office shared that they intend to ensure smooth implementation of the Adobe Creative Cloud license to its students throughout the academic year.

In line with this initiative, they also added that they are currently reviewing potential premium subscriptions like Canva in equipping Tamaraws with the best tools available, and assured that announcements will be made once these resources are finalized.

(Photo by Ma. Louela Luna/FEU Advocate)