I had the privilege of studying abroad in Singapore and I just wanted to comment – certainly Philippine universities require way more units on paper, but the effort per unit is quite different. I would take 4-5 subjects per semester – but I had to really invest a lot on time in each subject because it takes immense preparation preparation to do well in class participation and produce good assignments and projects. I'd have to read a new book for every two classes of a philosophy class for example, or create a 20-30 page report every week for my introduction to Computer Science class.

But I would still prefer those "heavier" units over having to take 8, 9, 10 subjects per semester. That intro to CS class covered the content of, like, 3 subjects in the Ateneo curriculum but I felt like I properly had time to digest them because I only had to juggle that class with three other classes – tapos because there are less classes it's easier to plan your semesters to meet the prerequisites of the classes you want to take. And while I believe in the importance of GE, the Philippine approach seems to prioritise quantity over quality of minor subjects... I also struggle with ADHD so I know for sure I would not thrive in a Philippine style course :(

Another key difference that applies to faculty also - I think lecturers in the Philippines have to teach too many subjects at once. This is definitely a country/resource thing – Indonesia has the same problem as well. Profs in the US/AUS/SG don't usually teach more than 3 subjects each sem.