The Average Annual Salary of a Programmer Is P465,000. This Might Be Your First Step to Becoming One

In case you didn’t know, Information Technology (IT) is now the highest-paid profession in the Philippines. The average entry-level salary of someone working in IT is about P20,700, which is the biggest in a study of 10 industries in the country. 

This is the reason there has been a renewed campaign to promote programming and IT to the next generation of Filipino youth. One of the most recent is an “ambitious, all-hands-on-deck” initiative called Code Your Future organized by tech platform StackTrek in coordination with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). 

According to StackTrek, no other subject will open as many doors in the 21st century as programming.

“It’s the new key to eliminating gender inequities, closing the income gap, and to reducing poverty,” the company says.

"In the Philippines, a person who learns programming and goes on to become a programmer, his/her annual average salary is P465,000, and millions more in lifetime earnings,” says Bill Yuen, the founder of StackTrek. “And getting that person who's the first in his or her family to learn coding effectively transforms the earning potential in that family. That's irreversible progress. You don't need to be interested in coding. You just need to be interested in getting a good life.”

Photo by StackTrek / JobStreet.

Code Your Future is a series of activities designed to help people who are interested in pursuing a successful tech career, from non-coders to experienced developers. The initiative includes online programming trainings that teach non-coders how to write their first line of codes, hands-on interview kits that prepare programming graduates for their technical interviews, online meet-and-greets, networking sessions, and career fairs with tech companies. The objective is to transform the next generation into new successful tech professionals. 

“Under the CHIP Conceptual Framework, which stands for Connect, Harness, Innovate, and Protect, which was launched last year, we at the DICT are executing capacity building plans aimed at providing different sectors of the community with the relevant skills and knowledge to be more digitally competitive, says DICT Undersecretary for Government Digital Broadcast Television and the Digitization of the Entertainment Industry Sector Arnold “Ali” Atienza. “This initiative also comes at a great time during this pandemic, as it will provide a lot of opportunities for Filipinos to develop their skills and become more internationally competitive."

Participating in Code Your Future are an estimated 150 universities, the private industry, and some of the biggest tech companies in the country. Piloting the initiative is the Code Your Future Webinar, which happens on April 29. The webinar will cover tech career trends and steps in getting started in programming. Total beginners will be able to code their first program in 15 minutes. Participants will also learn how to kick off their IT career.

To RSVP, visit this link.