Davao City Not Profitable For Its IT Grads

The number of students taking up IT-related technology courses in Davao City may have increased over the years but it seems the city is not a profitable place for its very own IT graduates.

This was bared by Ateneo de Davao University Computers Study Division chair Edwin Marañon who said most of the city's IT graduates prefer to work in other cities like Manila and Cebu where salaries are higher.

Marañon said that while the basic salary for new IT graduates in the city starts at P8,000, Cebu and Davao companies offer IT fresh graduates a minimum of P16,000. It is thus not surprising that eight of ten IT graduates from Davao opt to work in Manila and Cebu.

This situation is lamentable and ironic considering that Davao is starting to become a preferred destination for IT investors due to the talented IT graduates it produces year after year. He said the Ateneo alone gets flooded with inquiries from investors who are looking for IT workers even before they graduate from college. This competitive advantage is in danger if the city fails to keep its IT graduates within its folds.