Tracing Pandemic-Era IT Graduates: Educational Outcomes and Employability in the Post-COVID Labor Market

Background/purpose. The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly disrupted higher education systems, forcing a generation of students to complete their degrees under fully or partially remote learning conditions. This tracer study investigates the post-graduation pathways, employment outcomes, and job-program alignment of Bukidnon State University's BSIT graduates from Batches 2020–2022—specifically those shaped by the pandemic's shift to online education. As one of the few studies focusing on COVID-era IT graduates in the Philippine context, it provides valuable insights into how remote learning influenced employability, workplace readiness, and the application of skills in real-world settings.

Materials/methods. Data were gathered from 45 traced graduates using a modified CHED tracer survey and analyzed through descriptive statistics.

Results. Results show that 71.43% of respondents were employed, with 97.50% working locally, primarily in the ICT sector (62.59%), and earning modest salaries of $ 175 – $ 350 (60%). ICT skills (60.38%), along with communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills (each at 45.28%), were perceived as most useful at work, while entrepreneurial skills (16.98%) lagged behind. While 76.19% of 2022 graduates held jobs aligned with their degree, earlier cohorts reported full alignment.

Conclusion. The findings underscore both the adaptability of pandemic-trained graduates and the urgent need for curriculum recalibration to better support entrepreneurial, global, and future-ready competencies.

Keywords: Graduate employability, job-skills alignment, online learning outcomes, pandemic-era education, tracer study

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