The Strength of Taiwan's Software Workforce

Following its rapid development as a production center for hardware in the 1990's, Taiwan's transformation into a hotbed of software development is less well known. Engineering is the most popular major with over a quarter of all Bachelor's degrees; within this, Information Technology is now the second-most popular one, with over 30,ooo graduates a year. The high standards of Taiwan's technical education system, are further highlighted by its ranking in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) average math scores for 15-year-olds, in which Taiwan consistently ranks in the top 5 in the world.

The transformation from hardware to software Engineering was a natural evolution for the people of Taiwan, who are very attuned to technology and embrace it. Taiwan has one of the highest social media penetration in the world, along with the world highest internet penetration rates and internet connection speeds. Its long history as a leading technological powerhouse means that technical processes and mindsets have become second nature for the people here. Unlike other Asian economies in which many industries compete for the best graduates, the large majority of the brightest graduates here are very likely to end up in engineering jobs.

Many outsiders continue to be surprised at the fast adoption of new technologies in Taiwan - for instance by the fact that Bitcoin is accepted as a means of payment in more than 3,000 Family Mart convenience stores plus many other locations since 2015, in the process turning Taiwan into a Bitcoin destination. But locals know the main reason behind this - many of the world's best Bitcoin programmers are actually in Taiwan!

Compared with other traditional software outsourcing destinations such as India and China, Taiwan benefits from a far higher level of work ethics, unencumbered worldwide internet access, and a very fast, can-do attitude to software development.

Taiwan has a long way to go as a software center.

Read more on why Taiwan has become Asia's top destination for offshore outsourcing.