01

Research

Open data on tech careers in Malaysia.

Almost nobody publishes real numbers about this market, so we publish ours - with the methodology shown, the limitations named, and an open licence so the figures can travel.

Edition 1 · August 2026

The Confidence Gap: What 553 People Who Paid to Retrain Are Still Afraid Of

Half of these students rate their confidence of finishing at 10 out of 10, and not one rates it below 7. Asked in their own words, on the same form, 39% say the thing they fear most is whether they can learn it at all. Original first-party research on enrolled, paying students. No placement, salary or employment-outcome claims.

50% rate confidence 10/1039% fear they cannot learn it56% had never written code77% paid in one payment
Read the report

Edition 1 · August 2026

The Underemployment Paradox: 1.96m Malaysian Graduates Below Their Qualifications

Malaysia has near-record-low graduate unemployment and record graduate underemployment at the same time, while tens of thousands of high-value digital roles are approved every quarter. An analysis of official DOSM and MDEC figures, fully sourced and numbered.

1.96m underemployed graduates3.2% graduate unemployment66% of under-25 graduates21,815 digital jobs in one quarter
Read the report

2026 Edition · Updated August 2026

The State of AI-Native Developer Hiring & Salaries in Malaysia

What developers earn by seniority, the AI-fluency pay premium, the remote-for-US multiplier, the junior-hiring paradox, and the macro forces behind them - compiled from 25+ external sources including MDEC, PIKOM, PwC, TalentCorp, Stack Overflow and Stanford.

Salary bands by seniorityAI-fluency premiumRemote multipliers25+ cited sources
Read the report

Edition 1 · August 2026

What Stops People Retraining for Tech? 325 Applications Analysed

Original first-party research on the two barriers that stop people retraining, drawn from 325 complete applications plus a second table of 553 enrolled students. Money and self-doubt block people in a near-exact dead heat, and stated constraints match revealed behaviour. No placement, salary or employment-outcome claims.

42% blocked by money42% blocked by self-doubt47% can only take free75% under 25 hrs/week
Read the report

How we publish

  • Every figure carries its denominator. If a number comes from ten records, it says so next to the number, not in a footnote.
  • Limitations are a section, not a disclaimer. Where our data cannot support a claim, we say so plainly rather than publishing a number we could not defend.
  • Our interest is disclosed. We are a school writing about the value of training, which is a conflict worth naming on every page rather than burying.
  • The figures are free to reuse. Published under CC BY 4.0: quote, chart or republish them, including commercially, with attribution and a link.

Journalists and researchers: for category definitions, methodology questions, or a correction, write to support@sigmaschool.co.

Numbers are better than opinions.
Including about whether this path is for you.

The strongest evidence about your own fit isn't in anyone's dataset - it's a week of actually building. Six real projects, a live instructor session, one signup, no card.