UP student maps PH education levels down to every barangay

Timothy Hormigos’ ‘Demographic Dive’ turns 2020 Census data into a hyper-local mirror for over 42,000 communities.

An economics student from the University of the Philippines Diliman is drawing attention online after releasing what he calls the most detailed map of educational attainment in the country to date.

Timothy Hormigos, a member of the UP School of Economics Registration Volunteer Corps, shared his project on Facebook, showcasing an interactive map that visualizes education data across more than 42,000 barangays using the 2020 Census of Population and Housing from the Philippine Statistics Authority.

Data on every barangay

What makes the project stand out is its hyper-local lens: users can now see the dominant level of educational attainment in their own barangay, a level of granularity rarely presented in public data tools. Each barangay is shaded based on its most common attainment—from those who did not finish basic education to college graduates—with darker tones indicating higher concentrations.

Hormigos noted that while national maps often flatten disparities, this version reveals a more layered story. “Cities and town centers tend to show higher rates of college graduates, while more remote areas struggle to produce even high school graduates,” he wrote, framing the map as a visual narrative of unequal access to education across the country.

The interactive platform, accessible via a microsite, allows users to explore patterns “bawat barangay, buong bayan,” encouraging Filipinos to engage directly with data that reflects their communities.

A mirror for policymakers 

While Hormigos acknowledged limitations—particularly that the 2020 census was conducted during the pandemic and may have gaps—the project still offers one of the most granular looks at the Philippine population available today.

The map has since sparked interest online, with many users calling it both eye-opening and overdue—proof that sometimes, the most powerful insights come not from national averages but from the smallest units of society.

 

 

See the “Big Picture” of your own neighborhood. A new interactive map by a UP student breaks down education levels by barangay, revealing the hidden disparities in the PH.

 

 

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