Digital Earning: How Students in one Municipal College in the Philippines Use Online Platforms to Cope with Financial Struggles

The rise of digital earning among students has become an increasingly relevant topic as many turn to online platforms to cope with financial hardship. This study explores how students from a municipal college in the Philippines engage in various forms of digital gig work including freelancing, online selling, content creation, and virtual tutoring as a means to support their educational and personal expenses. A descriptive methods research design was employed, utilizing a validated researcher-made questionnaire, with 100 purposively selected participants across different courses and year levels. Descriptive and inferential statistics were applied using SPSS to analyze the data. The findings revealed that 65% of respondents earned ₱20,000 or less monthly, with many relying heavily on mobile data for connectivity. While motivations included financial necessity, flexibility, and personal enjoyment, the top challenges were unstable income and internet dependency. Pearson correlation analysis showed a statistically significant moderate negative relationship between hours spent on digital work and academic performance (r = -0.42, p = 0.002), as well as between gig income and GPA (r = -0.31, p = 0.015). No significant associations were found between demographic factors and performance outcomes. Despite this, students expressed strong interest in gaining further support and guidance to manage online earning alongside academic responsibilities. The study recommends that academic institutions develop targeted, practical support programs that promote digital entrepreneurship while safeguarding academic success through time management, financial literacy, and peer mentoring.