This is a tough situation, but it's getting better with the tech sector finally coming back up from under the water...
In my experience, I have found that although 95% of all colleges really don't offer much of anything in the fields of web-based development of any kind, companies still prefer to hire someone with a degree
but why, you ask?
The degree really never means shit about your qualifications, but it does show that you are willing and capable to commit to something for at least 4 years. The worst thing that can happen when hiring someone who really has no proof of committment is you hire them, they start a project, you generate a reliance on the need for that project(s) to finish on a specific time frame, and then they dissapear, leaving you up the creek.
Most companies are also very weary about hiring anyone under 30 for anything other than extremely basic jobs that are easily replaceable.
I know that 'standard statictics' show that someone with the title 'web developer' should be making upwards of 70,000 per year, but let's look closer into what that title really means.
A web developer is a person capable of pumping out high quality, extremely usable graphics in little to no time. This person must also be able to createusable, scalable, upgradable, applications harnessing many different programming languages (PHP, C++, C, ASP, VBasic, VBScript, SQL, Java, JavaScript, ColdFusion, etc) along with several databases (MySQL, PostegreSQL, Access, Oracle, etc). This person must also have at the very least a full working knowledge of several linux-based operating systems (RedHat, Debian, OpenBSD, etc), and should be able to manipulate a server to do what's necessary, and also know when to outsource for advanced assistance, if he/she isn't advanced enough. Along with all of this, the companies want to see that you stick to one job for several years at a crack, and have some sort of loyalty. Also, contrary to popular belief, most web-devlopers no longer have the luxury of wearing a metallica t shirt, ripped jeans, and a mohawk while everyone else has to dress up. A lot of the 'magic' has been taken out of this job, and the corps have finally realized that you're just another employee in a specialized field.
With all of this in mind, merely your age and lack of experience in a corporate structure is going to render you as undesirable to many companies.
It sucks, and at 24, I am still dealing with the age barrier to a degree.
But to answer your question, are you being underpaid? Not really. You are still very early in your career, and while you do have a good base of applicable skills, there is still a lot more out there for you to learn. On top of the software and languages, one must also learn to play the corporate game. I hate it, but once you learn it well enough, you can get away with a whole hell of a lot more.
My advice to you, ether, is that you stick with the company you;re working for now. Bust ass and make sure that you become a needed asset to the company. Play nice,m and you will slowly incur raises and bonuses over the years
That's right, years.
The imminent need to hop companies in search for bigger paychecks will fuck you in the long run, put your nose to the grindstone for a lil while, keep learning everything you can about every technology out there, and earn the ability to be over-compensated for your efforts.
It sucks at first, but it will pay off in the long run.
-=Lazzerous=-
