I have seen lawyers become programmers, Mechanical engineers implement ERP systems across countries, people with masters in biology enter and thrive in programming.

It all depends on how much you or your friend spend time in learning and trying out things in programming, that is, if you really like it.

Given the same inherent intelligence (which I correlate with creativity), performance or excellence depends on the accumulated knowledge, so keep accumulating that knowledge - practical and theoretical, from books, experience, the net, talking to others, degrees, certificates, from whichever and every way you can. It all adds up.

Good luck