We are re-imagining a CS degree for the 21st century.
San Francisco, California (PRWEB) September 03, 2013
Hack Reactor, the honors-level immersive coding academy today celebrates its one-year anniversary with a total of 70 graduated students, and a 98 percent hire rate. The twelve-week intensive apprenticeship course transforms qualified applicants into professional, full-stack web developers. In the last year Hack Reactor received more than 5000 applications from students ranging from those with no programming experience to those with four-year computer science degrees. The application experience itself is rigorous and includes pre-work and coding tests that ensure students are prepared to do the work and excel from day one. As a result, the Hack Reactor graduate average starting salary has increased 30.5 percent since inception from $85,000 to $111,000.
The curriculum compresses 800 hours of hands-on learning, collaborative discussions, and client paid Product Development Sprints into three months of immersive learning by doing. Using JavaScript as a teaching language, the program focuses on computer science fundamentals imparting best practices taught by seasoned instructors from industry giants including Twitter, Google, Walmart Labs and Adobe. Students master several libraries and frameworks fundamental to modern web engineering including HTML5, CSS, and Ruby. At course completion, all Hack Reactor graduates have written production software including paid client projects and applications - some that have received significant media attention.
“We’re rethinking how developers are trained – from the philosophical to the practical,” said Shawn Drost, Co-founder, Hack Reactor. “We teach software engineering, computer science and fundamentals, not just complex frameworks. Immersive apprenticeship delivers real world experience. /DEV Product Development Sprint Services allow students to build sellable product for clients as they learn. All in all we are re-imagining a computer science degree for the 21st century.”
With the cost of traditional education rising, and a student loan crisis looming, alternatives to a classical four-year degree are gaining interest. The Hack Reactor program allows those with the talent and tenacity to become ready to hire software engineers through an immersive track that demands far less time and capital than a single semester at a four-year college. From hiring manager’s perspective, local employment demands are addressed by providing employees who are ready-to-fill real and immediate demands for developers.
In today’s dynamic hiring environment, developers need to adapt and be flexible in terms of process, toolset and language types. “That’s one of the things I love about Hack Reactor – they teach people how to think about programming, not just how to do a particular type of programming,” said Sandeep Sood, CEO of Monsoon, a software development consultancy that employs a Hack Reactor graduate. “There are a lot of programmers out there who know one language very well but don't have the conceptual understanding that enables them to adapt quickly when things change. Somehow, in a relatively short period of time, Hack Reactor nails the fundamentals.”
“Hack Reactor is not your average “bootcamp”, said Mark Wilbur, now a Backbone/Node Engineer at Groupon. “There are a lot of coding schools out there—I applied to a few. But Hack Reactor is in a league of its’ own. When I joined Groupon, I had the confidence, experience and engineering skills to ship code to production in my first week.”
ABOUT Hack Reactor /DEV Product Development Sprint Services
During Hack Reactor’s /DEV Product Development Sprints, one to four developers work on either self-directed or client-owned projects, supported by a senior instructor who contributes mentorship and code reviews. Teams have completed minimum viable products (MVPs) for pre-seed startups, new application features for companies from top accelerator programs and venture-backed networks, as well as more complex projects for mature Series C companies. The students are ultra-motivated to build something extraordinary and produce product-ready code. Start-up or tech companies that would like to learn more about the /DEV Product Development Sprint Services can learn more at http://www.hackreactor.com/dev or contact Adrian(at)hackreactor(dot)com.
ABOUT Hack Reactor
Hack Reactor is an honors-level, immersive coding academy in San Francisco. Not your average “bootcamp”, this twelve-week intensive course transforms talented applicants into qualified full-stack software engineers. Through an intensive curriculum tempered by a collaborative, community-driven method, dedicated code-loving instructors from companies like Twitter, Google, Walmart Labs and Adobe deliver rigorous, accelerated content. Students learn JavaScript, HTML5, CSS, Ruby and more during 800 hours of classroom instruction, projects, and hands-on learning. Paid client projects and quality job search curriculum provide invaluable experience. Learn more at http://www.hackreactor.com.
ABOUT Monsoon
Monsoon is a software development consultancy that builds custom mobile and web applications for a range of businesses – from Fortune 500’s to newly funded start-ups. Founded in 2011, when the web was still young and filled with possibility, they set out to help entrepreneurs and corporations build products that could change industries, and the world. Today the goal remains the same and the possibilities are even more exciting. Specializing in full service strategy, design, and development, the firm has designed web and mobile applications for clients including the United Nations, HP, the NBA, SXSW, Wells Fargo and the Academy Awards. Learn more at http://www.monsoonco.com
