To disrupt education means to bring about a new type of system. One that could revolutionise the way people learn and progress at their chosen crafts. And this is exactly what was in our minds when we founded Codecool.
As Sir Ken Robinson said in his famous 2006 TED Talk, creativity now is as important in education as literacy. Sadly, most universities today aren’t fostering people’s natural talents and creativity. They are designed to produce university professors. And while we have more uni graduates in the world than ever, degrees are becoming less and less valuable with each passing year.
Meanwhile, practical knowledge is becoming more valuable on the job market. Sal Khan, founder of Khan Academy said in his TED Talk in 2005 that traditional university education is like building a house on a rocky foundation. You can just keep going by meeting basic requirements while ignoring gaps and holes in your knowledge.
There is a shift in how we view traditional education systems, and a degree is not a guarantee for a job anymore.
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At Codecool, we’ve decided to take a different approach to education many years ago. Building on so many insights and personal experiences, we designed our flagship Full Stack Development course to be the an effective and enjoyable way to become a programmer in a year:
- It’s shorter than a university but longer than a typical bootcamp. We only teach what’s necessary in order for you to be able to land your dream job. We want to take our time to support you and help you master your craft in the amount of time that fits you.
- You can pay for it afterwards conveniently in monthly instalments. Not having the resources to start right away won’t be a problem.
- As an extra, you can take our job guarantee, which will give you peace of mind: you’ll have a guaranteed tech position and a nice salary after you finish the course at one of our partner companies.
- You’ll study the latest technologies and languages, and all the necessary soft skills that companies look for in candidates.
- You’ll have fun and find an amazing community, and you’ll progress better while living the Codecool vibe, which is similar to a buzzing university campus (We have an article on this topic, so click here and learn what we mean by ‘the Codecool vibe‘!)
Sounds too good to be true? See for yourself how we make it all happen!
You’re going to build a growth mindset
In this new type of system you won’t just be attending classes, passively intaking information from a lecturer. We know it doesn’t work that way. Your purpose as a Codecooler won’t be to get to the finish line as quickly as possible.
At Codecool, you can be the unique human that you are and become the co-creator of your learning journey. Being part of the decision-making process that surrounds your education will be the norm. You’ll experience transparent, honest communication about everything that happens during your learning path.
You’ll work in an alternating weekly schedule and spend one week working individually, and then a week with mentors. You’ll learn to work independently and will take control of your own learning, work, and challenges. Still, your team will be there every single day and you’ll be able to consult our mentors whenever you need it.
On top of this, we’ll encourage you to look at mistakes as learning opportunities. We’ll actively rephrase fixed mindset statements like “I’m not good at solving this problem” to “I just haven’t found a way to solve it yet”. This type of thinking is the essence of what we call a ‘growth mindset‘. You’ll understand that building your digital skillset on a solid foundation is the simple most amazing thing you can do for your career. With us, you’ll be preparing for your new job from day one.
All this and more will be the norm while you study at Codecool.
“I used to study as a graphic designer but I didn’t feel challenged. Codecool only taught us what we will really need and use, while getting a ton of support from our mentors – now I see a new path ahead of me, and it’s a path where I can really progress.”
– Dani Kincses, Software Developer
We’re preparing you for the real demands of a tech job
When we say we’re bringing education closer to workplace demand and culture, we mean it. The Codecool curricula are designed to teach you the skills that our 200+ partner companies are hiring for, including soft skills.
During our Full-Stack Development course, you’ll work on real-life projects and use agile software development methods like Scrum. You’ll get your first project assignment on day one, and complete about 30 of them until you finish the course.
You’ll also get hands-on experience in product development and project management, and demo projects in front of real clients every Friday. So you’ll be able to practice your presentation skills too.
What’s best: you’ll learn all this from scratch. You don’t even need to have any tech background to start this journey!
“When we started at Codecool, we already had some prior experience thanks to online courses, but we weren’t happy with the knowledge base we had all in all. Then, in 12 short months, what we learned at Codecool proved to be more than enough at job interviews, and today, both of us are working as Junior Software Developers.”
– Kocsis Bella, Software Developer & Kocsis Olivér, Java Software Engineer
It’s all possible due to our method and mentors
We follow a number of principles traditional school systems usually steer away from. This is because we’re building on a culture of mutual trust and respect. We think of our students as our future peers, and Codecool mentors are not ‘lecturers’ by any means. They will be your support system throughout your entire journey and will treat you as their equals all the way.
Our mastery-based learning approach is what enables your steady growth and effective foundation-building. With this method, we aim to shift the “I need to pass this test” type of thinking to an “I really want to master this as much as possible” mindset.
The basis for this method was laid down by American educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom back in the ’60s. He believed that most students can perform close to 100% if they are given the time and the help they need. Codecoolers move through modules (ProgBasics, Web, OOP, and Advanced – learn more about the modules here), only entering a new one when they’ve mastered the material in the previous one. There are 2-4 months to finish the modules, and you can do this all at your own pace. So whether you’re a complete beginner or possess some experience already, you’ll be able to follow and enjoy your learning journey.
Our mentors also follow the principles of doing by non-doing and won’t take over responsibility when it comes to your projects or challenges. You’ll have to find your own special way to solve challenges. This will boost your confidence and motivation, and create that “go-getter” vibe: you’ll learn by doing and you’ll never get final answers when you haven’t tried to figure things out on your own first.
“I like the energetic atmosphere at Codecool. The mentors are there to help you all day long, even for private mentoring. The mixture of self-disciplined and mentor-supported studying is far better than any teaching method at public schools. Here you know that you study for your future and what you learn has value on the market as well. The team, the atmosphere and the value of knowledge you gain here is by far the best compared to all previous experiences I had.”
– Zsolt Vajnorak, Software Engineer
You’ll learn everything that’s necessary, including soft skills
Besides the practical hard skills, you will learn a lot that’s usually not included in the typical college curriculum. As a Codecooler, you’ll learn through real-life scenarios and master soft skills that will be vital at your new tech job. Important soft skills are for example active listening, assertive communication, presentation, feedback giving, and conflict resolution skills, just to name a few.
And if you’re wondering how vital these skills really are today, when the entire world and big companies especially seem to go online, we’ve got the answers. Because one would think that in home-office, soft-skills aren’t that important, or won’t shine through the led screens. But we’re telling you, it’s more important than ever to focus on improvement in this area. Without the help of non-verbal cues of the offline setting, the role of effective communication skyrockets. Not to mention the limited amount of time available to consult with different people and to solve problems. You have to be more assertive, effective, and empathetic than ever.
We also know that companies are putting a big emphasis on soft skills when they are looking for their new IT colleagues – creativity, adaptability, time management, and other skills play a big role in the success of many interviews. In fact, according to the tech consulting firm West Monroe’s research, around 95% of HR professionals say that the soft skills evaluation is an important part of the tech hiring process.
“I’d highlight the soft skills above all – I have to communicate a lot at my job and we solve many problems together that don’t necessarily have a connection to coding. The skills I learned at Codecool help me a lot when it comes to these situations.”
– Márk Ungvári, Junior Software Developer
Get ready to learn to code
With Codecool, we made coding accessible, and a career in tech achievable for anyone. You don’t need to have a degree or any special talent or knowledge. Just have a high school diploma, speak good English, and have some logical thinking skills.
If you’re ever interested in our method, want to learn more about our mentors, or have some questions about the application process, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us! We’re here to answer and help you in this exciting part of your personal journey.
We believe that everybody who has the courage, the curiosity, and the right perseverance can learn to code. So why not give it a try? We believe in you!