App Academy Launches Free Online Coding Program

App Academy has earned a reputation in the bootcamp space as an effective, rigorous program. Early on, the 12-week bootcamp made waves by being the first program to offer a unique financing model with no tuition upfront.

As CEO and co-founder Kush Patel explains, "My college teachers and administrators didn't really care about teaching me the skills to actually find a job and succeed in my career. Since we started App Academy in 2012, we've been committed to breaking down barriers of entry into the tech industry and hopefully improving the demographics within it. We began by being the first school to reverse the incentive structure of education by charging students only if they find a job."

It is clear that this model has paid off: App Academy has placed thousands of people in software development jobs over the years, with high median salaries. App Academy graduate salaries start at $105,000 in San Francisco and $90,000 - surpassing average grad salaries of most computer science programs!

Now, they're taking accessibility one step further with the launch of App Academy Open. This new online program offers App Academy's Full-Stack Web Development course completely free to anyone worldwide.

So what do students need to know before diving into App Academy Open? Take a look at our top takeaways of the new program:

You'll Get Access To App Academy's Complete Full-Stack Curriculum

This includes free access to around 1,500 hours of material, including readings, videos, and more. App Academy's curriculum has been developed over the course of six years with input from top tech companies around the world. Students also have access to a community chat with thousands of fellow coding students, giving them a support system for feedback and help with troubleshooting.

The Curriculum Is Tailored Toward Real-World Development Work

App Academy is very clear that their program is aimed at helping students become software engineers, as opposed to computer scientists. As such, the curriculum covers all the tools that students are likely to need in a day-to-day role as a developer. As Kush Patel explains:

"There are over 100,000 unfilled software engineering roles open in the US each year. A big reason for that is that there are significant barriers to entry -financially, culturally, and otherwise. We want to change that. You shouldn't need to go back to school for 4 years to be eligible for entry. It's time for a 21st century CS degree: one that's available online, requires no upfront cost, and most importantly, is focused on getting you hired."

Different Plans Are Available, Depending On Your Learning Style

Looking for a bit more support in an online program? In addition to their free online learning platform, App Academy now offers two paid tiers for online learners:

• Mentorship Plan ($29/month): This tier adds more structure to the free online learning option. It offers everything included with the free plan, plus an App Academy mentor chat for additional support.
• Placement Based Plan ($0 upfront + 17% of salary for two years) The new Placement Based Plan is the option that is closest to App Academy's in-person program in terms of structure, mentor feedback, and placement. This plan includes perks like live pair programming, whiteboarding, and dedicated job placement services.

Want to learn more about App Academy Open? Check out their website, and read review of App Academy here.