The Nashville Software School is a total immersion vocational programming boot camp. The goal is to train people to be working software developers. “In 6 months, we can take people from a zero from a technical standpoint to qualified for an entry level developer position.  This school is giving people foundational pieces of knowledge that they would get in a computer science or software engineer program.  They also get trained in current technologies that are in demand in the Nashville area.”  The Nashville Software School is about finding people who want to learn how to code and who want to stay in Nashville.”

The focus of the first class that started in June and graduated at the end of November was proving that the model worked.  All of the instructors are working professionals who are current in technology. The first class graduated 14 people, 3 of them women. Nashville Software School just kicked-off  the second class on January 7^th. This class started with 30 people, including 8 women. “A few of the folks will drop out. They either decide that programming isn’t for them or they may not be able to handle the rigorous schedule. But, I’m expecting to see most of these people graduate in 6 months.”

The first 3 months focus on the core front-end or client-side technologies used to develop modern websites and web applications. The curriculum is a carefully curated collection of online and video tutorials, classroom lecture and seminar-style discussion. There are lots of exercises for solo and pair programming as well as larger team projects. The second 3 months focus on core technologies used to develop the back-end, or server-side, of modern web and mobile applications.

Not every student is automatically admitted to the second half of the program, where the students dig deeper into the business logic and database on the back-end or server side of the application. They must reapply and those who are accepted are eligible for a $400 per week stipend, and hopefully start connecting with local employers.

“Our goal is to charge students no more than $1,000 out of pocket. The rest of our cost is reimbursed by our partner companies and is structured like a recruiter fee. We have had about 15 partner companies interview the graduates from November   The students negotiate a salary for themselves and then those companies pay 20% of the first year’s salary back to the school. Really, it’s a reimbursement for the cost of training.”

The Nashville Software School is a non-profit but it is designed to be a self-sustaining program. Students are not obligated to work for a partner, though if they end up finding a job with a non-partner company, they are asked to pay back the basic cost of their training.

The Nashville Software School has an impressive group of 3o+ mentors who work with the students. They work with them one on one, sit in the back of the classroom to answer questions as the students work on coding exercises and hold the students accountable on projects and on their overall learning experience.  They also showcase their expertise as guest speakers on numerous topics.

Press:

“Nashville Software School aims to bolster ranks for tech industry” (Nashville Business Insider)

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Links:

• Nashville Software School Website
• Nashville Software School Curriculum
• Nashville Software School Blog
• Nashville Software School Twitter
• Nashville Software School Facebook

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