South African youth can apply for free tech training
22 September 2015
WeThinkCode, a new peer-to-peer tech institution keen to identify and train
people for free to become world-class programmers, has been launched in South
Africa.
This institution aims to eliminate the information technology skills gap in the
country, promising to train young people to become software engineers in a peer-
to-peer problem solving and learning environment.
In partnership with Ecole 42 in France, WeThinkCode will open its first campus
in January 2016 in Johannesburg. Anyone who wants to be part of this initiative
must register on its website. Student applications open on 1 October for the two-
year course. It is free of charge for candidates between the ages of 17 and 35.
First National Bank, BBD, and Derivco are the founding sponsors. They will
provide financial support for the launch of the programme and also play a role in
ensuring the curriculum stays relevant to the industry. BBD is a custom software
development company, while Derivco is a top-tier software and gaming
development company.
Students will also be able to interact with sponsors through internship
opportunities and projects.
WeThinkCode co-founder Arlene Mulder said the initiative would train 100
students in its first cohort in 2016 and aim to train 1 000 students per year by
2018, reported the technology news site, ITWeb Innovations. "Our education model
is technology-enabled and therefore extremely scalable. Our mission is to source
and develop 100 000 coders in Africa," she said.
#BornToCode, which challenges the tech leaders in South Africa to fight it out
to prove their tech muscle, is another WeThinkCode project. The inaugural
#BornToCode event will take place on 29 September, and will give tech leaders the
chance to join the conversation and put money behind their coding talent.
Tech champions will be challenged to take the student aptitude test game and
compete for the
top 10 positions on the #BornToCode tech leader board. They will
then be required to donate a minimum of R25 600, which will cover a stipend
to help students through their studies. All funds raised will go towards opening the
WeThinkCode campus in January 2016.
More than 20 tech leaders have already signed up, including Thabang Legae of
Wesbank; Derek Wilcocks of Dimension Data; Robbie Brozin of Nando's; and
Stafford Masie of thumbzup.
Source: MyBroadband
South Africans between the ages 17 and 35 can register from 1 October for the opportunity to land a free two-year tech and computer programming course. (Image: Media Club South Africa)
