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How to leverage coding bootcamps to create job opportunities for youth and women

​​​​What is a Coding bootcamp?

Coding bootcamps are a new and innovative approach to teaching coding skills in an accelerated and intense format to bring people with no or limited skills to be competent junior web developers within 3-6 months.

The style of teaching is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT to traditional teaching techniques used by colleges and universities, it has​ shown success in gaining employment for graduates in Canada, the US,  and UK over the past two years and is showing promise in developing countries.

This is NEW and MUCH FASTER than current approaches used throughout most of the world and promises to promote employment of both youth and women.

​Major features of the boot camp approach include:

    • Project based approach
    • Problem solving focus
    • Up to date industry languages
    • Test driven development
    • Intensive face to face classes
    • Structured internships

For more information on coding bootcamps see the ITU report "Coding Boot camps: A strategy for youth employment " below.


 

 

 

 

 

 

REPORT: "CODING BOOTCAMPS: A STRATEGY FOR YOUTH EMPLOYMENT"​


The latest ITU Digital Inclusion report, Coding bootcamps: a strategy for youth employment in developing countries, explores the rise of coding bootcamps as a strategy to promote youth and women's employment. As the demand for tech talent continues to grow and businesses in many countries struggle to find qualified workers with coding skills, young people have started to learn these skills in coding bootcamps.
 
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Why coding bootcamps?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

At least 2 million computing-related job openings are estimated to be available around the world by 2020,but workforce skills are not keeping up with the demands of a constantly growing ICT sector.

Many companies are facing skill shortages and struggling to find applicants with the relevant skills to fill those positions.

Coding bootcamps provide a practical, industry and problem-solving focused approach to equip graduates with the most in-demand skills needed to begin a professional career in this growing jobs market.

Coding is becoming a skill required in nearly every industry across the globe. As many traditional jobs disappear it is essential to equip yourself with the tools required in the new business environment.

A boot camp graduate has been through intense work simulations and is able to transition to the role of a junior software developer very quickly and immediately add value to the employer.

Boot camp operators are also strongly linked to industry and can provide students with important launch pads to their careers including job interview coding challenges,internships and graduate project showcases that maximize employment outcomes.

Employers are actively pursuing partnerships with boot camp operators as they recognize that traditional pipelines are not sufficient for their aggressive growth strategies and they are engaging with boot camps as an alternative source of staff.

Employers are also playing a stronger role in shaping the curriculum of boot camp courses to ensure that graduates are more immediately productive as opposed to  many of the traditional college/University graduates that are not job ready.​​​


​​What is ITU's role?


ITU is raising awareness on this new model of providing coding skills to foster employment opportunities for youth and women, including by publishing the report on coding boot camps as a strategy for youth employment available above and presenting this research in ITU meetings such as the 2016 World Summit on the Information Society Forum and the 2016 Innovative Development Strategies Forum in Manila, the Philippines.

ITU has also requested a coding bootcamp operator in Australia, Coder Factory Academy, to develop training for its members and other stakeholders who are interested in  launching their own coding bootcamps or teaching coding in a boot camp. Coder Factory Academy is Australia's first nationally accredited coding bootcamp.

See below for more information about the first pilot of this training in the Philippines.

ITU is actively promoting boot camp methodology by offering tailored courses to:​

    • Universities
    • Colleges
    • Schools
    • Training providers
    • Entrepreneurs
    • BPO businesses
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The courses offered fall into 2 broad categories:

Operator courses

These courses are aimed at training provider/entrepreneurs/businesses and Faculty Directors

The course content is designed to help organisations to establish boot camp operations, develop curriculum, integrate into existing programs and maintain successful links with industry.  Participants will create a range of "assets" needed to launch their own bootcamp, such as marketing and financial plans, communications with industry and jobs ads for their head teacher.

Trainer courses

These courses are aimed at trainers/teachers/lecturers

The course content is designed to help individuals facilitate boot camp courses and network with education peers in the boot camp environment. Participants will design curriculum plans tailored to employers' needs and learn how to support their students prepare for job interviews and develop their coding portfolios to market to employers.  

If you're interested in learning more about organizing these trainings in your own national environment, please contact the ITU Special Initiatives Division at itu.specialinitiativesbdt@itu.int.

 


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2016 in The Philippines

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​The Philippines has been identified as a country with high potential to train participants through bootcamps to provide graduates that can work for local and international companies as web developers.The Business Process Outsourcing market is a clear indicator that local Philippines people are proven to succeed as a valuable workforce for international companies when suitable training is provided.

ITU successfully delivered the Operator and Trainer courses to 20 State Universities and Colleges (SUCs) in the Philippines in October 2016 in partnership with DICT.  .

Main objectives

  • To encourage the establishment of bootcamp courses in the Philippines and produce more job-ready junior developers​
  • To ensure that teachers embrace the bootcamp methodology and learn a NEW way of facilitating coding languages

Next steps


ITU and Coder Factory Academy will consult with participating trainees to learn how they used the training, including the launch of coding bootcamps and job opportunities created as a result. Lessons learned will be shared and used to improve future training course.

 


 

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