LaunchCode
LaunchCode, headquartered in St. Louis, MO, is a non-profit organization building a skilled workforce by creating pathways for driven people seeking careers in technology. Since 2013, the organization has helped thousands of job seekers enter the tech field by providing free and accessible education, training and paid apprenticeship placements. While careers in technology have traditionally been reserved to those who can afford a four-year computer science degree, LaunchCode assesses individuals for passion, drive and aptitude rather than credentials.
“LaunchCode is really two things: the best way to get a job in tech and the best way to attract new talent.” — Jim McKelvey
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| Industry | Information Technology |
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| Headquarters | St. Louis, Missouri, USA |
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| Website | www |
Education
LaunchCode’s free education programs, LC101, CoderGirl, CodeCamp, and LiftOff equip students with the skills needed to land their first job in tech. In each course, students focus on high-demand languages and concepts, then incorporate their new knowledge into a portfolio project, showing off their new skills to employers.
- LC101 is LaunchCode's part-time evening flagship course with curriculum developed to put you on the path to obtaining a job in tech. In a supportive classroom environment with in-person mentoring from instructors, teaching fellows and local developers, students learn foundational programming concepts in JavaScript before moving on to a skill track focused on either Java or C#.
- CoderGirl: LaunchCode's education program for everyone who identifies as female was originally created as a meetup by women to lift up other women in tech. Students choose one of seven 24- or 45-week specialized skill tracks that lead to an apprenticeship job program.
- Immersive CodeCamp is a 14-week, full-time course taking a deep dive into in-demand technologies and skills. Thanks to the smaller class size, each student will have access to more personal, hands-on mentorship and individualized support from our instructors. In addition to gaining the technical skills needed to start your career, Immersive CodeCamp will include a series of career workshops designed to cover all of the additional things employers will be looking for.
- Liftoff is a career readiness and project course focused on getting learners with new coding skills through the challenging last job-readiness phase of their pre-apprenticeship learning journey.
- Discovery is a free, self-paced online program developed to introduce curious individuals to computer programming and help them determine if continuing on to build the fundamental skills necessary to pursue a career in tech is right for them. Discovery aims to break down barriers by bringing education pathways directly to people in their communities.
LaunchCode also offers apprenticeships: full-time, paid positions with partner companies. More than four out of five apprentices convert to permanent employment at their company in a median of 12 weeks.
Apprenticeships
A LaunchCode apprenticeship is a full-time, paid position with one of LaunchCode’s hiring partners. During the apprenticeship, candidates work on a team of experienced developers and are paired with a mentor that invests in their growth. Candidates are carefully matched with hiring companies for compatibility in technical skills, soft skills, workplace fit, and drive.
More than four out of five apprentices convert to permanent employment at their company in a median of 12 weeks.
About LaunchCoders
Traditionally, tech education hasn’t been widely accessible to many demographics and populations. LaunchCode is challenging that. LaunchCode students are more diverse than the current tech workforce and students attending college for tech careers. In 2019, 58% of LaunchCode students identified as women or non-binary, 46% identified as people of color and 56% came from low-income households. After being placed into a permanent position, the average LaunchCoder more than doubles their previous salary.
LaunchCoders fill roles like Software Developer, Front-End Developer, Back-End Developer, Data Scientist, Mobile Developer, Business Intelligence Analyst, Quality Assurance Analyst, IT Project Manager, Network Administrator, Tech Support, and Technical Writer at one of hundreds of employer partners.
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