IT skills training is free and open to all
WETHINKCODE_, a peer-to-peer institution dedicated to closing the IT skills gap, will open its first campus in January in Joburg. It has secured three-year founding sponsorships with First National Bank, BBD and Derivco.
Created by four passionate young entrepreneurs, WeThinkCode_ is designed to respond to the desperate IT skills shortage and lack of educational opportunities in South Africa.
The programme is free and open to all talented and resilient candidates aged 17 to 35, regardless of previous education, socio-economic background or financial means.
In partnership with Ecole 42 in France (www.42.fr), WeThinkCode_ will identify and train brilliant young South Africans to become world-class programmers in a peer-to-peer problemsolving learning environment.
The organisation does not charge for tuition and partners with companies to sponsor the two-year course and ensure a sustainable business model.
Founding sponsors FNB, BBD and Derivco will provide financial support for the launch of the programme and they will will play a role in ensuring that the curriculum stays relevant to the industry.
Students will also be able to interact with sponsors through internship opportunities and projects throughout their course work.
The three founding sponsorships add to a number of South African and international companies who have joined WeThinkCode_ as corporate sponsors, ensuring the opening of the Joburg campus for the first 100 students in January.
“We look forward to working with the dynamic team at WeThinkCode_ and investing in the future of tech education in South Africa,” said Marcel Klaassen, head of growth at FNB Business.
“This partnership supports FNB’s market-leading ecosystem of innova- tive banking products, services, value adds and high-growth entrepreneurial businesses. The unique coding education model also offers new job opportunities for aspiring IT experts, regardless of financial means or background.”
Peter Searle, chief executive of BBD, explained that BBD’s sponsorship of WeThinkCode_ was aligned to the company’s own strategic need for additional programming skills and its ongoing efforts to develop IT skills in South Africa.
“At BBD, we know that the aptitude to be a programmer is not necessarily aligned to formal computer science training and hence WeThinkCode_’s unique and disruptive approach to identifying and training talent is for BBD a compelling proposition to support our efforts to develop programming as a key skill in South Africa,” Searle said.
According to Dion Hatton, Derivco chief executive, the software development industry is rapidly expanding in South Africa and is an exciting place to be.
Student applications open next Thursday. To apply, sign up on www.borntocode.co.za.
You don’t need any formal qualification or matric to apply.