What We Have Done | 
1. Sustainability
Our Earth is precious, we are only ever going to get one. We need to protect our natural resources and prevent the effects of Global warming so that generations to come can enjoy the Earth, just as we have been so privileged to do.
The need for technology to replace all of these earth destroying factors is exponentially growing. Your children could be the ones that contribute to the preservation of this planet.
Learning to code and availability of more coders means we can find alternative ways to replace otherwise damaging habits in our day to day lives. For example, no more need to destroy and pull down trees, want to write a story, use the software on your laptop or the app on your phone. How about ride sharing apps like Uber or Grab, 1 car on the road vs 5 is much greener and better for the environment.
2. Career Opportunities
The demand for Software Engineers is at an all time high, but, there is still a lack of qualified developers to fill these positions.
More and more companies are now being accepting that a degree is not a measure of a persons capability to do a job. This is especially the case for Software Development. This makes Software Development as a career choice even more appealing as it is accessible without a University degree.
For many, University is still a privilege, due to the ever increasing costs and lack of funding support. Bootcamps are extremely cheap in relation to the costs incurred with University degrees, the end result is less people living in copious amounts of debt and more opportunities being available for those less fortunate to attend University.
3. Future-proofing
Technology is only going to take over our lives more and more. In the past few years we have started to see fully electric cars making their ways onto roads, more recently, autonomous driving has now started to become a reality, soon we will be living in a world similar to the Jetsons!
Coding is starting to have its place in almost every industry. Industries that would have previously seemed inaccessible for technology are now seeing more and more job postings for software developers.
By allowing your child to have a coding skillset will open doors into these industries that would previously have been inaccessible without a degree related to that field.
Take for example the Automotive Manufacturing Industry, previously you would have needed to obtain an engineering degree to be suitable for a role. Now the industry is moving into automated manufacturing, autonomous and self driving vehicles and vehicle onboard systems are getting smarter and smarter, all of this needs to be coded.
Food delivery has also dramatically changed, with the introduction of app based food delivery services, we can choose what we want to eat and have it delivered at the click of a button. 10 years ago we would have never dreamed there would be an alternative to reading from a paper menu, calling in to make an order and not knowing when it would be delivered. Now we can see where our food is in realtime.
As more and more industries adopt tech into their business model, the demand for developers is going to rise and so does the opportunities for the next generation of teens and young adults.
4. Teaches Problem Solving Skills
So you might be wondering, what if my child decides they don’t want to pursue software development as a career in the end?
Well the answer to this ties into a couple of things.
First of all is the cost, there are much lesser financial implications for your child to learn coding at a bootcamp, they are usually no more than 3 months long, compared to a degree of 3 – 4 years, and at a fraction of the cost, at $10,000-12,000 against a degrees cost which may be upwards of $100,000 by the time all is said and done. IF your child decides they don’t want to pursue the career, 3 months still gives them time to change their mind and pursue another career path, if after 3 years they decide this isn’t what they want to do its quite difficult to then go in a completely different direction.
Secondly are the skills learned from coding. Coding is very much about problem solving, writing algorithms and building software to make our lives easier. Learning to code teaches you how to be analytical, how to break down problems and how to solve them. When we think about software, it is essentially a means to an end, every piece of software out there may not be valued that highly but when you think about it deep down, it really does provide a real world solution to a problem that everyone may or may not face. In the end, if your child decides to pursue a different career path, they will have at least taken away an extremely useful skill and mindset on how they look at problems.
5. Flexibility
Software Development as a career is extremely flexible. This is one of the greatest things about it, the flexibility to work anywhere you have a laptop or computer and an internet connection.
Many international companies will hire from overseas and allow their developers to work remotely, for example, American Company A hires a Malaysian but he can stay where he is and work from home. International salary while still being close to home. An impossible dream for most industries.
On the other-hand, it opens opportunities to work as a freelancer, be their own boss and work on their own time. There are still a lot of companies that will outsource their software needs to other parties, so what this means is that the developer can build their own client base whether it be locally or overseas. They can travel the world while still being able to make a sustainable living.
International Baccalaureate to Full Stack Coder
We have seen many students pass through the doors of NEXT Academy, each with their own story and journey to reaching us.
There are many reasons for students choosing to join us, be it learning the essentials to start a business in tech or simply just upskill themselves to better their job opportunities.
For some it is an alternative approach to making the jump into a career as a Software Developer.
Gabriella was 18 years old at the time of joining us here at NEXT Academy. Having just finished her International Baccalaureate, she wanted to make a leap into Software Development as a career but did not like the idea of spending 3 years at University to study computer science, so she joined the Full Stack Web Development bootcamp here with us.
Through 10 weeks of intense learning here at NEXT Academy, with the guidance of mentors she was able to take in the knowledge and skills that would kickstart her career much earlier than would have been alternatively possible.
Upon completion of the bootcamp, she started making her first applications for jobs as a Software Engineer. In just a few short weeks she landed her first job with GoGet, a startup company in Malaysia, that offers on demand workforce services, from buying your groceries to simply fetching and delivering items for you. Gabriella has now moved onto her second job working for a Software Development house, a client based company that provides tailored software solutions to a variety of industries and businesses.
Job opportunities are vastly available and waiting to be taken. 98% of our graduates are already working in the tech industry.
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Now you know some of the benefits learning to code can have on your child’s future, as well as your own.
You never know, the next app that changes your life for the better could be one created by your children.
