As a digital skills academy, CodeClan feeds into Scotland’s tech, business and entrepreneurial ecosystem – but did you know that giving back to the community is directly built into our full-time courses?
Our students’ fourth and final project is called Client Xperience (CX). In two week sprints, students work with charities, non-profits and small start-ups, using their new programming skills to gain real world product and project experience in a work environment. As students begin to get interviews and job offers after two weeks, the next cohort begins its two week CX journey and the project continues – albeit with different students! The project continues for four cohorts – in total organisations benefit from eight weeks of students’ time.
We’ve already completed five projects in both Edinburgh and Glasgow, and over 200 students have taken part in making a difference in helping the Scottish community. Our CX partners include Euan’s Guide, Alzheimer Scotland, Pilton Youth Group and Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
CX is important to the soul and vision of CodeClan. We have a pool of talented alumni and students that have a skill that can help a lot of relevant, impactful and ethical projects. Charities are helping the community and making a difference – and we want to be a part of that.
Students out in the real world
Using tech to pay it forward is important to us – and our students. By taking part and helping out, our students make great connections, learn something new, and discover the struggles our community face.
CX is also an important part of what and how they learn at CodeClan. What they learn during CX – app structure, different languages, new data bases, new concepts and patterns, as well as working with people and responsibility – are all things that will come into play in their first job post-CodeClan.
During CX, our students refine user needs, build prototypes, and expand functionality. They gain extra skills by working on code written by previous students, having to format existing code or refactoring convoluted code. They also learn soft skills, such as working directly with clients, explaining their processes and what they’re trying to achieve. However, the biggest thing the students learn is teamwork – their instructors have little input into CX and it’s up to them to work as a team to meet deadlines and goals.
Want to get involved?
In a CX project, we look for a problem that needs fixing. For example, that could be by building something that will improve their work, or implementing a new feature to their existing codebase. We look for something challenging and educational that will help our students become more employable. In return, our partners gain access to a team of new coders for two week sprints. The students can offer new insights and advise on what’s feasible.
Find out more here.
