Kenzie Graduates First-Ever Cohort
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowKenzie Academy has graduated it’s first-ever cohort of students. Eleven graduates received a joint certificate from the Indianapolis-based coding school and Butler University’s Executive Education program.
"They are on their pathway to do good work," said Kenzie Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer Chok Ooi. "Half the class has already received full-time job offers, and they are getting jobs ranging from $50,000 a year to $70,000 a year. It is a huge jump for many of them who were making much lower wages before joining Kenzie."
Ooi says Kenzie Academy is dedicated to putting the student first, while also holding its instructors and curriculum to a high standard of accountability through its Income Share Agreement. The policy that states aside from a $100 tuition fee to begin classes, students do not owe any money to the coding school until they are placed in a full-time job. And not just any full-time job. Ooi says that if upon completion of Kenzie’s program, a graduate does not get a job that pays $40,000 or more, that student gets a full reimbursement of their tuition, with the exception of that initial $100 to enroll in classes.
Jacob Berg, 29, says completing Kenzie’s year long program has given him "a brighter career path." Berg is one of three students starting a new career today as a full-time software engineer at DMI.
"There are a lot of jobs in the tech space and I know my career will just keep accelerating rather than seeing the end of the line where my options would be limited to being a manager," said Berg. "This is a sector where I can just keep learning and and keep growing my skill set because that’s what you have to do in the tech community."
The coding school is set to launch its first online cohorts tomorrow that will include software engineering, digital marketing and UX Engineering.
Since opening in downtown Indianapolis in 2017, Kenzie Academy has doubled in size. Ooi says by years end he expects to have nearly 350 students enrolled statewide.