The first six trainee developers have graduated from an innovative new employer-led coding academy set up in Bath. The Mayden Academy was set up by software house Mayden to plug the gap between the theory that is learnt in formal education and the practical work experience that employers seek.
It offers aspiring software developers the chance to learn the fundamentals of software engineering, and to become certified with industry-recognised qualifications, by providing trainees with the opportunity to work on commercial projects alongside mentors from Mayden’s software development team
“The most important things I’ve learned though are those that can’t be taught in a classroom”
“We’re thrilled with the progress that the trainees have made as part of this new initiative,” explains Chris May, Mayden’s Managing Director (pictured left), “and honoured to be able to offer them such a great start to their careers as developers.
“We have learned a great deal from our trainees this year about delivering this type of intensive training, and look forward to taking that knowledge forward with a second intake of trainees in September.”
The graduates – Charlie Coggans, Ross Eastman, Connor Jones, Marta Pleszynska, Lucia Velasco and Peter Wilkins – received training in open-source programming language PHP, software design, web application building and agile project management.
“I feel prepared to start in my first role as a developer”
Connor tells us: “I’ve gained a huge amount through my training. I understand different software languages and know how to write good code. Perhaps the most important things I’ve learned though are those that can’t be taught in a classroom how a team functions, robust testing practices and agile working, which are part of life on a development team. Graduating from the academy, I feel prepared to start in my first role as a developer and I know that I can be an asset to the company.”
Proving the power of on-the-job training, each of these individuals has subsequently been offered a position as a junior developer at Mayden itself, and each has accepted.
Interested in doing it yourself? Check out the Mayden Academy website, and you can keep up to date with Mayden‘s activities on their Twitter feed: @maydentweets.
