The computer skills in high demand in today’s job market go way beyond email and Microsoft Word.
Programming skills can open a whole set of job listings, with salaries starting at an average of $60,000, according to salary survey site Glassdoor.com.
In Durham, students immerse themselves in programming, training for an intense three months at The Iron Yard Academy, a boot-camp style code school.
Mae Beale was working at the University of North Carolina School of Public Health when she learned about Iron Yard.
“Becoming a programmer and doing software development is something I’ve been interested in for many years now,” she said.
“I signed up and left my very intense, well-paying position for a risk.”
Beale isn’t alone. Code schools are popping up all over the country, training people for high-tech jobs.
Jessica Mitsch, director at Iron Yard, sees a lot of students who are making a career change.
“Developer jobs are in great demand, especially in this area,” Mitsch said. “There are more jobs than there are people to fill them.”
It’s not an easy road to riches.
“These students spend about 80 hours a week honing the skills they’re learning in this classroom,” Mitsch said.
Code school consumed Beale’s life for months.
“I would do homework until I could not possibly stay awake anymore,” she said.
A month ago, Beale finished the course, and this week she celebrated at her new job as a software developer.
For her, the $10,000 investment, and all of that lost sleep, paid off.
The Iron Yard Powered by Smashing Boxes, located in the American Underground on American Tobacco Campus, is the Durham branch of an organization with academies around the southeast. There, the company teamed with development and design firm Smashing Boxes to provide students with real-life projects and experience.
