The award, which is CodeClan’s first official award win, was given to the academy in recognition of its work to help close Scotland’s digital skills gap. Since its launch in October 2015, CodeClan has trained over 180 students and the judges praised the academy’s implementation and its increasing impact in helping to address the industry skills requirements.
The Digital Technologies Awards are about commending the cream of Scotland’s digital industry and sees representatives from all sectors, including telecoms, IT and digital media, gather to celebrate and show their support for Scotland’s thriving tech industry.
In 2016, CodeClan became the first digital skills academy in the UK to offer graduates a Professional Development Award in Software Development from the SQA.
Working closely with its vibrant employer community – which now consists of over 100 companies – CodeClan’s progressive curriculum is intensive, immersive and evolves to keep abreast of technology trends to ensure students enter the workplace with relevant skills and experience.
CodeClan CEO, Harvey Wheaton, said of the win: “We are absolutely delighted to have won this award, especially when we were up against some great competition. It is a real honour and a fantastic endorsement of the work we have been doing to address the digital skills gap in Scotland.
“We would like to thank the industry for their continued support, which is crucial to ensuring we teach our students a curriculum that is current and relevant to the workplace. We would also like to thank all of the amazing students and graduates of CodeClan who have chosen to kick-start their new career in the digital sector through our courses, and of course the staff and instructors who are so incredibly passionate about the work we’re doing.”
Currently, 90% of CodeClan’s graduates land their first job in Scotland’s tech sector within six months, with 50% securing a job within six weeks of finishing the intensive course. The academy is well on its way to placing 350 graduates in employment by the end of 2017 between its Glasgow and Edinburgh campuses.
Other key achievements for the academy since its launch include its expansion to Glasgow in January 2017 and the launch of several shorter, part-time courses aimed at those looking to expand their technical knowledge or brush up on existing skills.
The academy aims to make the hiring process easier for employers by providing them with exclusive access to its students as they progress through the course.
Employers can also up-skill their current workforce through CodeClan’s shorter, part-time courses, for example, its ‘coding for professionals’ course, which is aimed at business professionals, advisors and consultants looking for a deeper knowledge and understanding of programming to work effectively with technology teams.
With the number of jobs available in Scotland’s tech sector rising from 11,000 to 12,800 per year, CodeClan aims to provide employers with access to a pool of top quality, locally trained digital talent by producing a continuous stream of developers following each intensive, immersive 16-week programming course.
CodeClan is a key element in the Scottish Government’s ‘Digital Strategy for Scotland.’ This strategy aims to create the conditions in which our digital technologies industries can thrive. The academy aims to work with industry to meet Scotland’s shared objective of employing 150,000 people in digital technology roles over the next five years.
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