
Holberton School – a project-based alternative to college for software engineers - vinch
https://www.holbertonschool.com
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wasd
Just a heads up to any holberton school developers, the site is throwing 502s
on every page.

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julien421
Thanks wasd, servers are overloaded, we were not expected so much traffic. We
are scaling now.

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sylvainkalache
We were not expecting so much traffic, that's great! I scaled up our
infrastructure and we are back in business :)

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cryoshon
Do you plan to allow students to attend remotely, or not? What is the grading
system like, if your school isn't accredited?

How do you plan on making your students well rounded in the way that
traditional colleges are supposed to?

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sylvainkalache
Re remote: We don't plan to allow students remote for now. If you look at the
online program, they have massive drop out. The human factor is very
important, and having a “physical” school will provide the kind of social
environment that is conductive to sustained engagement and learning. It’s
easier to motivate yourself and focus if all your friends are doing the same
thing at the same time. Struggle on the same pbs and help each other.

Re grade: It's project base, for each project we have a mandatory core to
build, and a lot of options for those who would be faster than others. For
each project you will get a % completion, from 0 to 200% (with all options).

At the end you will get a certificate (paper and digital). The digital
certificate will be issued in a secure environment (256 bits encryption and
2FA) and inserted into a public blockchain (the technology behind bitcoin) so
that any employer can instantly verify the validity of the certificate.

Re well rounded: on top of our curriculum focused on technical skills, we
insist a lot on soft skills. Students will also interact with the local
community (local startups, mentors, etc...). We also have mentors who will
come monthly asking questions like "Does computer science make us better human
beings" :)

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ckluis
I got my MBA/MSE at night while holding down a job. I'd kill for a
skills/project based version of tech school which would let me do the same. I
don't care about the degree/certification so much as the knowledge. For me the
structure of a formal program would be better than many of the current online
programs. Awesome concept.

~~~
rudyrigot
Thanks a lot ckluis! From what we've seen so many times of the gap between
what recruiters expect from a job applicant, and what graduates can show off
after a regular school, we 100% agree with your insight. :)

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eimai134
Great that there is no discrimination of any kind. Some of the smartest kids I
know didn't do well in high school: "Holberton School is open to anyone who is
between the ages of 18 and 128, whether or not they have obtained a graduate
degree from high school. No programming experience is required. Our selection
process is based only on talent and motivation, with no consideration given to
gender, nationality, ethnicity or social status."

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mbastian
Site is still throwing 502 errors, maybe you're running in dev mode? (just
joking :)) Question, what's the rationale behind the name? Just curious.

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julien421
lol :) The school is named after Betty Holberton:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_Holberton](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betty_Holberton)

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throwaway789078
Getting 502.

"Holberton School offers a truly innovative approach to education: focus on
building reliable applications and scalable systems" \-- hum.

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julien421
wow... too much traffic... sry guys. We are scaling the servers right now!

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arenaninja
I saw a few pages but now I'm also getting 502s. I'm curious about their 'Full
Stack' claim, since they don't appear to define 'Full Stack' (which they
should), and they don't pick a stack (assuming this is for web dev full stack?
Even that was vague)

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rudyrigot
We think Full Stack not in the web stack. But more of "every layer of a
system" \- from the servers, infra, to the front end of an app.

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arenaninja
Interesting. There was a discussion here on HN a few weeks back where nobody
could agree on a definition of "Full Stack", which is why I think it'd be
better to dedicate some time to more fully fleshing out/illustrating what YOU
mean by it, so that both potential students and potential companies looking to
hire your students are able to interpret it in the way you intend

EDIT: Found the discussion:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10182936](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10182936)

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rudyrigot
Hm, it's definitely good advice, we're going to look at ways to make it
clearer. Thanks a lot, arenaninja!

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julien421
Hello everyone! I am one of the three co-founders, please LMK if you have any
question!

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jtr1
Hi Julien - would you mind talking a little about what you see as the value
difference to a student completing your two year program vs completing a
bootcamp program and say, jumping into an apprenticeship or learning on the
job somewhere?

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rudyrigot
Techcrunch puts it better that we do: "Here’s the problem. Learning
technology-related skills in 8 weeks is really, at best, the tip of the
techberg. We’re selling students an unrealistic short-term outcome. Because of
this illusion, we are saturating the market with students who understand very
little about products or engineering, yet still expect to get jobs that
require years of experience. As any experienced product or web engineer will
tell you, it takes at least a few years to wrap your head around how the web
and business work together." (source:
[http://techcrunch.com/2015/08/29/graduated-from-an-
engineeri...](http://techcrunch.com/2015/08/29/graduated-from-an-engineering-
bootcamp-now-what/))

Code is one of the many skills solid software engineers must be great at; and
we believe only real projects such as the ones we do at Holberton School can
build up the real experience and skill variety recruiters expect from solid
engineers. More and more companies are taking on a "no-bootcamp" policy,
because the bootcamp trainee are saturating the job market, and recruiters are
noticing they don't fit the bill as well as students with project history.

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loukan42
Congratulation guys ! You rocks !

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philjeudy
Congrats!

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vtllr_
I know these guys: they are awesome! Unfortunately ... I am already a techie
:(

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julien421
Thank you :)

