Career Acceleration Program
Ascend
Long-term, large-scale project work to accelerate your career.
Pioneering Effective Tech Career Development
In the landscape of software development learning, there are conventional paths, and then there's Ascend. We've carved out a unique niche for developers seeking to transform into tech innovators and leaders, without conforming to the traditional boundaries of tech education.
Here, learning is not confined to videos, or textbooks, or lectures. It's about getting your hands dirty in the soil of real-world tech problems. It's about those lightbulb moments when a complex problem suddenly makes sense, about the camaraderie of solving tough challenges with your peers, and about the satisfaction of seeing your ideas come to life.
When you enter the program, you will join a carefully selected team of 3 or 4 curious and motivated peers, alongside an experienced veteran as a mentor, to work on system challenges to expand your capabilities with every session.
Real-World Application
Step beyond the typical training experience into a realm of hands-on, practical learning.
Dynamic Skill Evolution
Your growth is driven by actual project work, not a static curriculum.
Developer to Innovator
Shaping you into a forward-thinking innovator, ready to lead with confidence.
Three Tiers of Growth
Each tier builds on the last, deepening and broadening your competencies.
TIER 1 Ignite
Foundation • ~6-8 months
Build the foundational competencies and understanding of automation, the Linux operating system, caching strategies, virtual machines, and some basic cloud services. These concepts are the bedrock of modern tools and processes.
TIER 2 Rise
Deepening • ~6-8 months
Continue to both broaden and deepen your competencies. Learn the pieces of a mature CI/CD process, deepen software fundamentals, explore infrastructure as code, and grow your ability to make smart, reliable technology decisions.
TIER 3 Zenith
Mastery • ~6-8 months
Begin the journey of learning the thought processes, behaviors, technical prowess and business alignment that the highest value, most senior technologists bring to an organization. Explore sophisticated telemetry, modern cloud architecture, and frictionless CI/CD.
Structure & Commitment
Ascend cohorts are comprised of either 3 or 4 technologists and your cohort's mentor. This is a very limited and intimate engagement that requires total commitment from each member.
Each cohort will decide on the days and times of the sessions, and their frequency. One cohort may meet two nights per week for 1-hour sessions. Another may want to meet for 3 hours every Saturday.
Each cohort is designed to complete one tier of the program. Once a tier is complete, it is up to the cohort to continue together if everyone wants to take on the next tier.