Scholarships We Love: The Niantic Voyager Apprenticeship at Tech Elevator

Tech Elevator and Niantic have partnered up to sponsor an upcoming coding bootcamp cohort and paid apprenticeship. This program sponsors 20 students from underrepresented communities to complete Tech Elevator’s bootcamp for free, and then go on to either the Niantic Voyager Apprenticeship or through Tech Elevator’s Pathway Program. Find out what it takes to get accepted into this sponsored cohort, and the tech roles that graduates can anticipate. 

What is Tech Elevator and Niantic’s intention for the scholarship program?

Niantic is a world leader in Augmented Reality, and builds engaging applications that merge cutting-edge technology with gaming experiences. This partnership will contribute to Tech Elevator and Niantic's combined mission of diversifying the technology workforce, and making educational opportunities more accessible to underrepresented communities — all through offering the bootcamp, tuition-free, to 20 deserving individuals.

Is this sponsored cohort really free to students? What happens if a student doesn’t get the apprenticeship or job with Niantic? 

Scholarship recipients will learn to code, tuition free, through the 14-week coding bootcamp and then launch a career as a junior software engineer — either with a six-month Voyager Apprenticeship (10 students will be selected during the cohort) at Niantic or through one of Tech Elevator’s hiring partners. All scholarship recipients will also receive a living stipend. 

Do scholarship recipients complete the program online or in-person? 

The bootcamp will be all online. Those scholarship recipients selected by Niantic for the Voyager Apprenticeship must be available to go in-person to Niantic’s offices in San Francisco or Seattle. 

When does this scholarship program begin?

The cohort begins October 24, 2022. Students will be selected out of applicants on September 30, 2022. 

Who is eligible for this scholarship program with Niantic? Is there an ideal candidate for the scholarship?

Eligible applicants must identify within an underrepresented group in tech, and must be in the Southern California, San Francisco Bay, and Seattle areas. 

For the purpose of the scholarship, Tech Elevator currently defines underrepresented personas as anyone who self-identifies with any of the following qualifiers:

• Racial or Ethnic Identities: Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino, or Native American/American Indian
• Gender Identification: Female, Transgender, Non-Binary

What is the application process for this sponsored cohort? Does it mimic Tech Elevator’s typical admissions process?

It will follow Tech Elevator’s traditional admissions process. Candidates will begin the application process by completing the mini Aptitude test on our website. From there, individuals will be invited to complete a longer-form assessment and one-on-one behavioral interview. 

Do applicants need to know how to code before applying for the scholarship?

No previous coding knowledge is required! 

What will students learn in this sponsored cohort?

With the depth and breadth of the Tech Elevator curriculum, students will graduate ready and able to step into their new job role as a high-value professional. With every class cohort, the curriculum is updated and fine-tuned. This Niantic cohort will focus on Java, learning programming foundations, back end development, front end development, web programming, and full-stack development. 

Who are the instructors for this program? Will Niantic employees be a part of it?

At Tech Elevator, our students don’t go it alone! Our students join a community of educators, employers, and alumni who are here to help them succeed. The instructor for this scholarship program is Gregor Dzierzon — He has 15+ years of experience in the software development field and more than 3 years as an instructor at Tech Elevator. Students will also have support from a career coach along the way. 

How does this program support different learning styles, especially if they are struggling with the material?

The program supports different learning styles by accommodating the modern student. Through online instruction, students will have the flexibility to learn from home, at a local coffee shop or anywhere. 

At Tech Elevator, we recognize there are different learning types. To accommodate each individual’s style, we provide reading materials, guided tutorials, live lectures, hands-on work, and individual, pair and group exercises. For students who need extra support, Tech Elevator’s instructors, academic fellows and Pathway Program leaders are here to help guide you through program challenges.

Will every student from this sponsored cohort land a tech job working at Niantic?

Only top students (around 10) will be selected for the six-month Apprenticeship that will immediately follow the bootcamp. This will include a living stipend from Niantic. 

The remaining students will have access to Tech Elevator’s growing network of hiring partners (700+ nationwide!) as well as career coaching through the industry-leading Pathway Program. 

What types of tech roles will graduates be qualified for at Niantic?

These scholarship graduates will be qualified for roles as Software Developer, Analyst, QA/Tester, and Web Developer.

For those students who are not chosen to work at Niantic, what kinds of job support can they expect?

Those scholarship recipients can still expect personal career coaching and employer matchmaking through our Pathway Program. It’s a step-by-step program that supports students with the professional career coaching and resources to enter the job market confident and prepared. Pathway will run in tandem with the technical curriculum and includes: 

• 1:1 career coaching
• Polished personal branding training (ie. mock interviews and resume help)
• Direct employer introductions.

Pathway is at the heart of Tech Elevator’s 90% job placement rate! 

A lot of potential bootcampers may be worried about the job market when they graduate from a bootcamp right now — What’s your advice to them?

Tech Elevator exists because of the massive supply-demand mismatch in our economy in tech talent — between what our colleges produce and what our organizations need. No matter what your reasons are for changing careers, you have options. Whether you’re in your 20s, or you’re deciding to undergo a career change at 30, 40, or 50, it’s never too late to start a new career, especially one that offers more financial stability and job security. 

Find out more and read Tech Elevator reviews on Course Report. This article was produced by the Course Report team in partnership with Tech Elevator.