Since launching our first campus in New York City in 2012, Flatiron School’s mission has been to enable the pursuit of a better life through education. We’re excited to further this mission with the launch of our new campus in Seattle. This will be our seventh in-person campus and the first located in the West Coast.
Why Flatiron School chose Seattle
Our decision to open a new campus in Seattle goes well beyond Microsoft and Amazon. While these tech giants are uniquely tied to the city, it’s only the beginning of the tech landscape for Seattle, according to Noam Mintz, director of expansion for Flatiron School.
“Seattle has done a lot in the last 20 years to build a tech ecosystem, but it’s still just the tip of the iceberg,” said Noam. “We definitely want to be a part of that by opening a Flatiron School Seattle campus and teaching software engineering and data science. We can be a part of the next iteration of tech growth in Seattle.
”It’s also a more mature tech market, notes Noam. In addition to these two large enterprises, many Seattleites are familiar with coding bootcamps and the benefits of starting a career as a software engineer or data scientist. “There’s already an infrastructure in place,” said Noam.
Whether it’s Seattle proper or neighboring areas like Bellevue, Kirkland, and Redmond, there’s plenty of demand for tech talent. “While there’s Amazon and Microsoft, you also have all these enterprises including Starbucks, Zillow, and so many more. What we’ve seen is this startup ecosystem that’s built up around these enterprise companies,” said Noam.
Seattle was also a great cultural fit. The city’s not focused on salaries or company valuations. “There’s a dynamic creativity about Seattle that’s exciting,” said Noam. That creativity and sense of community also appealed to Aspen James as they moved from Southern California to Seattle.
A great fit at Flatiron School
Aspen traveled up the coast from their native Southern California to Seattle. Like many others, coffee drew them to the Pacific Northwest. They trained staff in a managerial role. Coffee wasn’t their passion, but it was a good opportunity as they settled in to a new city.
After five years, Aspen knew it was time for a fresh start. Their friends told them to look into programming even though they did not have any coding experience. One friend recommended Flatiron School and Aspen began comparing coding bootcamps.
“I tried a couple of online courses before and they 100% did not work for me. So, I was a little bit concerned that it would turn out the same way,” said Aspen. They were impressed with Flatiron School’s bootcamp prep course and the Learn.co platform. “We dove right into programming and that was really rewarding for me. I got to see how things worked early on and it kept me engaged,” said Aspen. They particularly enjoyed the way lessons were formatted and how new material was taught and would soon enroll in Flatiron School’s Online Software Engineering Bootcamp.
We’ve already helped thousands of students start their software engineering careers and Aspen is on track to join our incredible group of alumni. As Aspen worked through the bootcamp, they said our dedicated educational coaching helped keep them on track.
Aspen wants to become a back-end developer after they graduate from Flatiron School. “There are a lot of opportunities and a lot of avenues to explore. A realistic first step for me would be to work on some back-end web projects,” said Aspen. They are planning to start working with Career Services—one of the main reasons why Aspen chose Flatiron School—as they work on their resume and Github profile.
“Hearing outcomes from other students, the third-party verified jobs report, it was great to know that I wasn’t going to just learn something and then pushed out into the world,” said Aspen.
Aspen is excited to be a part of the inclusive tech community in Seattle. “I think Seattle is an interesting place for tech because the tech scene here feels way more diverse than what I think of as ‘tech’ traditionally,” said Aspen. “It’s been really exciting to see all sorts of people working in tech in Seattle.”
With the launch the Flatiron School Seattle campus, we’re excited to help more students start their careers as software engineers and data scientists. If you want to learn more, our admissions team is available to answer all of your questions.
