With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
Federal Student Loans Expand To Cover Some Coding Boot Camps
(
LA Johnson
/
NPR
)
Updated at 4:45 p.m. ET with details about partnering with colleges
Starting soon, students will be able to use federal loans to pay for certain coding boot camps, the immersive web development courses that promise to make students into programming experts in just a few months.
The experimental program will allow traditional accredited colleges to partner with coding boot camps and other short-term certification programs. Because they're attached to colleges, the U.S. Department of Education will be able to evaluate their effectiveness. Colleges can begin applying today.
The price tag for coding boot camps can be as much as $20,000, but the allure of high paying tech jobs has attracted an estimated 16,000 students this year alone. Enrollment in these programs is soaring, but the hefty cost means camps have been popular mostly among those privileged enough to afford the risk.
Support for LAist comes from
Although the courses are unaccredited, the people behind them say the price is worth it. They say 90 percent or more of graduates are landing jobs. Now, traditional colleges will be able to select a coding partner and a third-party organization to monitor its effectiveness. The chosen coding camp will then be eligible for federally subsidized loans. While it's unclear how many coding camps will be involved at first, it's a step toward making them more accessible.
What does this all mean? For that, take a look back to the work our own Anya Kamenetz has done on this unconventional form of higher education in the past year. She looked into the "microcredentials" boot camps began offering last October as a way for students to prove their new skills and then took us into the life of a student enrolled in a camp in December. And last summer, she reported on an option for financing the fast-track programs: high-interest loans from private lenders.
Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org. 9(MDA1OTI3MjQ5MDEyODUwMTE2MzM1YzNmZA004))
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
Doctors say administrator directives allow immigration agents to interfere in medical decisions and compromise medical care. -
The Palisades Fire erupted on Jan. 7 and went on to kill 12 people and destroy more than 6,800 homes and buildings. -
People moving to Los Angeles are regularly baffled by the region’s refrigerator-less apartments. They’ll soon be a thing of the past. -
Experts say students shouldn't readily forgo federal aid. But a California-only program may be a good alternative in some cases. -
Distrito Catorce’s Guillermo Piñon says the team no longer reflects his community. A new mural will honor local leaders instead. -
The program is for customers in communities that may not be able to afford turf removal or water-saving upgrades.
Best of LAist