This Canadian school promises a tech sector job or your money back

(Editors note: RED Academy no longer promises a ob upon graduation, as a condition of it accreditation) RED Academy, a digital media and technology school with locations in Vancouver and Toronto, is offering its students a complete tuition refund if they don’t find a job in their area of study within six months after graduation from a User Experience (UX) Design, Web Development or Digital Marketing program.
RED Academy was founded in Vancouver in July 2015, and opened its Toronto location in March 2016, offering programs specifically designed to be relevant to the technology sector.
Students who don’t find full-time, contract-to-hire, contractor, or internship job placements after their course of study will have their tuition refunded.
“RED Academy’s tuition guarantee is proof that we believe in a new approach to learning. Through tailored curriculums, personalized teaching styles, and real client projects, we’re helping students build impactful skill sets that are key to their future employers,” said Matt Parson, RED Academy, Chief Operations Officer. “We not only want to educate students, but we also want to provide certainty and assurance around relevant job placements.”
Even though there are already plenty of bootcamp style learn-to-code programs around, there’s a major shortage in the neighbourhood of 14,000 skilled graduates annually needed in order to supply the 43,000 IT student pipeline required by Canada’s tech sector each year.
A recent report from the Information and Communications Technology Council finds that only 6% of Canada’s 527,000 graduates studied in an IT field in 2015.
CEOs of both start-up and established tech companies across Canada are currently engaged in a fevered competition to attract and retain qualified employees.
RED Academy can pledge to honour its money-back guarantee partly because of a partnership with Toronto-based staffing and recruitment firm Creative Niche, which provides extra assistance to students looking for job placements in Toronto’s growing tech sector and helps them transition as seamlessly as possible into their new job.
“Despite rapid growth in the tech sector, Canadian tech companies are constantly struggling to find the right talent,” said Mandy Gilbert, co-founder of RED Academy and Creative Niche. “RED Academy is honing Toronto’s local talent to be the next generation of skilled designers, developers and marketers that will help Canada compete on a global scale.”
RED has graduated 450 students from its Vancouver programs, who have gone on to secure placements at companies like Boeing, Telus, Cossette, and Yellow Pages.
The Academy offers evening and weekend programs for working professionals, as well as mentorships and community programs.
Class sizes are kept small to give students one-on-one attention, and welcomes applicants with all levels of technical knowledge.
Only a high-school diploma is necessary to apply, but demand is high and places are limited.
Digital marketing, UX design, and web development courses are offered for 12-week or six-month program lengths, during which students work on real-life client projects for nonprofits and startups.
The first cohort of students from RED Academy’s Toronto campus, located at 462 Wellington Street West, will graduate in October 2106.
The second cohort is scheduled to begin classes on September 26.