ACADEMY+PLUS, the free programming school launched three years ago in Cluj-Napoca in partnership with École 42 in Paris, has now opened a branch in Bucharest as well.

The school has 120 places available for those who want to learn programming through a practice-based learning process. However, to be admitted at this school, a candidate has to pass through three stages.

In the first stage, the candidates have to go on Candidates.academyplus.ro and solve two tests in two hours and ten minutes. Then, those who get an eligible score are invited to the next stage called Check-in, which is actually an open group discussion where the school sets expectations and the candidates expose their motivations.

After the Check-in stage, the candidates will enter in a 28-day boot camp where they will learn the programming language C. This stage includes weekly evaluations followed by an eight-hour exam at the end.

This year, the third stage will take place in Bucharest in August-October. The starting dates are August 14, September 11, and October 9.

The school itself will start in November, with the candidates accepted in the program having to study three mandatory projects. After that, they will be able to choose from several specialization lines such as Unix, Algorithms, Computer graphics or Web development, and Full Stack.

The program has a 21-level structure, but a candidate doesn’t have to go through all of them.

“After about 6 to 9 months, the trainees reach the junior IT specialist level, a level of training that is more than enough to find a job. Moreover, we’re also supporting students to find jobs quickly in the IT industry,” said Daniela Buscan, a program director at ACADEMY+PLUS.

ACADEMY+PLUS is part of the international network of École 42 in Paris, one of the most daring training projects in the world, with centers in Paris, Kiev, Chisinau, Johannesburg and Fremont, Silicon Valley. The Academy opened a free programming school in Cluj-Napoca in 2014. Since then, more than half of the 198 students trained in Cluj have been absorbed by the market and hired by IT companies, either from the service area or from the product area.

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com