CODE2040 was founded in February 2012. This month, as the organization celebrates its third birthday, we’re thrilled to share that we’re not just growing older but growing our impact as well. CODE2040 is today announcing our first expansion beyond our flagship Fellows Program with two new programs: the Technical Applicant Prep Program with support from Google.org and the CODE2040 Residency powered by Google for Entrepreneurs.
The Technical Applicant Prep Program
CODE2040’s Technical Applicant Prep (TAP) Program prepares Black and Latino/a students to land and succeed in internships and full-time jobs at top tech companies. Based on three years of experience running the CODE2040 Fellows Program, we’ve learned that the opportunity gap faced by many aspiring Black and Latino/a technologists results from a smaller network and access to fewer systemic resources. We know students facing barriers to success require interview skills training, increased direct access to career opportunities, and a robust support network in order to successfully launch and grow their tech careers.
TAP addresses these needs via complementary programs: day-long in-person workshops on how to land a top job in tech; retreats with other high performing students from underrepresented backgrounds; online tools for self-paced learning; and coaching and mentoring by experienced professionals in the field.
TAP participants can expect increased understanding of the technical internship hiring process; expanded professional and peer networks focused on advancing their career goals; growth in their professional identity and confidence; and an increased readiness to apply for competitive tech sector internships.
Top TAP participants will be excellent applicants to highly competitive internship and full-time tech jobs, and CODE2040 will connect these emerging professionals with companies committed to diversity and inclusion in their hiring and culture.
For more details, please visit code2040.org/students.
The CODE2040 Residency, powered by Google for Entrepreneurs
The CODE2040 Residency is focused on boosting the pipeline of Black and Latino/a entrepreneurial talent and creating diverse tech ecosystems in select locations around the country. We’re launching a pilot in which we will select an Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) in three cities around the country in partnership with three local tech hubs: American Underground in Durham, North Carolina; Capital Factory in Austin, Texas; and 1871 in Chicago, Illinois. The CODE2040 Residency will help the selected EIR grow a sustainable business that will impact the local economy while also assisting him or her to create programming designed to build a stronger and more diverse local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
Each Entrepreneur-in-Residence will receive $40,000 in seed capital to help grow their business (no equity will be taken); workspace in the partner Tech Hub in their location (Austin, Chicago, or Durham); a trip to the Googleplex in Silicon Valley for Google- and CODE2040-led training and networking; mentoring by experienced entrepreneurs in the Google for Entrepreneurs and CODE2040 networks; support from CODE2040 on the creation of community impact through diversity, inclusion, and community building events throughout the year.
The EIR will not only grow their business over their year-long residency but also focus on growing the representation of underrepresented groups in their local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
The CODE2040 Residency is the first partnership of Google for Entrepreneurs' NextWave Campaign to support the development of diverse local entrepreneurial ecosystems nationwide.
For more details, please visit code2040.org/entrepreneurs.