If you are looking for a tech career in coding, then apply for our redAcademy Career Sprint in Software Development…

High school graduates will now be able to fast-track their IT careers thanks to the launch of redAcademy.

They will also have access to relevant and up-to-date skills development as well as on the job training to guarantee employment if they complete the year.

redAcademy MD, Jessica Carroll, says that the academy’s mission is to provide real opportunities for young people while developing a sustainable pipeline of employable software developers to benefit redPanda Software, its clients and the IT industry at large.

The partnership with Lewis Group, one of the most recognisable enterprise brands in the country, allows us to expose these young talented people, who we call sprinters, to the dynamism and vigours of real-life programming,” says Hawkey.

The tech landscape may be changing (if the seemingly endless layoff headlines are anything to go by) but the demand for tech…

Software development is one of the jobs in-demand. According to the jobs portal, OfferZen, developer salaries have, on average, increased by 7.4% since 2019.

As South Africa celebrates youth month, Lewis Stores (Pty) Ltd, a leading organisation in the country’s retail industry, is celebrating…

The academy offers a one-year, fast-paced training programme, with the aim to kick-start graduates’ careers in the software development industry.

In an interview with ITWeb, Hawkey explains that redAcademy aims to change the way software is taught and experienced by swapping the three-year theoretical knowledge learning experience with a year-long practical experience within a professional environment.

redAcademy is deliberate in its endeavour to address unemployment, especially amongst the youth as this will address an urgent need that the country is grappling with. To achieve this, the organisation believes that a paradigm shift is required in the way of learning.

Data published by Statistics South Africa at the end of March this year showed that the country’s official unemployment rate rose 0.4 percentage points to a record 35.3% in the fourth quarter of last year. Couple that with an ailing economy that’s seemingly worsening and the outlook for the country’s youth looks quite bleak at first glance. South Africa’s redAcademy, however, is one organisation that’s taking the skills and unemployment crises head-on. They’re on a mission to fast-track careers in the real world, through what they term a career sprint, that’s destined to narrow the gap between skills and opportunities. 

Software Development has been identified as one of South Africa’s scarce skills. Jessica Hawkey, Managing Director at redAcademy, says: “there is a mismatch in the skills and opportunities available.”

The academy offers a one-year, fast-paced training programme, with the aim to kick-start graduates’ careers in the software development industry.

In an interview with ITWeb, Hawkey explains that redAcademy aims to change the way software is taught and experienced by swapping the three-year theoretical knowledge learning experience with a year-long practical experience within a professional environment.

Technology jobs are some of the most in-demand and lucrative jobs in South Africa. The country also has a skills shortage in this field, meaning there are more positions than qualified individuals can fill.

Despite the growth in the industry, this has not been mirrored by the number of software developers coming out of tertiary institutions: software development is still listed as a scarce skill. And, while the jobs are in fact out there, the challenge now is to fill those jobs with candidates in order to maintain and develop the momentum for the growth to continue.