The Ironhack community includes everyone who enrolls in our bootcamps, as well as everyone who has already graduated from them– our Ironhack alumni! It also includes our awesome teachers and TAs (because what’s a school without teachers?), our on-campus staff and, of course, Team Ironhack! (Like the people writing this article… hi there!)
Ironhackers are people who have decided to take the leap and start the tech career of their dreams. We are inherently diverse. Ironhackers are often tech newbies and career changers, which is a very open definition; our community includes people from all walks of life, demographics, and lines of work. We have Ironhack campuses in 10 countries, and that’s not counting our remote students and campuses! However, we all share a set of values and traits that make us true-blue Ironhackers.
Our sense of community defines us: we collaborate and support each other, and organize many networking opportunities and Ironhacker events to meet and come together, like the Ironbeers events. As you can see in this video, with 10 years of Ironhacking and over 10,000 graduates, we’ve become a large tech family!
What Makes An Ironhacker
So, do you have what it takes to become an Ironhacker? Read on to find out about our core values that define exactly who our Ironhackers are.
A love of learning
Working in tech requires constant learning. There’s a myriad of coding languages, programs, and technological advances out there, and their number grows every day. A relentless thirst for knowledge is, therefore, a must to face the daunting world of tech and thrive!
At Ironhack, everyone shares this enthusiasm: we pick up new skills, we learn from each other, and we share what we’ve found to be valuable in our social media channels, live webinars, and more. Just take a look at our podcast, where Ironhack alumni and industry experts tell us about the unique tech careers they’ve built and how they did it. Or check out some of our blog posts, where we talk about stuff like digital nomads in tech or ethical hacking!
The spirit of adventure
If as a kid you fantasized about exploring jungles, oceans, or even other planets, the tech world might be the place for you! It takes guts, nerves of steel (or rather, iron!), and, especially, a love for change and uncertainty to work in tech, where trends and technologies change in the blink of an eye. Ironhackers know that flexibility is key to improve, and are ready to jump into adventure.
Some of our alumni even cross borders to change their lives! Ironhackers aren’t afraid to embrace change, going as far as moving to a different country or turning their careers around to follow their passion, like Amr did when he left Syria for Germany and used his background as a fine artist to become a UX/UI designer.
Respect and empathy
Ironhack is for everyone: we love people and their stories! Diversity makes us stronger, and that isn’t just a catchy phrase: it fuels innovation, bringing in new voices and a variety of perspectives that spark new ideas and out-of-the-box thinking. Research has proven that the more diverse the team, the more fruitful and original the results of collaboration will be.
But being open to diversity also changes the way we think and behave. If we consciously make an effort to listen to others and put ourselves in their shoes, no matter how different their viewpoints, what we put into the world will be more inclusive of differences and constructive, too.
We’ve all seen the studies on how face recognition AIs can share the unconscious racist stereotypes of their creators. Our biases and prejudice reflect in the technology we create; but our actions to respect and include those that are different from us will have a profound effect, too.
Ambition
Everyone who comes to Ironhack comes because they have a goal. Whether you want to take the plunge into tech for the first time, level up your current skill stack, or completely transform your life, Ironhackers are all in!
We're driven and ambitious, and we can adapt to any environment in order to reach our goals; we’re committed to long hours of learning (bootcamps are intense!), and we don’t wait to start our own projects. In Ironhack, we’re always hearing about the latest ideas our students and alumni have come up with. We’re just that excited about tech!
Do You Have What It Takes To Be An Ironhacker?
The Ironhacker life is challenging, but incredibly rewarding. As we said at the beginning of this post, we aren’t just any tech school: we value our community more than anything, and we care for our own. No one is an island, especially in the world of tech.
When you become an Ironhacker, you get a family for life. The friends you make along the way, as you acquire tech skills and become job-ready, will accompany you after you finish the bootcamp. We keep in touch; we constantly hear stories about alumni who met on campus and started projects, startups and other ventures together!
But with Ironhack, you also get much more than a top-tier education and a diploma: we are outcomes-focused, which means we want you to get that tech career you’ve been dreaming of! We give our students personalized career support and access to our list of hiring partners so you can start your tech career with a bang and an unshakeable confidence in your career prospects.
With Ironhack, you’ll join a global community of learners and tech lovers. Download our syllabus and start your journey into tech!
