The Eclectic And Wonderful Careers Of Our iOS Bootcamp Graduates Par :Michael Steele February 19, 2015 Updated February 4, 2016 Estimated reading time: 2 minutes. When we launched Canada’s first iOS bootcamp back in July of 2014, we weren’t entirely sure what to expect from our students. We knew iOS development is seeing explosive growth as a career field, that it was getting more accessible with innovations like Swift, and that it is a useful skill in a diverse range of verticals. But we were blazing a trail as the first iOS developer bootcamp in Canada, so we weren’t sure who our students would be. I don’t think any of us could have anticipated the incredible range of backgrounds that our iOS students came in with, and the amazing careers they’ve gone on to since graduating. Just 6 months after launching, our graduates are working some of the coolest (and most diverse) jobs in development: Tucker Sherman - iOS Developer, Nike Tucker was a star student in our iOS bootcamp - he even developed an app to help connect our classroom. But before that, he was a star Kiteboarder for Slingshot Sports (and also a star sports fan at Quest University. So he had a dream company in mind that many athletes share: Nike. Unlike most athletes, however, Tucker now has the development skills to make it happen. He is now working full-time as an iOS developer at Nike HQ in Portland, Oregon. Kai Aldaag - Eighth Grader, WGSS We’ve all heard of the archetypal coding wunderkind, who can hack into mainframes and create magnificent software all before getting their driver’s license. But we figured in real life they are few and far between - and we definitely didn’t expect one to show up for our class. But there was Kai, a star student in our inaugural cohort. The funny thing is, when Kai came to us, he didn’t even apply to be a student - he applied to be a TA! Now, after graduation, he actually is a TA with us. His other projects on the go right now are creating Mixta - a social music curation app, taking interviews with Shaw TV, attending Walnut Grove Secondary, and making us feel old. Taylor Ledingham - iOS Software Engineer, Hootsuite Taylor graduated from University Of Regina with a degree in Software systems Engineering in April 2014, and was working at Saskatchewan Government Insurance. After two and a half months at that job, she she made the move to Vancouver to join us at Lighthouse Labs. Just 1 month after graduation, she now works at one of the most acclaimed companies in the city! She was able to connect with them through one of our Lighthouse Labs Employer Events, and went through a series of technical interviews before getting the job. Since joining, she’s been adding bug fixes and features to Hootsuite's iOS app and getting acquainted at their amazing new office! Audrey Jun - Program Coordinator, Clicklaw Audrey’s unique experiences set her up for a particularly unique post-grad job. Before our bootcamp, she had just passed the bar to become a member of the Law Society of BC, and was consulting at Nidus. So afterwards, she wanted something that could marry her interests in law, public legal education, non-profits, and of course technology. At Clicklaw she gets to do exactly that. In her new role, she actually works with multiple teams of developers working on three different sites: Clicklaw, the Courthouse Library, and the Clicklaw Wikibooks. This allows her to really make a difference in public legal education. And never fear - although her role combines a variety of fields, she hasn’t compromised either her interests in law or development. She now sits on the Board of Directors at Nidus, and is independently exploring different iOS app ideas. Tom Daggett - iOS Developer, RunGo and Pippal Labs Tom had been a technology professional for a long time before coming to Lighthouse Labs. However, his previous emphasis was always IT, QA, and support. He made the move to iOS development with our bootcamp to be able to build his own things instead of analyzing others. Now, he’s doing it with gusto! He works as a TA for our current iOS cohort, works full-time as an iOS Developer for Vancouver startup RunGo, and has already published an iOS app for a Gurmurki Punjabi keyboard. Presumably, he also sleeps, but I’m not sure when he has the time. Interested in an eclectic and wonderful career of your own? Apply now to our iOS development bootcamp!