A Year of Successes: How Lighthouse Labs Grads are Thriving in 2023

Since a particular 2020 event, our already-digital sphere was fast-tracked to an all-encompassing online world. Companies that could, went remote, ushering in the rise of the hybrid-work-from-home and ultra tech-centric eras.

Currently, 31% of Canadians work from home. Of that 31%, just 6% were WFH pre-pandemic. There are many opinions swirling around this shift, but one thing is for sure: this new reality is here to stay. To better prepare our students for this hybrid lifestyle (many tech jobs fall into this category) and so that our programs could be accessible to more people, we brought our programs 100% online.

Read on to see how we keep changing lives even amidst uncertain times.

The impact of a Lighthouse Labs Program

Seeing a Lighthouse Labs Program through to the end deserves high praise. Our students and alums come to us from all walks of life; accountants, baristas, newcomers to Canada, parents, grandparents, those who have lost their jobs, and those looking to turn a hobby into a career.

As online bootcamps grow in popularity, we know that quality education is vital to fostering a passion for tech in each student. At the end of the day, each bootcamp grad is ultimately hoping to find their first job that will launch their tech career. And for that, we have good news.

Even in a rocky job market, our Career Services Team achieved an 85% employment rate for our job-seeking graduates. Overall, the average starting salary for a Lighthouse Labs graduate was $58,549.

Web Development Highlights

When people think of “coding bootcamp,” the first thing that comes to mind is most likely a developer or programmer. In fact, our Web Development Bootcamp was the first ever 12-week program we ever launched in 2013. Since then, Web Development was the first to get the Flex treatment when we added a part-time (but still challenging!) 30-week program.

This past year, 85% of our web development graduates found employment.

The average starting salary for web development grads was $58,245 with 42% starting as high as $60K or $70K.

Among those who successfully found a job within 180 days of graduating, 99% were hired in full-time roles, while the remaining 1% got their start with an internship. Alumni work in more traditional web development roles as front, back-end, and full-stack developers, designing stunning web pages and app interfaces or keeping the back-end architecture well-oiled. Others are working as QA testers, ensuring sites or applications are good to go before they’re publicly released.

Francisco Ocampo, a 2023 Web Development Program Alum, had this to say about his experience in the program and how our team helped him find a job.

“As someone transitioning from another industry to the Tech industry, Lighthouse Labs definitely prepared me for it. From beginning ‘till getting a job, I got the right support and knowledge to get me started. During the middle of bootcamp and especially at the end of it, the career services team will take over and really help you out! I worked with the team and really felt that they're here for you in your journey.”

Ready to start your own web development career? It only takes a few minutes to get started.

Data Science Highlights

This past year, we had two exciting additions to the Data Science Program. Alongside the Data Science Flex Program, we launched Data Analytics (both Bootcamp and Flex). Although it’s too early to take any insights from Data Analytics, 86% of Data Science graduates found employment within 180 days.

The average salary for our Data Science grads was $60,6780, with 22% of recent alumni earning >$70K. 98% of graduates found full-time employment and the remaining 2% will start off in internship positions.

Data Science is a growing industry with big data gaining more and more prominence in our everyday lives. Understanding and applying this data in practical ways will be a critical and in-demand skill in the coming years. More traditional roles include Data Scientist, Data Analyst, and Machine Learning Analyst. Data scientists develop tools and maintain systems that treat mountains of data at once. Data analysts are the ones that take that information and make sense of it to produce actionable insights for companies. Machine Learning Analysts apply machine learning techniques and statistical analysis to extract meaningful insights from data.

Other alumni found roles as financial analysts and project managers, making sense of financial markets or taking on several data-related projects under their belts at a time.

“Before bootcamp, I didn't really have a clear plan for myself for what exactly I wanted to do in tech. The program gave me an opportunity to have that clear view and gave me a very solid foundation. The most fulfilling thing is just doing something that I thought I was not going to be able to do. And the team was just phenomenal. Everyone was so welcoming. The mentors were so supportive and so kind. I think this is a very big chunk of help that we as students get.” - Tatiana, 2023 Data Science Bootcamp Grad

Thinking of a career in Data Science? It’s super easy to get started - just click on the button below.

Cyber Security Highlights

This is the first year that we’ve been able to share the successes of our Cyber Security students. Like all our other programs, we introduced a Flex option for Cyber Security hopefuls who need a bit more life balance while studying. Cyber security is booming right now, with the industry in Canada valued at US $3.55bn. There’s no better time to start your path to a cyber career than today.

The average starting salary for Cyber Security grads was $56,520

The Cyber Security Program had the highest hiring rate of all our programs, with 89% finding employment within the first 180 days post-graduation. Of that 89%, all were hired in full-time roles. Some of our graduates ended up as penetration testers, simulating real-world cyber attacks and making sure a website’s defences are up to date. Others found work as policy writers or security specialists, protecting a company’s data from malicious actors.

Once an engineer In Mohali, Punjab, India, Meenu and her husband first moved to Switzerland before landing in Canada. Meenu realized she needed a career that would give her stability so she enrolled in Lighthouse Labs’ Cyber Security Bootcamp to launch her new career in the tech industry. - Meenu Bhardwaj - 2023 Cyber Security Bootcamp Alum

Now is the very best time to start your Cyber Security journey. Sign up today and start your job search in a matter of months.

The Lighthouse Labs Advantage

It’s no secret that 2022 and 2023 were rough years for job seekers. Although finding a job seems like an impossible task, with the proper support, you can land that first job that launches your tech career. The seas aren’t so smooth sailing these days. Still, as someone with a background in tech, your skills are in demand in almost every industry, from agriculture and healthcare to beauty and entertainment.

On-demand mentors are there when students need help with a tricky technical question and act as important first contacts in building students’ networks. We also have a team dedicated to academic accommodations, ensuring every student’s learning needs are met and removing any barriers that may affect their ability to complete the program. Finally, our Career Services team does the heavy lifting when it comes to the job hunt, matching students with the right potential employers and holding workshops on everything from résumé improvement to interview tips, among other things. Alumni have access to Career Services for life, meaning they can come back to the team for relevant career advice long after they’ve graduated.

Growth, guaranteed

Despite a challenging few years, the tech industry has shown it can hold its ground. According to a ZipRecruiter survey, nearly one-third of laid-off tech workers are hired within a month. And with multiple tech jobs in the running for the fastest-growing jobs in Canada, demand for those with the right technical skills is only set to increase.

And the positive trend continues among our grads. Our alumni are actively improving in their careers. From salary hikes to new job opportunities, our grads were looking for a career they could be proud of.

Carly Fennell, a 2020 Data Science Bootcamp grad who now works for the NFL had this to say:

“Going into the program was really worth it as an investment in myself. And the value the students get from the program is pretty astounding in terms of the content. It was an unreal investment in my own skills. It was very liberating to learn these things that I knew would be helpful in my career, and then actually put them into practice.”

When we interviewed 757 of them last year, 92% said Lighthouse Labs positively impacted their careers, and 96% still used the skills they learned in bootcamp.

Positive impact

While salary and professional growth are essential parts of a worthwhile career, what often goes underlooked is how they contribute to a more fulfilling life overall. Our alumni not only feel good about their jobs but also about themselves and how their work impacts others.

“I have learnt so much through my journey in this career in such a short period of time. My biggest takeaway has been the feeling of fulfilment from contributing to a platform that has a positive impact on its audience.” - 2020 Grad working as a software engineer

On top of that, 74% of our grads were still working in a tech role, working their way up.

We’re proud of how far our grads have come and how far our current students and recent grads are set to go. Each person who passes through our virtual doors has unique career goals and reasons for taking the program, and we’re dedicated to helping them get where they need to be.

Ready to launch your thriving tech career? Check out our programs and get started today.