Full Stack Engineering
Give us 20 weeks and we'll help you change your life. Prime’s Full Stack Engineering curriculum has already helped hundreds of graduates launch rewarding careers in software engineering at some of the most innovative companies in Minnesota.
The program’s immersive approach plugs you directly into the most relevant technologies and methodologies and rewires your mind to deftly take on the exciting challenges of a job in development. The relationships formed with your fellow students, industry mentors, and guest speakers provide you an invaluable network of passionate, diverse tech allies to call upon throughout your career. Explore this page to learn more about our Full Stack Engineering program or check out the important dates for our next cohorts below.
Average starting salary of program graduates.
Completion rate of students in the classroom.
Number of MN companies with Prime grads on their teams.
Average student wage increase after placement.
Admissions: What are we looking for?
The world’s very best software engineers all have one thing in common: they all started with zero experience. Prime’s accelerated learning program prepares high potential students to begin their careers in software development and provides them with a toolset to keep developing themselves while they develop software to solve real-world problems.
You don’t need to be a seasoned coder to succeed at Prime. Our program is designed to ensure that even if you come to us with no experience, you’re ready for your first job come graduation day. If you’re new to software, our application process includes links to resources you can explore to make sure software engineering is indeed the right future for you.
Here’s what we're looking for in Prime applicants:
- Resiliency to learn from failure and keep experimenting
- Curiosity, with a voracious appetite for new ideas
- Intense personal drive, pragmatism, and resourcefulness
- Commitment to empathy and inclusivity
- Enough experience to know coding is for you
About the Application
Prime's admission process starts with an online application. You'll answer short essay questions, logic puzzles and you'll be presented with a challenge where you'll show you're comfortable picking up technical skills. The process is designed to be fun–there's no timer and you can complete your application over as many sessions as you'd like. Once submitted, if your application looks good, you'll be contacted by Prime to schedule an interview where you'll have the chance to come to our campus, get a tour and sit down with someone from our admissions team to confirm that the program feels like a mutual fit. Generally speaking, you'll know whether you're offered admission within 2 weeks of completing your application.
Curriculum: 20 Weeks at a Glance
Prime’s 20-week immersive experience prepares students to join the industry as entry-level software engineers. Using modern technologies like HTML 5, CSS 3, JavaScript, jQuery, AngularJS and Node.js to provide foundational concepts, techniques and design patterns essential in all coding environments. Beyond theory, Prime is engineered to quickly build real-world skills through hands-on experiential learning and a focus on toolsets, authentic workplace context and behavioral skills. Well over a hundred employers have been wowed by the graduates they’ve hired straight out of Prime and we continually update our curriculum with each new cohort based on insights and feedback from our hiring partners. The curriculum is broken into three main six week sections, click on a section below to learn more.
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 |
Weeks 1 - 6
Getting Started
Students come to Prime from different backgrounds with varying levels of technical experience. Tier 1 is our way of ensuring everyone shows up to the first day of in-class instruction ready to speak the same language and successfully learn together. You’ll ramp up for your classroom experience over 6 weeks, learning on your schedule through online training and coding assignments. You’ll also be checking in weekly via video chat with your instructors and fellow students. You can even start to build camaraderie with your peers through study sessions at Prime if you’re available.
Goals:
- Understand foundational web technologies
- Gain familiarity with developer tools (Text Editors, Command Line, Browser Debugging)
- Build an understanding of basic programming concepts (variables, looping, logic structures)
Topics covered:
- HTML/CSS
- Basic and Intermediate JavaScript
- Command Line
- Git
Weeks 7 - 13
Developing Your Skills
As you begin your in-person classroom experience, you’ll dive headfirst into fundamental software engineering concepts. You’ll learn from instructors, mentors and each other as you apply concepts from lectures in hands-on challenges. Each day is a unique adventure, but here’s what a typical day during Tier 2 might look like:
- 8:00 AM Morning Ramp-Up: Grab some coffee and get answers to questions that might be plaguing you from yesterday's challenge.
- 8:30 AM Job Skills: Jumping into code first thing in the morning can be tricky for the most seasoned developers. We start the morning with a talk focused on job-seeking, networking or communication skills.
- 9:00 AM Morning Concept: Your instructor introduces the morning’s key concept with a lecture. Instruction is highly interactive relying heavily on class participation, impromptu Q+A, and plenty of live coding.
- 10:00 AM Pair Challenge: You’ll tackle the morning's assignment paired with one of your classmates. Working together with new classmates regularly you’ll apply the concepts you’ve just learned to a code challenge.
- 12:00 PM Lunch: Need an hour to process? Chat with your peers and students from the other cohorts over a board game while you rest and refuel.
- 1:00 PM Afternoon Concept: Afternoon concepts raise the complexity bar, requiring more hands-on instruction, practice and patience - but don’t worry, your instructor will break it down with you.
- 3:00 PM Evening Challenge: Cap off the day with a coding challenge covering what you’ve learned today. We talk through the problem as a group before breaking to conquer the task at hand.
Goals:
- Understand the architecture of the modern web “stack”
- Practice developing full stack software
- Develop apprentice skills including research and exploring new technologies
Topics covered:
- Advanced JavaScript
- jQuery
- Node.js
- AngularJS
- React
- Mongo
- SQL
Weeks 14 - 20
Project-Based Learning
Software engineers learn by doing—that’s why Prime dedicates the final third of the program to project-based learning. In this tier, you’ll have the chance to work a project of your own design as well as help a real-world organization solve a real-world problem. You’ll get a chance to dive into a project you’re passionate about and build an app from top to bottom on your own and you’ll learn how to be part of a successful software development team, practicing behaviors and techniques you’ll use every day as a working software engineer.
Your solo project is an incredible opportunity to spend two full weeks sharpening your development skills while showcasing your passions. You’ll be working solo, but you’re far from alone. You’ll do daily “standup” meetings where you discuss what you’re tackling and get support where you need it from your peers and your instructors. In the end, this project will be an excellent tool to show prospective employers who you are and what you’re capable of.
For your capstone project, you’ll tackle a real-world project for a local nonprofit, startup or small business. The project begins with a client kickoff where you’ll hear about the organization and their specific challenges and then break out the whiteboards to sketch potential solutions and get real-time client feedback. After the client heads out, you and your group will develop a project scope detailing your objectives for the project you’ll be working on together over the next three weeks. Three weeks of client calls, clever coding, long days [and probably some long nights] and collaborative learning the project will culminate with live presentations of your project in front of your classmates, mentors, and hiring managers eager to interview you later that afternoon.
Goals:
- Demonstrate your ability to build fully functional applications
- Start your portfolio with two projects that show off your skills
- Practice the team skills you’ll use daily as a working developer
- Polish your resume and online profile in prepartion for a job search
Topics covered:
- Project Scoping
- Team Collaboration
- Technology Research
- Client Presentations
Skills Beyond Tech
Prime’s emphasis on communication and collaboration runs through the entire experience. Students take the Clifton Strengthsfinder and learn how to build on their teammate’s abilities. Sessions on effective team-based communication methods help to set the stage for positive interactions. Weekly public speaking and leadership training will help you find your voice and practice critical but often overlooked skills.
Industry Insights
Each week you’ll add to your professional network when Prime hosts a wide variety of friendly speakers from the Twin Cities dev community. Guests share context on the industry and expose you to new, different and sometimes opposing perspectives on the technology, techniques and philosophy shaping modern software. All this will help you to develop your own unique outlook on the field you’re entering.
The "Toy Box"
Prime is always looking to encourage students to apply what they’re learning about programming in different ways. We’ve collected a treasure trove of technologies ranging from microcontrollers to quadcopter drones to virtual reality gear in what we call our “toy box.” The toy box gives interested students a chance to see their code at work in a different context whether it’s blinking LEDs or piloting a drone.
Career Support
Prime connects students with employers searching for fresh talent, but we don’t send you in unprepared. We’ll work with you to build a resume and a portfolio of work that you can show off with pride. You’ll receive coaching on interviewing strategies from your instructors as well as actionable feedback from industry recruiters and local hiring managers who spend time with you at a mock interview day. Prime’s industry network team are always connecting job seekers and alumni with fresh opportunities.
Meet Your Mentors
Success after Prime sometimes depends more on who you know than what you know. Through our mentor program we introduce you to smart, supportive professionals from the Twin Cities tech community. During your first week in the classroom, we pair small groups of students with a few working professionals (including one Prime alum who understands exactly the rigors and rewards of your education). You’ll meet bi-weekly with your mentor group for advice and insights to help kick-start your new career.
Career Day
The culmination of all this preparation is career day, a remarkable opportunity to interview with multiple employers excited about Prime and eager to speak with you. Prime’s huge network of employers means there are always companies ready to talk to you about open positions. Not every student lands their first breakthrough connections from career day, but every graduate benefits by shaking off their entry-level interviewing butterflies and gaining confidence in speaking about themselves and their portfolios.
Prime's Alumni Community
Prime is committed to maintaining real relationships with our alumni and providing support and advice that spans your entire career. Whether you’re swinging into Prime to say hello or touch base with friends on Slack, alumni are part of our community forever.
We provide free co-working space for alumni to ensure that no grad goes through their job search alone. We also operate a weekly session for alumni who are currently job searching called the Alum Scrum. These sessions focus on technical interviewing tips and advice on navigating the tricky situations that arise in a development job search.
Beyond job search support, Prime encourages alumni to continue to hone their skills through regular development challenges, coordinated user group attendance and by keeping in close contact with your classmates as you all make your marks on the local development industry.
Tuition To Change Your Future
Your tuition supports Prime’s industry-leading instruction staff, excellent student-to-teacher ratio, development of our employer network and ongoing curriculum development. Tuition covers instruction and required software. Students are responsible for their own transportation, meals and living expenses during the program (though our lunchroom is always stocked with bananas).
Tuition Out of Pocket
Details:
- $1,500 due on acceptance
- $12,250 due week 7
- Includes $500 prepayment discount
Tuition Financing
Details:
- $1,500 due on acceptance
- $12,750 financed through Skills Fund or Climb
- Living expenses ($1,500/month) can be borrowed
- 3 and 5 year repayment terms are available
REQUIRED COMPUTER HARDWARE
Having access to a computer you call your own is a critical part of achieving mastery as a tech professional. To provide a consistent experience we've standardized on Apple laptops (running a current version of OS X). If you aren't sure if your computer meets these specifications or want help selecting a laptop for Prime . Prime will provide you with an external monitor for use in the classroom.
MSP TechHire Support
We’re proud to partner with The City of Minneapolis and Jewish Family and Children’s Service of Minneapolis to bring Prime to diverse Minneapolis residents who would be otherwise unable to afford the program. The application process screens and verifies eligibility for student aid (household income must be "very low" based on the CDBG income table). Eligible students may receive grants to cover up to 100% of tuition. Funds are available on a first come, first served basis so apply today.
Diversity Scholarships
Prime and our partners are committed to building a diverse tech community in Minnesota. To encourage people of color pursuing tech careers, Prime Digital Academy grants a $500 scholarship to each person of color accepted into the program.
REFUND POLICY FOR EARLY WITHDRAWAL
The Prime program is eighteen weeks overall, six weeks of prework followed by twelve weeks of classroom. If written notice of withdrawal is received before the end of the second week of prework instruction, the student will receive a full refund of all tuition paid. If written notice of withdrawal is received after the second week of prework but before the beginning of the ninth week of classroom (fifteenth week overall), the student will receive a partial refund of tuition paid based on the remaining classroom days in the term. No refunds will be given after the beginning of the tenth week of classroom (sixteenth week overall).
Our Employer Network
Prime is about preparing people for jobs designing and developing software and we’re working hand-in-hand with industry employers to produce excellent outcomes for students. Below are just a few of the well over 100 companies that contribute to student success by providing curriculum feedback, offering apprenticeships, mentoring students and hiring graduates.
Know an employer looking for talent?
We're always happy to meet organizations excited about emerging talent. Interested companies can reach us at to learn more about how to get involved.
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