Scholarship Process

As part of our mission to make tech education accessible and inclusive, Data Stack Academy offers a limited number of tuition reduction scholarships to each cohort. The scholarship is a discount, rather than a monetary payout. It covers all but $1,000 of the bootcamp tuition.

To apply for a scholarship, please:

  • Complete and submit the two code reviews from the pre-enrollment workshop. 

  • Send an email to hello@datastack.academy

    • The body of the email should be one or two paragraphs on why you want to attend data engineering bootcamp. It should also state whether you identify with any demographics that are marginalized in the field of tech.

    • The subject line should be ‘Bootcamp Scholarship Application’.

We are looking for students who:

  • Are self-starters. Bootcamp, as well as a career in data engineering, requires initiative and the ability to do independent research.

  • Are driven. Bootcamp is intensive. Students need to be hardworking and determined.

  • Can follow detailed instructions. This is an essential skill in programming.

  • Are professional. This includes clear and direct communication, meeting deadlines, and being punctual for classes and meetings.

  • Identify with a demographic that is underrepresented or marginalized in tech. Scholarships are a large part of how Data Stack Academy fulfills our affirmative action mission. Groups that are underrepresented in tech include, but aren’t limited to, women, trans and gender-nonconforming people, and people of color1.

Awards will be granted based on the following criteria:

  • Both code reviews are submitted and complete by their 5pm Friday deadlines.

  • Both code reviews are exemplary: they meet all the passing criteria, are well commented, and include a README in the repository.

  • The applicant was punctual to all meetings and classes, and actively participated in all the Data Engineering 101 pre-enrollment classes.

  • An email based on the above instructions was sent by 5pm PST the Saturday after the end of the Data Engineering 101 pre-enrollment workshop.

  • The applicant identifies as a member of a demographic that is underrepresented in tech.

In instances where there are more qualifying applications than there are scholarship spots, priority will be given based on the strength of the code reviews and the scholarship email.

Scholarship awardees are still be responsible for paying:

  • The $50 non-refundable registration fee.

  • $1,000 of tuition, to cover administrative costs. If the student drops out before completing the program, this is prorated according to how many weeks the student attended: (1,000/19)*weeks of class attended. All other policies about tuition refunds regarding expulsion, leaving the program, or pausing enrollment apply to this $1,000 fee. Please see the ‘Tuition’ section of the student handbook.

Please note that scholarships are a tuition reduction and not a cash reward. They cannot be transferred or exchanged for cash.

Deadlines

Code Review 1: 5pm PST Friday, October 6, 2023

Code Review 2: 5pm PST Friday, October 13, 2023

Scholarship application email: 5pm Saturday, October 14, 2023

1 Source: ‘Diversity in High Tech’, https://www.eeoc.gov/special-report/diversity-high-tech. The U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission, 2023.