Fair Student Agreement: High Quality Education, Not High Student Debt | Nucamp

Instructor-led coding education doesn’t have to be expensive.

(This is the third article in our series on ISA programs. Read the first article Are Income Sharing Agreements scams? and the second The Truth About Income Sharing Agreements.)

If you've been looking at different education options to learn to code, then you've found that coding bootcamps are expensive.

But Nucamp bootcamps are so much more affordable than the others.

You’re probably wondering, "Why is Nucamp so inexpensive compared to other bootcamps? What’s the catch?"

Before I answer that, it’s important that you understand the financing options and payment methods offered by other coding bootcamps.

In your research, you've likely seen the promises, "Pay $0 until you get a job."

That sounds so convenient, but you're probably also thinking, "What's the catch?"

Smart.

Many bootcamps are offering a tuition repayment program called Income Sharing Agreements (ISAs).

If you’ve read the first two articles in this series, then you know what the catch is with ISA offers, but let’s review it again.

What are income sharing agreements?

Income Sharing Agreements (ISAs) allow students to delay paying tuition while they’re attending the bootcamp.

Most of which are around 12-24 weeks long.

Some schools even pay students a monthly living expenses stipend while they’re attending the course.

(“Wow! Sign me up!” - Right? – well - Not so fast.)

After graduation, the student agrees to reimburse the school.

They pay a percentage of their future income once they secure a job above a specified salary.

The percentage is paid is on gross income, not net income.

(“Still sounds good!” – Hold on. I need you to stick with me here .)

These payments continue over an agreed upon number or years, or when the reimbursement reaches a cap amount.

Although schools and lenders have tried to market ISA programs differently, ISAs are a loan.

Period.

All you’re doing is delaying the payments until you get a job.

Once you get a job, then you have to start paying back the loan with a percentage of your gross pay, not net pay.

If you don't get a job, you still have to pay it back when the grace period is over.

The full cost can be between $28,000 and $40,000 depending on the payment cap, and whether you received the living expenses stipend.

And get this: if you withdraw or are kicked-out of the bootcamp, you still need to pay it back ( check our previous blog on the hidden truths about ISAs ).

So, in order to pay $0 until you get a job, you have to:

• Quit the job you have if the bootcamp is full-time.
• Graduate. (They can dismiss you just for being late a few times.)
• Follow their rigid job search requirements.

Otherwise, they'll make you start paying it back right away.

Let's say you graduated, and you followed their rigid job search requirements.

Here's the question I want you to think about?

Do you really want to give up 15% of your future gross salary for 5 years in exchange for a 12 to 24-week course? Does that sound cost effective?

If you get a job that pays $60k a year, that's a $9,000 bill per year.

That's $750 per month!

That's almost two car payments. Or the cost of your monthly groceries.

And the payment goes up as your salary goes up.

Depending on the agreement, you might have to take the first job offer you get, even if it’s a job you don’t like, in an industry you don’t want, or in a city you don’t want to move to.

You could have more debt than someone who went to college for 4 years and got a bachelor’s degree.

“…the average debt at graduation is $25,921 — or $6,480 for each year of a four-year degree at a public university.” | aplu.org

ISAs are a bad deal. Period.

One of the most upsetting parts is that ISAs target those students who don’t have thousands of dollars to pay in full up front.

Students who have the money to pay in full, pay a lot less for the same class.

While the students who may be struggling financially, but still dream of a great career in the tech industry, could end up paying almost double the original tuition.

Now, back to your question.

Are Nucamp bootcamps worth it?

Your question is a fair one. "Why is Nucamp so inexpensive compared to other bootcamps?"

The average annual tuition at a 4-year university is $30k - $50k, right?

This high price tag is just what we've become use to.

Do you know what those tens of thousands of dollars pay for?

Tuition and fees, professor salaries, staff salaries, building construction, building maintenance, utilities, security, research, a beautiful front lawn, the football stadium etc.

Most bootcamps are no different.

They have office space, instructor salaries, utilities, maintenance, course licensing, etc.

However, it still doesn't make sense why a 12 or 24-week course should cost $40,000.

The prices still seem inflated.

Nucamp significantly cuts costs by:

• Not having office space or buildings. All our bootcamps are on-line.
• We produce our own course content, written by learning professionals from technology companies like Microsoft.
• We develop and maintain our own proprietary Learning Hub to serve up the course content.
• We hire instructors from top tier companies as part-time employees who like their current jobs, but also love teaching on the side.

We pass all these savings on to our students.

No one should pay $40,000 for 24 weeks.

Our full-stack development course is 22 weeks and costs $2,604.

Some bootcamps require more than that just for the down payment!

Our tuition is very affordable, but we want to make it even more accessible, which is why we came up with the Fair Student Agreement (FSA).

Here's how the Fair Student Agreement works:

• Loan terms are 12 months to 48 months.
• Payments are between $8- $167 per month, depending on which course and your credit score. (That's closer to a phone bill than a car payment.)
• Your payment doesn’t increase when your salary increases.
• Take the time you need to find the job that's best for you.

And one last thing.

All our bootcamps are part-time with flexible schedules, so you can keep your current job while you attend our bootcamps.

And even though we’re affordable and flexible, our curriculum is still of the highest quality.

You’ll have homework, quizzes, projects etc. -the workload is intense but manageable.

So, the catch is…that there is no catch.

Our social mission is to help all aspiring career shifters currently left out of the digital economy receive high-quality, risk-free education.

Period.

Check out more details about our Fair Student Agreements today!

Ludo Fourrage,
Nucamp CEO