AWS re/Start Programme

Overview

AWS re/Start is a free 12 week bootcamp to kickstart your career in tech  — run in collaboration with Amazon Web Services and kindly supported by M1 Skillnet.

You don’t need any existing experience or qualifications to be part of this training programme – hear more from programme graduate Javeriyah below, who became a Systems Engineer after completing AWS re/Start.

What industry skills will you learn?

Technical skills

We’ll help you learn the technical skills with lots of hands-on, interactive sessions. By the end, you’ll understand:

• Computing fundamentals – binary code, hardware and cloud computing
• Linux fundamentals
• AWS services – preparing you to become a certified cloud practitioner
• Programming fundamentals
• User security and threat analysis
• Computer networking

Don’t worry if some of these technical skills aren’t familiar to you — we’ll teach you everything on the programme. To explore if you’ll enjoy the course content, we recommend trying out some free online coding courses such as Codeacademy or Freecodecamp.

Behavioural skills

In every job, there are key skills that will help you be successful and stand out as a high quality team member. We’ll help you learn how to develop the key behavioural skills that will ensure you can transition into your new career smoothly and successfully. You’ll develop skills in:

• Growth mindset
• Persistence
• Future Orientation
• Personal Responsibility
• Communication and confidence

What jobs could I do after completing the programme?

This programme trains you to become a AWS Cloud Support Practitioner – a Cloud Practitioner is someone who works with cloud technology to design and develop cloud-based solutions for companies. AWS stands for Amazon Web Services, a popular cloud platform used by a wide variety of companies across many different industries.

Who is this programme for?

This programme is open to anyone aged 18+ in and currently unemployed or working on a zero-hours contract.

You don’t need any qualifications or experience to apply and we encourage applications from groups under-represented in the tech industry – particularly women, those without university degrees and those aged under 35.

We are looking for learners who:

• enjoy working with technology but don’t have much or any experience
• enjoy problem solving and thinking creatively to find solutions
• like to work in a team to complete tasks or challenges

What will you gain from the programme?

• Free training and qualification You’ll learn all you need to be successful in an entry level cloud technology career – from the coding languages & technical knowledge of cloud computing to the employment skills that will help you achieve your potential. At the end of the programme you’ll be ready to take your AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification – and we’ll fund you to do it.
• Connect with employers At the end of the programme, Generation will connect you with employers hiring for cloud and devops engineer roles, support you through your application, and help you transition into your working life. The of role can vary from an apprenticeship to a full time permanent role – the opportunities are endless!
• Mentorship & Career Coaching: We provide a 1-1 career coaching experience for up to 6 months post programme, to help you strengthen your employability skills on your journey to employment!

Eligibility Criteria

• Aged 18+
• Not in education, training, or working regularly more than 16 hours per week
• Have the legal right to work & live in Ireland – for non-EU citizens, we can only accept applications from those on a Stamp 1G Spousal (Graduate Stamp 1G Visas are not eligible) or Stamp 4 Visa
• Live in Ireland, in particular Dublin, Kildare, Meath, Louth & Wicklow and – if applicable – willing to relocate to commutable areas for job opportunities in employer centres
• Available for 12 weeks, and ready to start a full time entry level job straight after the course

Are you currently receiving jobseeker payments from INTREO?

INTREO customers can continue to receive their jobseeker payments while taking part in a Generation Ireland programme. To make sure your payments continue, you should:

1. Receive an offer from Generation for your chosen boot-camp programme
2. Submit a completed Education, Training and Development application to your local INTREO centre, along with a copy of your Generation offer email
3. Receive written approval from your INTREO centre before starting day one of your Generation programme

INTREO state that to continue receiving jobseeker’s payment, you should be:

• aged over 21 and in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment for 6 months.
• OR aged between 18 and 20, and have not been in formal education for 2 years, plus 6 months in receipt of a jobseeker’s payment.

If you don’t meet these criteria, you can still apply to a Generation programme but you won’t be able to continue receiving jobseeker’s payment. 

During your programme, you will then continue to receive your normal weekly payment, the availability condition of your jobseeker’s payment is waived, and you are not required to sign-on the Live Register.

Program Dates

What does a Cloud Engineer do?

Cloud technology underpins everything we experience online. From Netflix to Facebook, Reddit to the BBC, lots of companies around the world use Google Cloud and cloud services to power their businesses.

Cloud Platform Engineers perform the coding and software engineering that brings the architect’s vision to life. They merge traditional programming skills with specialized knowledge in one or more of the leading cloud platforms’ development environments to build, deploy and optimize cloud-based applications.

A Cloud Platform Engineer’s daily responsibilities and tasks include:

• Implement alerts that warn engineers when something is going wrong, or is likely to go wrong soon.
• Troubleshooting errors for cloud infrastructure
• Deploy software and/or configuration to fleets of computers based on defined rules and processes.
• Write and update documentation and knowledge base articles for internal and external readers
• Create cloud resources (cloud servers, databases, etc) from the web console, command line or using infrastructure as code tools like Terraform.

The application process

Ongoing benefits of Generation

A trusted network. You’ll join our ever-growing network of Generation graduates with access to continued learning and support from us.

Get involved and give back. There are many ways to get involved with spreading the Generation message once you graduate to help more people access life-changing careers.

Ongoing support. Use your new Generation network to find out about future career opportunities and troubleshoot challenges with each other.