The two-day event saw students design and build an app to help improve their experience at school. It was a real joy to come in on the second day and see the students’ excitement as they got back to building their apps, learning about the range of tech careers available to them, whether as a developer, a project manager or designer.
The teams used Bubble,a no-code platform that allowed them to build their apps quickly. Bubble is a product of Million Labs, whose goal is to help one million start-ups get their ideas off the ground and break down the barriers of technology. We really admire this fantastic goal and the minds behind it. It was great to see the students’ passion for learning as they got acquainted with Bubble and brought their app ideas to life.
On the final afternoon, students pitched their ideas to a panel of judges. Some pretty innovative ideas had been put together in just a few short days, ranging from apps that would help people navigate their way around a new school, to apps that would improve mental health and fitness. Everyone did a great job and we were lucky enough to present some of the prizes to the winning teams – congratulations to all!
To round things out, students were treated to lightning talks from industry experts like Lee Jones of Microsoft and Sky’s Manu Magalhaes. They inspired the students to consider working in tech, gave them pointers on how to kickstart their careers and shared a few day-to-day realities about our industry.
It’s so important to encourage young people to pursue their dreams, whether it be a career in tech or something else, and we love to get involved where we can. We hope to be invited to be part of more No Code Appathon events in the future.
Thanks to Clare Streets and Dudley College for inviting us, and to the students for their enthusiasm and wonderful ideas.