4 ways of financing Le Wagon Montréal’s coding bootcamp (other than saving money)
If you’re considering joining Le Wagon’s intensive bootcamp in Montreal — either to change careers, start working as a freelancer, or launch your own startup — you may have started asking yourself some important financial questions, such as, “should I save money ahead of time?” or “are there any financial aid options available?”
If this sounds like you, this article could help! We turned to our trusty alumni to gather some tips and resources, listed below.
Getting a loan
Some of our graduates took out loans to help finance the course and successfully transition careers, including Daniela, a graduate from our winter 2019 batch. After finishing her studies in history, she became interested in photography and took some time to travel the world. Upon returning home to Montreal, she felt she needed to improve her tech skills to land a job, but didn’t have sufficient funds to go ahead with her plans. After successfully applying for a loan, she joined our Web Development course. A few months after finishing the curriculum, she was hired as a Narrative Designer at Ubisoft, allowing her to quickly repay the money she borrowed.
“Having to quit your job in order to invest in yourself and your future can sometimes be scary. My advice would be to not jump in without having a financial plan, or getting financial help. In my case, I took advantage of the partnership between Le Wagon and Caisse Desjardins des Technologies de l’information, and was lucky enough to get a loan. It’s definitely something I would recommend to anyone who wants to do Le Wagon.” — Daniela
As Daniela points out, Le Wagon Montréal has a partnership with Caisse Desjardins des Technologies de l’information. If you’re considering this option, note that this institution offers our students loans with low interest rates and a 6 month deferred payment plan.
Paying for school with your RRSP
Canadian citizens will probably be familiar with the acronyms RESP (Registered Education Savings Plans) and RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plans), but did you know it’s possible to withdraw from these funds to pay for school? Thanks to Canada’s Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP), you won’t pay taxes on the funds you withdraw as long as you repay them to your registered savings plan within 10 years. While participating in the LLP, taxpayers can withdraw up to $10,000 per calendar year and up to $20,000 total. It’s even possible to benefit from the LLP through your spouse’s RRSP. Just remember that this option is only available to students doing the full-time program. Philippe, an alumnus of our spring 2019 Web Development course, took advantage of this government incentive to change careers.
“If you’re planning on doing this, I would suggest you call your bank or whatever institution is handling your savings plan. They’ll send you all the forms you need to fill out and discuss the details with you.” — Philippe
Applying for local scholarships
If you want to make a career pivot, there might be a scholarship that can help you out. The Royal Bank of Canada, for example, has a scholarship program available to Canadian citizens and permanent residents between the ages of 15 and 29. This program can help you take the next steps towards learning skills for a new job (including coding!) We would suggest checking out this, as well as other programs in your city, to see which ones you might be eligible for.
Getting sponsored by your employer
The skills you’ll learn during our coding bootcamp will prepare you for a variety of career opportunities you might not have even anticipated yet, and the company you’re currently working for can stand to benefit. It’s worth checking with your boss to see if your company would be willing to sponsor your training. This was the case for James, who travelled from New Zealand to join our Winter 2020 batch.
“One of the main reasons I was able to negotiate with my employer was because I got some external government funding for further study. Once I had that funding, they were much more responsive to letting me take leave and to contributing financially (as they are essentially getting new skills/training at a discount).” - James
Something to note is that our bootcamp is recognized by the Québec government’s Commission des partenaires du marché du travail and is therefore admissible to the 1% law (Loi sur les compétences).
Extra tips
Learn to code while keeping your income: join a part-time batch
Even with all the suggestions above, we know that not all working professionals can leave their job or give up their income. If that’s the case for you, know that the part-time bootcamp is a solution. The part-time format requires you to be on campus Tuesday and Thursday nights plus during the day on Saturdays, so you can still keep your day job or stay busy with freelancing projects while completing the course. The only difference between the full-time and part-time format is that the latter is spread out over 24 weeks instead of 9.
Take advantage of our flexible payment options
To give you a hand, we also offer payment plans allowing you to pay in 2 or 3 installments.
Last but not least, your tuition is tax deductible. We’ll issue tax documents (T2202A and Relevé 8 for Québec) for you to be able to claim tuition fees on your tax return.
Want to discuss these financing options with us in further detail? Feel free to book a call or email us!
Originally published at https://www.lewagon.com.
