Starting on Monday (10/26), many of the changes to the school that rolled out to full-time students and other part-time cohorts at the end of September will affect you as you move to your next unit. We want to let you know how these changes will impact you, since they will affect each cohort a bit differently depending on where the cohort is in the Lambda School journey.

<aside> 👉 For Lambda students starting Labs on 10/26, here’s what’s new for you:

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Lambda Leadership

Employers are looking for new hires who not only have technical knowledge, but also the ability to communicate clearly and work effectively together on professional teams. Lambda Leadership helps you build your leadership skills, strengthen your technical skills, and expand your network.

What’s changing?

There are two main components to the Lambda Leadership Program that we’re introducing on 10/26:

• Peer Mentorship is designed to give students the opportunity to both be matched with a peer mentor and be peer mentors themselves. Research shows that this type of social learning can help students solidify their knowledge and build critical team skills - and that these specific skills are in high demand among hiring managers in the industry.
• Track Teams are made up of students from each cohort in a track, and will replace the current cohort stand-up groups. On Track Teams, students will rotate into various leadership roles. In most cases, the Track Team will become your Build Sprint team.

<aside> 💡 We’ve been piloting both of these programs for several months, and based on student feedback before and after launch, we’ve made some updates, including schedule adjustments, adding more mentor skills training and refining content for Track Teams

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<aside> 📚 While we’re rolling out the Lambda Leadership Program this fall, we’re also in the process of doubling our number of instructors across Web and Data Science to provide extra technical support to students. These additional instructors will enable Lambda School to offer additional support hours and thematic Q&A sessions. As we are still in the process of hiring additional instructors, Labs students will receive additional support from TPLs and APLs.

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How this affects you and others starting Labs on 10/26:

• You’ll be matched with a mentee and serve as a peer mentor to a student earlier in their Lambda journey. With your mentee, you’ll talk through projects, answer questions, and practice technical interview skills. Before you become a peer mentor, we’ll provide training on best practices to set you up for success. Research shows that this type of social learning can help students solidify their knowledge and build critical team skills, which will help you in your job search.
• Please note: iOS students will not be matched with a peer mentee.
• Please note PT students who flex into cohorts that start 10/26 or prior will still have the ability to opt-out of the shortened school schedule. However, we will no longer be able to offer opting-out of the shortened school schedule for cohorts starting after 10/26 for PT.
• To get the most out of the Labs experience, you’ll continue to work with your Labs project team instead of being assigned to a Track Team.
• You'll receive additional support from APLs (Associate Project Leads) and TPLs (Technical Project Leads) in Labs.