Building Careers through Real-World Tech Projects
How the Prometheus Social Impact Capstone Program helped Marcy Lab Fellows develop critical skills and achieve job opportunities
Prometheus’ educator partner, The Marcy Lab School, is a Brooklyn, New York based rigorous yet adorable college alternative that prepares underrepresented young adults to launch careers in tech. To support their mission, Prometheus curated a 10-week Social Impact Capstone Program, providing Marcy Lab Fellows with real-world project experience at the end of their 2022-23 Fellowship. The Fellows developed five bespoke web applications for nonprofit organizations, while Prometheus provided hands-on project management support as well as additional learning and development sessions on project management basics, client interactions, and preparing for project delivery.
The impact of the Capstone was profound; 100% of Fellows strengthened their technical skills in high-demand web development frameworks, and gained critical leadership skills through team collaboration and client communication. Moreover, the program significantly boosted the Fellows' confidence. A pre-post-survey revealed 25% confidence growth in API development, 22% confidence increase in UX design, and 32% confidence improvement in client relationship management.
This partnership not only provided essential support to the nonprofit organizations Fellows worked with, but also enriched the professional and personal growth of the Fellows. As one Capstone participant stated, “Not only did Prometheus provide me with a deeper sense of purpose, allowing me to make tangible contributions to social betterment, but it also strengthened my expertise as a software engineer and granted me invaluable real-world experiences.”
Within one year of the program, seven out of ten Capstone participants received full-time roles, apprenticeships, or internships in the tech and social impact sector, fulfilling Marcy’s mission to propel Fellows into financially rewarding and purpose-driven careers. As an organization dedicated to serving students without four-year college degrees from low-income backgrounds, these employment opportunities are life-changing.
To learn more about the Prometheus’ Social Impact Capstone Program with The Marcy Lab School, check out the cohort spotlight.