Canadian Hacker School Reopens, Makes Peace With Government

As the world economy struggles, more and more professionals are looking to join one of the few industries that’s still growing: software development. People seeking to change careers — or beef up their existing code skills — are increasingly turning to the six- to 12-week web development crash-courses commonly known as “bootcamps.” These programs are now springing up everywhere from San Francisco to France to Israel.

But one such camp, the Toronto-based Bitmaker Labs, recently ran afoul of an Ontario law regulating vocational schools. Pending an investigation by the provincial government, the company decided to suspend its $9,000 program, leaving its 42 current students hanging.

Fortunately for Bitmaker Labs and its students, the company announced last week that it has received an exemption from the regulation and will resume teaching classes. Bitmaker was saved by an existing legal loophole. “We have a high standard for entry,” explains Bitmaker co-founder Matt Gray. “Only 26 percent of the students who apply for our program get accepted. When they looked at our program, it sounded more like a professional development program than a vocational program, which gave us an exemption.”