How do you plan on making your students well rounded in the way that traditional colleges are supposed to?
Re grade: It's project base, for each project we have a mandatory core to build, and a lot of options for those who would be faster than others. For each project you will get a % completion, from 0 to 200% (with all options).
At the end you will get a certificate (paper and digital). The digital certificate will be issued in a secure environment (256 bits encryption and 2FA) and inserted into a public blockchain (the technology behind bitcoin) so that any employer can instantly verify the validity of the certificate.
Re well rounded: on top of our curriculum focused on technical skills, we insist a lot on soft skills. Students will also interact with the local community (local startups, mentors, etc...). We also have mentors who will come monthly asking questions like "Does computer science make us better human beings" :)
"Holberton School offers a truly innovative approach to education: focus on building reliable applications and scalable systems" -- hum.
EDIT: Found the discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10182936
Code is one of the many skills solid software engineers must be great at; and we believe only real projects such as the ones we do at Holberton School can build up the real experience and skill variety recruiters expect from solid engineers. More and more companies are taking on a "no-bootcamp" policy, because the bootcamp trainee are saturating the job market, and recruiters are noticing they don't fit the bill as well as students with project history.
Valerie Tching, Senior Sfotware Engineer at LinkedIn.
