Startup Institute, the Boston-based venture helping professionals develop innovation skills and mindsets, just announced it will start offering a new part-time program. The part-time option will be an addition to its existing full-time program and fundamental classes. And the company hopes the new offering will give people who want to keep their full-time jobs a chance to pivot or progress in their careers, just like students studying at Startup Institute full time.
"It really came from conversations we’ve been having with people for years," Dana Cordova, chief marketing officer at Startup Institute, told us. "It's a big decision for people to quit their jobs, to make a massive leap of faith. We're opening Startup Institute up to people who’d love to do it, but can’t take that risk."
In August, Startup Institute shut down its Chicago program--a move that followed the departure of its CEO, Diane Hessan, in the spring, and the 2015 shuttering of a program in Berlin and a planned program in London. At the time the Chicago program closed, Cordova told BostInno's sister publication, Chicago Inno, that the company would be focusing on launching new products in its remaining markets of Boston and New York.
In a follow-up story, she told BostInno that Startup Institute would focus on achieving profitability. General Assembly, a New York-based competitor, has raised more than $100 million in venture capital, while Startup Institute's total capital remains less than $5 million.
Connie Steward, Startup Institute's Chief Curriculum Officer, said in a statement, "The continuing education market consists of a variety of learners, and we were only serving a small portion of them. We know from our admissions interviews and other sources that a growing number of people want options for learning skills for the innovation sector without quitting their full-time jobs. We needed to find a way to deliver our program to this broader audience."
According to Cordova, the price of the part-time program will be exactly the same as the full-time offering, which is $9,100 for students applying by November 7. It will also comprise the same number of course hours.
The part-time program will have students meet two nights a week to focus on skills, in addition to Saturdays, when they will cover the core curriculum. It is slated to start January 7, 2017, in Boston. Startup Institute then plans to roll it out in April in New York.
This article has been updated. Images via Startup Institute.
