Hoya Developers, a student-run organization at Georgetown University that gives students experience with computer programming, data analytics and other software skills, launched their inaugural software engineering boot camp Jan. 30.

The boot camp invites participants with little to no software engineering experience to learn about the basics of website and app development during twice-a-week meetings. In a post on LinkedIn, Hoya Developers said the semester-long course would seek to prepare students for internships and career opportunities in software engineering.  

Reed Uhlik (CAS ’25), president of Hoya Developers, said the boot camp seeks to complement undergraduate computer science courses by providing project-based software engineering experiences. 

“Hoya Devs was founded in the summer of 2023 in an effort to fill the gaps of Georgetown’s computer science curriculum by giving Georgetown students a way to gain internship-like experience coding websites and apps on project teams,” Uhlik wrote to The Hoya. 

According to the boot camp registration form, students will create five of their own software development projects — two of which must contain a personal element — that will become tangible demonstrations of their technical capabilities and creativity.

Such projects teach programs that are common in the software development industry, including Firebase, a mobile and web application development platform, and Node.js, a platform that helps website developers use the programming language JavaScript.

Leo Ledlow (SFS ’27), a project manager and boot camp instructor, said that compared to other computer science courses, the boot camp emphasizes skills with direct relevance to real-world software development opportunities. 

“We designed the boot camp to be Georgetown’s most relevant computer science course,” Ledlow wrote to The Hoya. “Over 12 weeks, students go from any level of experience to well-versed web and app developers and get the opportunity to work on real-world projects.”

According to Chris Tengey (CAS ’26), one of the club’s technical project managers, Hoya Developers welcomes students regardless of past technical or coding experience. 

“While a large portion of our club are computer science majors, learning to code is becoming more of a life skill, so we pull students from every background on campus,” Tengey wrote to The Hoya. 

Tengey added that he believes the diverse abilities and academic backgrounds of Hoya Developers members foster a collaborative environment where students can learn and work together. 

The boot camp registration form notes that once students complete the boot camp, they can get more involved with the club community. Throughout the semester, club members work in six to eight-person teams to design, code and deploy software engineering projects on a pro bono basis for local companies or other student clubs. 

Last semester, the club helped Hilltop Microfinance Initiative, a Georgetown undergraduate-run organization and the largest student-run microfinance initiative in the United States, redesign its website. Club members also created a new registration portal for NAIMUN, the world’s largest student-run Model United Nations conference for high school students, which is organized annually by the Georgetown International Relations Association. 

Matthew Jordan (CAS ’26) said working on a semester-long project offers developers the opportunity to improve their software development skills through coding a real-world project for clients. 

“Hoya Developers prioritizes the learning experience of our projects,” Jordan wrote to The Hoya. “We’ve built one of the strongest tech networks because our projects are great for developers, users, and inventors alike. We’re one of the few clubs that cut through all the red tape around startups — we take clients at any stage and get straight to developing their ideas,” 

Uhlik hopes that as the club enters its second semester, Hoya Developers will continue supporting students in learning software development tools and industry frameworks, in addition to helping students with career preparation through one-on-one mentorship and mock interviews.

“Driven by the scarcity of tech clubs on campus, we sought out to create the perfect club for students studying computer science — one where students can learn by doing, foster a greater sense of community, and be prepared to land lucrative internships,” Uhlik wrote.