Welcome to the Lambda community! We’re thrilled that you’ve taken the first step toward changing your life and your career by applying to Lambda School. By now, you should have completed our five-step checklist of things to do before your first day of class, including checking your computer specs, committing to the class schedule, setting expectations with your loved ones, setting up your workspace, and completing the precourse work for your chosen track. Now, it’s time to start meeting your new classmates and instructors, and get connected to your new Lambda network!

1. Meet your instructors 

Start by meeting a few of the web development and Data Science instructors who you’ll be learning from everyday at Lambda School.

Elissa Thomas, Computer Science instructor :

Sean Chen, Full Stack Web instructor:

Jon-Cody Sokoll, Data Science instructor:

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You can meet more of your new instructors here.

2. Explore the Lambda School Slack workspace

You’ll receive an email invitation to your new Lambda School Student Slack workspace the Friday before Lambda Launch begins. Don’t forget that attendance at Lambda Launch is mandatory and failure to attend may result in you being dropped from the course.

After you join Lambda’s Slack workspace, you’ll be able to join your cohort’s private channel, browse the public announcements, help, and location-specific channels, get inspired to land that offer letter in the #Hired channel, and find friends who share your interests by joining channels for plant enthusiasts, home cooks, video game fans, dog owners, and many more. If you don’t find a channel related to your specific interest, create one and invite your new friends to join! 

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3. Find local (and virtual meetups)‍
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Before the COVID-19 pandemic prevented us from being able to socialize IRL, we hosted monthly in-person meetups for students and alumni across the United States. However, being unable to meet in person hasn’t stopped our creative community from learning and engaging with one another via virtual meetups. Find out what’s happening in your area by searching your #city and #state slack channels. Can’t find a local meetup in your area? Volunteer to be a Meetup Coordinator and organize a virtual event or coffee hang out for students near you.

4. Follow Lambda School on social media‍
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Keep up with what’s happening with Lambda in the news and around the web by following us on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, liking us on Facebook, and viewing our repositories on GitHub. 

By following Lambda on social media, you’ll get daily inspiration in your feed from Lambda alumni who have been hired at companies like Twitter, Best Buy, Nike, and Uber, along with updates from our leadership team, and resources to help you prep for your new career.

5. Make connections 

Now that you’re connected to your new cohort on Slack, start meeting your new classmates! These are the people that you’ll be learning, collaborating, and building with over the next 9-18 months, so introduce yourself! Your classmates can offer support when Lambda School gets tough, will help motivate you to push yourself, and can offer help and feedback when you need it. Plus, they’ll be a great resource when you begin the job hunt. Some experts say that up to 70 percent of jobs are filled through networking, so it’s in your best interest to start building rapport with your cohort now. 

6. Meet your mentor 
One feature of Lambda School’s coding programs that set us apart from bootcamps and self-service courses is our local mentorship program. After opting into the program, you’ll be paired with a local professional in your field who will help you polish your resume, build your network, and identify job opportunities in your area. You’ll meet with your mentor for 45-60 minutes for ten weeks and you’ll be asked to give Lambda feedback along the way to be sure your mentor is a good fit for your needs. Many Lambda graduates have even been hired by their mentor or a connection they met through the program!

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7. Join our expansive alumni network

Lambda School's alumni network spans coast-to-coast and, increasingly, around the world. Our alumni share a passion for learning and a drive to succeed. At Lambda, we serve our alumni network by providing them access to continuing education opportunities. Looking for a new opportunity beyond your first job placement? We provide our alumni with direct access to our Career Coaches and to our Job Placement teams. 

We also invite our alumni to in-person and virtual meetups to introduce them to new professional opportunities and broader communities of professionals within their industries. Our alumni serve current students by acting as mentors, by providing interview and code review support, by speaking to industry-specific topics at virtual meetups, and by inviting our students to tour their offices.

We’re so happy you’ve chosen Lambda School to launch your new career and we welcome you to the Lambda network. See you in class!