Frequently asked questions
The things people ask before they join, answered directly. Can’t find yours? Ask us.
The program
What is Branchout?
Branchout is a free, self-paced educational fellowship for students and self-taught developers. You choose one of six tracks, work through it at your own speed, and build production-style projects in a small peer pod with support from volunteer mentors.
What does “self-paced” actually mean?
There are no class times, and nothing is graded against the clock. Your pod has a target finish date so you can plan together, but missing it costs nothing. You move as quickly or slowly as your schedule allows, and you can pause and resume whenever you need to.
How many hours a week do I need?
There is no minimum. A few focused hours a week is enough to make steady progress, and you can do more when you have time. You set the pace.
What if I have no experience at all?
Start with the first stage, Plant roots. You begin at your current level, and you join a pod of students at a similar stage when you are ready for a project.
How is Branchout different from a coding bootcamp?
There is no tuition, no fixed curriculum and no cohort you must keep pace with. Instead of lectures, you work on production-style project briefs with a peer pod and a volunteer mentor, on your own timeline.
Can I switch tracks later?
Yes, at any time and at no cost. If your goals change, you can move between Full-Stack, AI & Machine Learning, Mobile, DevOps, Frontend and Data.
Is there an AI or machine learning track?
Yes. AI & Machine Learning is one of the six tracks. It covers preparing data, training and evaluating models honestly, and serving a model behind an API.
What is a pod?
A pod is a group of up to six students working on the same project brief. You plan the work together, review each other’s code and keep each other moving. Leading a pod is optional.
Cost and commitments
What does Branchout cost?
Nothing. The whole program is free: tracks, pods, mentor support, project briefs and the certificate of completion. No card is required to join. Nothing on Branchout is for sale at the moment.
Is Branchout a paid job or a guaranteed route to one?
No. Branchout is an unpaid, educational program built for learning and building a portfolio. It does not promise a job, income or academic credit.
Do I get a certificate?
Yes. When a mentor passes your pod’s project, you get a free certificate: a code that employers can use to check your work. Everything you build also stays in your portfolio, which you fully own.
Can I pause or leave?
Yes. You can pause, resume or leave at any time without penalty, and you keep full ownership of the project work you completed.
Legal and academic credit
Can I use Branchout for school credit?
Possibly, but only your school can decide. Credit rules and approval processes vary by institution and country, and Branchout is not affiliated with any college, university or school board. We can provide documentation of your participation for your school to review.
Is it legal for the fellowship to be unpaid?
It depends on where you live and how the program is structured. Branchout is run from British Columbia, where anyone doing work a business would otherwise pay for counts as an employee. So the program is built so students never do work for Branchout or anyone else: projects are learning briefs, students own what they build, and nothing on Branchout is for sale. It also meets the trainee test in Ontario and the primary beneficiary test in the United States. This is general information, not legal advice.
Mentors, employers and your data
Who are the mentors?
Mentors are people working in the industry who volunteer their time to answer questions, review work and share how engineering teams operate. Mentorship is educational guidance, not supervision of employment.
Can companies hire from Branchout?
Companies can request recruiter access from their Branchout account. We review each request; approved recruiters can post roles and review the students who apply. Students are never obliged to apply.
How can an employer check a Branchout certificate?
Ask the student for their verification code and enter it on the verify page. It shows their name, the projects they finished with dates, and what the mentor scored and said. It never shows contact details, and students can switch their page off.
What happens to my resume if I upload one?
It is stored privately in your account, where only you and Branchout staff can open it, so you can reuse it when you apply. Your profile is filled in from it inside your browser, and its text isn’t sent to any AI service. You can ask us to delete it at any time.
Who runs Branchout?
Branchout is run by its founder: the program, the platform and the partnerships with employers. Volunteer mentors give their time to students.