Coding program helps single Highbridge mom make nearly five times her salary

A single mother in Highbridge says she was able to multiply her salary by learning to code with the help of a company called Pursuit.

News 12 Staff

Oct 31, 2019, 10:59 AM

Updated 1,637 days ago

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A single mother in Highbridge says she was able to multiply her salary by learning to code with the help of a company called Pursuit.
Caroline Cruz was an accounting assistant making $22,000 a year until she heard about Pursuit.

The rigorous yearlong program transforms the lives of low-income adults and trains them to become software developers.
Cruz, who grew up on public assistance, is just one of their many success stories.

"As a software engineer, my salary is $100,000 a year,” says Cruz.

She says she is now able to take her daughter on the vacation of her dreams next year for her birthday.
Pursuits co-founder Jukay Hsu says the program is coding and software based.
"We're focused on coding and software engineering because it's such in-demand kind of skill in field,” says Hsu.
Hsu also says the program has no upfront costs. Only upon your success in getting a job do you pay a percentage of your salary for the next three years, and they help in that process too.

"We work with the Partnership for New York City and launched a partnership with them to work with starts-up and large companies here in New York to create positions like what Caroline did with Pymetrics,” says Hsu.

They also aid in career support in thinking about how to navigate the industry, promotions and the future.
Cruz says with the help of Pursuit she now has the life she'd only dreamed about before.

"Yeah, I’ve got to say it's all thanks to Pursuit," says Cruz.


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