dalibrandi

I noticed that as well, strange issue. We'll look into it.

I like this a lot too; it's similar to an idea we tossed around at one point, where Codefund becomes a non-profit scholarship fund and we recruit donors at a higher level, i.e. larger average donations. Still in the cards, so we'll see after Adrian and I get a chance to go through and discuss all of this awesome feedback.

Totally, it encourages networking of like minded individuals as well, which could turn out to be a long lasting support system if the community is continually fostered. Really like the early ideas floating around this model, seems like there is good potential here.

this is really interesting. regardless of how our first campaign goes, we're going to seriously examine this as a possible iteration/pivot of our service. We've encountered a lot of people that like the idea of getting more people to learn programming, but a decent amount of hesitation to the current model.

big fan of moving away from anything that buckets individuals into "you are deserving, you are not." creating a group around a specific coding goal provides a nice layer of abstraction away from the individual.

I agree that we'd need to find a way of discerning the truly motivated from those that are just curious to learn programming. We don't want anyone to go through the process of fundraising and attending a bootcamp only to realize that they don't like programming.

Based on our current model, a fundraiser wouldn't have to pay back anyone that contributed funds toward their campaign. So we'd avoid that murky mess that comes with having a thousand micro loans to cover your tuition.

Adrian and I need to really think about some of the harmful effects brought on by the campaign. It's honestly something we haven't thought about too much, so I'm really grateful that you brought it up. Definitely deserves a lot of attention.

Thanks for pointing that out, we're working on fixing it.

As compared to gofundme, our terms are similar in that there are no penalties for missed deadlines and the fundraiser gets to keep any amount they raise. It didn't seem right to reject donations just because the goal wasn't met. If a fundraiser can raise any amount, then it makes their future debt much more manageable.

We've been tossing around the idea of removing the deadline, but because of the gap of time between acceptance and your first tuition payment, we inserted a deadline to focus donations in our limited timeframe. In the future, we can encourage applicants to create campaigns as quickly as possible, in order to maximize the amount of time before the first tuition payment. In theory, fundraisers can continue their campaigns until their full tuition is covered, where a portion of the total is sent directly to the school in order to cover that particular payment period. At the very least, it will buy fundraisers more time to cover the total cost of their needs.

Very true, especially if the donations are mostly coming from friends and family. Codefund will require users to demonstrate need, in order for us to fulfill our mission of providing aid to those individuals who truly need it. If we're going to bolster and diversify the tech industry, then we need to address the problem of bootcamp tuition funding, which currently, is very expensive for the average individual with no programming experience looking to make a dramatic career change.

If I'm understanding your argument correctly, you believe that certain crowdfunding sites should make their fundraisers aware of the potentially harmful psychological effects of a failed campaign, both on the side of the fundraiser as well as the donor.

So yes, I agree that there are potentially negative effects that could result from a failed campaign. People put a lot of effort into raising the funds necessary to pursue their dreams. A failed campaign can be devastating to someone who is emotionally invested in their future plans.

However, I don't believe that should stop entrepreneurs from trying to solve the problem, especially in this case. Codefund exists because no one else has presented a better solution, and I believe that the existence of an imperfect solution is a greater good than the lack there of, despite potentially negative psychological effects.

As a company, we can do a better job coaching fundraisers about the reality of their situation, in an effort to regulate their expectations. We can and we should do that much at least. That being said, I don't think closing the doors on educational crowdfunding is the answer. I don't know what the ideal solution is, but Adrian and I are committed to iterating toward that vision based on your feedback.

First off, congrats and good luck on the journey.

I also have some misgivings about this particular form of aid distribution. It's very possible that some extremely deserving candidates miss out on aid because they aren't the best at marketing. In that regard, we offer some basic marketing suggestions and efforts around their campaign, and it's something we hope to improve upon in the future.

I don't necessarily think Codefund is THE solution, but I think that it's A solution, and it's one that we can keep iterating on together.

FAFSA isn't an option for bootcamp applicants. Most (if not all) of these schools aren't accredited, therefore, the options for financial aid are extremely limited. We're played around with the idea of targeting larger scale donors who would donate amounts that we could spread evenly across all applicants.

Definitely agree with you though, there is a gamey element to it that I would like to do away with. However, I will gladly entertain that solution for now considering that the potential social benefit far outweighs the cons of it being a contest.

Definitely something we've thought about, and it's similar to what Upstart offers bootcamp applicants. Our only hesitation was that it's a debt-based solution, which is something that we want to avoid at all costs. Contributing to the growing student debt amount doesn't seem like the right move. Taking the step to change your life through empowering yourself with skills should be easier, and we want to reduce roadblocks as much as possible.

Hi Hacker News,

I want to introduce Codefund, a crowdfunding platform for aspiring coders. We have built a platform that enables users to crowdfund their tuition after being accepted into a programming bootcamp.

Our first campaign is now live, and we're fundraising for Rose Afriyie, who has been accepted into the Starter League (http://www.starterleague.com/) in Chicago. She's hoping to learn web development in order to continue building mRelief, a social services app she is developing in partnership with the City of Chicago.

Check out her campaign here: https://www.codefund.io/campaign/rose

twitter: @codefunding

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Codefund is the bootstrapped project of Adrian Moses and Dana Alibrandi. Adrian is a software engineer with a keen mind for good products, and I'm a product manager filling in the gaps. We're aware that there are holes in our product, but we feel like this platform is something that should exist in the world. Maybe its current iteration isn't the ideal, but if you agree that we should find a way to help diversify and bolster the tech industry, then we'd love to hear your feedback on how to improve.

And most importantly, donate if you believe in the campaign and want to see Codefund grow :)