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Per Scholas aims to broaden access to IT careers by combining tuition-free, employer-aligned technology training with professional development and connections to employers. Its reports document diverse enrollment and selected graduate outcomes, but do not establish that every learner gets a job or that the organization has changed hiring across the IT industry.
How Per Scholas connects training to IT hiring
Per Scholas describes a three-part workforce model: teach technology skills with employer needs in view, prepare learners for professional life, and connect them with employer partners. Partners may hire graduates, help shape or support customized training, mentor learners, volunteer, or fund programs. That involvement can create routes into jobs, but it is not a guarantee of employment or evidence that employers control all curricula.
- Technology training: Courses are intended to build skills relevant to technology roles and employer needs. Per Scholas’s 2025 prospectus lists IT Support, Software Engineering, Cybersecurity, and Cloud DevOps among its training areas. Offerings, schedules, locations, admission requirements, and available seats can change; prospective learners should check current program information.
- Professional development and career support: Learners receive support alongside technical instruction, according to Per Scholas’s employer-facing description of its model.
- Employer connections: Partner activity may include recruiting graduates, contributing to customized programs, volunteering, or providing funding. The form of participation varies by partner and program.
Per Scholas explains its employer-facing model at Why hire a Per Scholas graduate?; its 2025 prospectus outlines training areas.
What Per Scholas reports about learners and outcomes
Per Scholas’s 2024 annual report presents the following measures for 2023. They are organization-reported figures, not independent evaluations of the program.
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| Measure | Per Scholas-reported result | Period and context |
|---|---|---|
| Learners trained | 4,676 | 2023 |
| Learners identifying as people of color | 87% | 2023 |
| Learners identifying as women | 43% | 2023 |
| Learners who graduated | 85% | 2023 |
| Graduates who launched careers | 2,648 | 2023 |
| Collective first-year wages for those graduates | More than $127 million | 2023; reported collectively |
The same report says Per Scholas had trained more than 25,000 learners since its 1995 founding. That cumulative milestone is distinct from the 2023 training and career-launch figures. See the 2024 annual report.
What the reported rates do—and do not—show
The 2023 figures suggest that Per Scholas reached a substantially diverse group of learners and that many completed training. They do not show how many graduates obtained jobs across all programs, how long placement took, or whether a particular learner will secure an IT role. “Launched careers” is the report’s wording; it should not be treated as a universal placement rate.
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Some results apply to specific delivery models, not the full organization. Per Scholas reports that 90% of 144 learners in its Wilkes Community College rural initiative secured jobs within 12 months. For its New York satellite model, launched in 2021, it reports an 87% graduation rate and 83% job attainment within 12 months of graduation. These figures concern different cohorts and settings and should not be combined or used as organization-wide rates.
For comparison, Per Scholas’s 2023 annual report presents 2022 figures: 85% of learners identified as people of color, 41% as women, and 85% graduated; more than 3,700 learners trained and more than 2,100 graduates launched careers at an average wage of $50,000. These are reported for 2022 and should not be substituted for the separate 2023 measures. The report also quotes TEKsystems executive Faith Johnson: “We have been training diverse talent for 28 years, not just because we believe it is the right thing to do, but because we know it makes good business sense.” That is a partner’s stated view, not independent proof of a specific business effect. See the 2023 annual report.
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Which companies participate?
Named partners illustrate that employer participation takes different forms and varies by reporting period. Per Scholas’s 2024 annual report says CDW hired alumni in several cities and supported learners through volunteer events and funding. Its 2022 annual report describes TEKsystems hiring graduates, investing in programming, and helping expand training. That report also names Barclays, Wells Fargo, Google, AWS, Salesforce, Workday, and Comcast NBCUniversal in distinct partnership roles; it does not mean every company hires graduates in the same way or currently has openings.
Per Scholas reported more than 850 employers hiring graduates in its 2022 annual report. This is a historical figure, not a current employer count. The reports provide examples of relationships, not a current, comprehensive list of employers with open roles. See the 2022 annual report and 2024 annual report.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to assess Per Scholas as a route into IT
For someone weighing a training program, the practical questions are local and specific: which courses are currently open, what skills and career support they include, which employers participate in that location or program, and what outcome measure applies to that cohort. A reported result from a rural initiative or satellite classroom may not predict results for a different course or city.
Per Scholas’s employer page also cites a 2020 MDRC WorkAdvance study, saying participants earned $6,300 more annually than a randomized control group of equally qualified people motivated to seek IT career training. This is a figure Per Scholas presents in its summary; the employer page is not the original study, so the number alone does not establish the study’s methods or justify broader claims about causation. Readers evaluating that comparison should consult the original MDRC study before drawing conclusions.
What “redefines IT hiring” can reasonably mean
Per Scholas’s approach addresses one part of the talent pipeline: who can access training and how graduates may connect with employers. Its reported learner demographics, training activity, and selected career outcomes provide examples of that work. They do not by themselves demonstrate changed hiring practices across the IT industry, establish a national placement rate, or show that every graduate is hired. The distinction matters: widening access to preparation is a meaningful intervention, while evidence of industry-wide hiring change requires broader outcome data.
Per Scholas describes its talent-pipeline work in its 2025 technology report and its satellite model overview.
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