Julien Barbier

Julien Barbier is the co-founder and CEO of Holberton School, a revolutionary new type of software engineering school that "has no teachers, no lectures, and no upfront tuition" (Fast Company*) and "helps inexperienced programmers land jobs at Apple" (CNN**). It is not only disrupting the education landscape; it is literally changing the face of Silicon Valley. While the rest of the technology ecosystem struggles with diversity, Holberton school is 30 percent female and 50+ percent minority (New York Times***). Our innovative project-based, hands-on educational model is supported by tech leaders Jeff Weiner (CEO of LinkedIn), Jerry Yang (founder of Yahoo!), and Solomon Hykes (founder of Docker). Students learn while tackling relevant real-world projects, supported by tech industry mentors. Our approach works: Holberton graduates land software engineering jobs at the most-competitive tech companies in the world -- not just Apple, but also Tesla, LinkedIn, Google and NASA -- complete with high starting salaries and an incredible network of tech leaders and peers. Holberton opens up these coveted positions to a highly diverse set of high-potential students insufficiently served by traditional high schools and colleges and/or lacking the resources to attend pricey prestigious schools. R&B singer Ne-YO and actor, producer, and social activist Priyanka Chopra are so enthusiastic about our potential to bring more minorities into the tech sector that they joined the board of trustees (Business Insider****, New York Times*****).

Julien Barbier has been working in the technology industry for over 7 years. Julien has held various positions including software engineer, product manager, and now co-founder and CEO of Holberton School. Julien's experience in the industry has given him a unique perspective on education and how to best prepare students for careers in tech. Julien's work has been featured in numerous publications, including Fast Company*, CNN**, and the New York Times***. Julien is passionate about making education accessible to everyone and is committed to diversity in tech. Julien is changing the face of Silicon Valley one student at a time.