INIT empowers underserved communities to launch careers in technology, closing the talent gap and helping individuals achieve economic mobility
join our community!INIT is a non-profit organization empowering underserved communities to launch careers in technology. We establish INIT chapters at schools, colleges, and municipalities, providing free experiential learning and career development programs for everyone. We also partner with employers to foster a diverse talent pipeline into the tech industry, closing the talent gap and helping low-income individuals achieve economic mobility.
INIT was founded by the student and alumni leaders behind the successful UPE student organization at FIU, who have helped thousands of students land jobs in tech since 2014. Seeing the need to help more students and the opportunity to scale, our team decided to start our very own non-profit to drive this work moving forward.
INIT is supported by the Knight Foundation, Lab22c, Venture Miami, and academic institutions in Miami-Dade County including FIU, MDC, FMU, and more.
Originally as UPE, INIT developed a successful pipeline of diverse talent in partnership with academia and industry. We helped prepare thousands of students through our very own experiential learning and career programs, helping them land interviews and placing them in job opportunities. Thousands of INIT members now work at top companies such as Google, Microsoft, Meta, and many more.
As we evolve into a non-profit, we're now scaling this proven model and bringing it to other underserved communities, impacting even more individuals and growing our pipeline of diverse tech talent into industry.
Check out our first wave of chapters! More coming soon...
INIT chapters carry out our signature experiential learning and career development programs within their communities. These programs attract thousands of individuals annually, helping them gain technical skills, work on projects, improve their resume, prepare for interviews, connect with industry, and much more. ShellHacks, hosted by our INIT FIU chapter, is the largest hackathon in Florida and brings together 1,500 students to innovate each year.