Apple Plans to Offer New 'iOS Foundation Program' at Five Universities in Italy

[MacRumors]

Apple this week opened its first iOS Developer Center at the University of Naples Federico II's new San Giovanni a Teduccio campus, located in a coastal suburb east of Naples, Italy, and the company is already planning on expanding the initiative due to its popularity.

At an event celebrating the opening of the Developer Center that was documented by Italian site Maccitynet.it, Apple's vice president of environment, policy, and social initiatives Lisa Jackson told gathered students about an upcoming iOS Foundation Program, designed to teach many more students about the fundamentals of iOS app development.

A shorter version of the longer course at the iOS Developer Center, the iOS Foundation Program will see Apple teaming up with "at least five universities" across the Campania region to offer a three to four week course in app development. Apple expects the iOS Foundation Program to be available to 800 students during its first year, expanding from there.

Jackson shared few details on the upcoming program, but said it is aimed at introducing students to the iOS ecosystem.

It's a great opportunity to magnify the wonderful beginning here. It's a great opportunity to work with students and teach across the region and advance our work and the work you're doing at the first academy in Europe.

With both the iOS Developer Center and the iOS Foundation Program, Apple is hoping to give students the skills and understanding they need to transition from the education they receive in school to actually developing an app. According to Jackson, it's important to Apple to "unlock the potential of young developers" and make sure the app economy is open to everyone by giving young people the "crucial skills and support" to get into app development.

Apple's first official iOS Developer Center opened to students yesterday, with 100 students able to attend starting this week and 100 additional students starting in three months. Apple had thousands of students apply for just 200 available spots, which is why the company is planning to team up with additional universities.

The nine month course will teach students how to write code and create apps for Apple's iOS devices. Thanks to scholarships created in partnership with the University of Naples, students will attend for free and will be provided with current-generation MacBooks, iPhones, and iPads.

While the iOS Developer Center and the iOS Foundation Program are limited to Italy at this time, it stands to reason that Apple could potentially expand the experience to additional countries should it prove successful. Apple has also recently introduced Swift Playgrounds, designed to help children and beginning coders learn to use the company's Swift programming language to develop apps.

Article Link: Apple Plans to Offer New 'iOS Foundation Program' at Five Universities in Italy

 

[32828870]

Seems great but how about, I don't know, producing new Mac's? Might help these programmers, too.

 

[pier]

How about caring about actual current developers instead of future ones?

 

[developer13245]

Apple does not care about current developers... This is all PR BS...

 

[CBJammin103]

Apple does not care about current developers... This is all PR BS...

How so? (Honest question... I'm a developer and not sure what you mean exactly)

 

[radiology]

So fashionable...I'm sure the students wil also come up with ideas for new bands that Tim and Angela will love!

 

[Mr. Dee]

I think most probably joined for the free hardware. These things ain't cheap.

 

[Avieshek]

So, where will you develop them? On a Windows machine I guess.

 

[Feenician]

So, where will you develop them? On a Windows machine I guess.

I can only imagine this made more sense in your head than it does on the page.

 

[friedkimchi]

I think it's mostly the non-developers that are clamoring for updated Macs? For xcode, even the MB seems to be enough horsepower.

I wonder if these universities are opening up spots to international students to join the program? Would love to join an Apple accredited program and visit Italy at the same time, maybe meet the mafia as well?

 

[2457282]

I wonder why Apple is partnering with Italy? I mean, it could have done this pretty much anywhere in the world. India for example would be attractive because they are trying to open that market and because it has lots of technology focused programs. Or say the USA, their biggest market and their origin.

I have no issue with Italy, so this is just an open question as to what Apples thought process was to select Italy over any where else. And then why Naples vs anywhere else within Italy?

 

[villicodelirant]

I wonder why Apple is partnering with Italy? I mean, it could have done this pretty much anywhere in the world. India for example would be attractive because they are trying to open that market and because it has lots of technology focused programs. Or say the USA, their biggest market and their origin.

I have no issue with Italy, so this is just an open question as to what Apples thought process was to select Italy over any where else. And then why Naples vs anywhere else within Italy?

Here is a theory.

Fact: right now the local officials really need to spin their own reality distortion field and make the electorate believe that the much-promised "recovery of the south" is actually happening (it isn't and it never will in our lifetimes).

Fact: building a vocational training center is much cheaper than building a cyclotron, but thanks to the Apple brand it gives almost the same return in publicity. Jobs' RDF still works from beyond the grave and will for quite a while.

Fact: Apple can use the cheap publicity it itself gets.

Fact: Apple can totally use a training center that churns out developers at home with Apple technology, and consequently, a injection of fresh apps on the Store. Especially if it's basically free (heavily subsidized with public money).

The hypotesis, therefore, is "because - depending on who made the first move - only the Neapolitan officials were either gullible enough to fall for the deal or evil enough to propose it".

 

[fabiocip]

I think most probably joined for the free hardware. These things ain't cheap.

We got nothing for free. I mean: they gave us "only" a macbook pro and an iPhone 6s, but we gotta give 'em back the moment we finish the course.
Plus, I met most of the students that are attending the courses, and I can guarantee you and everyone else, that we are all totally into programming, as currently active programmers (on iOS, but on different platforms too), or as computer engineering students/graduates. In any case, all of us are really tech and coding lovers. We are there to get the chance to learn from teachers prepared by Apple itself on how to build any app from scratch, on how to market it to the store and on how to create our own startup. That's the purpose of this academy, and that's what we applied for.
I really hope that I will be able to tell everyone that this experience will be the reason why I got a new job in iOS development or I could create my own tech company I'll keep you updated on how this turns out

[doublepost=1475935637][/doublepost]

Seems great but how about, I don't know, producing new Mac's? Might help these programmers, too.

I guess that given the amount of resources apple has, starting this academy didn't affect at all the chance for apple to focus on helping currently active programmers.

 

[Tech198]

Seems great but how about, I don't know, producing new Mac's? Might help these programmers, too.

lol


One step at a time.

Seems u have people from all around the globe here.

 

[32828870]

I guess that given the amount of resources apple has, starting this academy didn't affect at all the chance for apple to focus on helping currently active programmers.

As developers need Mac systems for development and Mac's haven't been updated in a long, long time, it seem fairly relevant especially as this seems a marketing tactic to bring in more development for the iOS and macOS store's while selling iOS and Mac's systems.

The 2013 Mac Pro6,1 hasn't been updated since, well, 2013. It's outdated architecture starting at $4K. I love my Mac Pro6,1 12-Core D700 system, yet it cost me $6k+ and required a $1500 external Thunderbolt chassis for my Mac Pro5,1 hard drives. I've updated my Mac Pro5,1 with genuine Apple parts: Broadcom WiFi ac + BTLE 4.x PCIe card, USB 3.1, BDXL internal, 32GB's RAM, with much more and it runs circles around my Mac Pro6,1.

Honestly, in my 15+ years primarily using Mac's I thought I would never state this: There's no excuse for charging premium prices for old technology. Either push Intel to produce processors to coincide with Mac updates in a joint venture or produce their own as part of the problem is Intel's inability to get their act together.

 

[Feenician]

As developers need Mac systems for development and Mac's haven't been updated in a long, long time

Realistically, which iOS developers are being affected by the unusually long mbp/Mac pro update cycle? Does the extra 5% sky lake or the extra 10% kaby lake (when those chips actually exist in forms suitable for mbp's) really make any difference in developing for iOS?
[doublepost=1475995597][/doublepost]

Either push Intel to produce processors to coincide with Mac updates in a joint venture or produce their own as part of the problem is Intel's inability to get their act together.

I can get on board with this though.

 

[32828870]

Realistically, which iOS developers are being affected by the unusually long mbp/Mac pro update cycle? Does the extra 5% sky lake or the extra 10% kaby lake (when those chips actually exist in forms suitable for mbp's) really make any difference in developing for iOS?

Yes and no. The main point is anyone diving into development within the Apple ecosystem will need the necessary hardware, whether it be a MacBook or iMac. Course we know programming requires a Mac, not a powerful system but surely a reasonably current one. This seems mostly to entice more App Store development thus increasing App Store profits while selling more devices instead of focusing on updating their Mac line which in some cases is 2-3 years old (not counting minor updates).

TL;DR Apple's using this as an opportunity to increase App Store development while selling severely outdated systems instead of updating their core line (unload back stock wrapped in a nice marketing bow). Certainly they can do both at once, but they don't seem to be as this is the longest update cycle in recent Apple history.

 

[Feenician]

Yes and no. The main point is anyone diving into development within the Apple ecosystem will need the necessary hardware, whether it be a MacBook or iMac. Course we all know programming requires a Mac, not power. This seems mostly marketing/PR to entice more App Store development thus increasing App Store profits while selling more devices instead of focusing on updating their Mac line which in some cases is 2-3 years old (not counting minor updates).

TL;DR Apple's using this as an opportunity to increase App Store development while selling Apple devices and systems that are out dated and overpriced instead of addressing the elephant in the room, updating their core line. Certainly they can do both at once, but they don't seem to be as it's been the longest time in ~a decade that product lines have fallen so behind.

It's been too long but, as you rightly point out, Intel release cycle has been partly to blame. Still, it has been too long.

 

[Admiral]

I wonder why Apple is partnering with Italy? I mean, it could have done this pretty much anywhere in the world. India for example would be attractive because they are trying to open that market and because it has lots of technology focused programs. Or say the USA, their biggest market and their origin.

I have no issue with Italy, so this is just an open question as to what Apples thought process was to select Italy over any where else. And then why Naples vs anywhere else within Italy?

Apple is a fashion company now. It's not Milan, but Naples is a fashion-industry center and the Italian government is pushing for development there.

 

[recoil80]

And then why Naples vs anywhere else within Italy?

Milan would have been the obvious choice, but in my opinion the government asked Apple to open the center in the south of Italy since the unemployment is really high there and students often go abroad or to the northern regions to find jobs.
Apple picked up Naples because the university (Federico II) has a good reputation so I guess it was the best place to chose in the south of Italy.

 

[villicodelirant]

Milan would have been the obvious choice, but in my opinion the government asked Apple to open the center in the south of Italy since the unemployment is really high there and students often go abroad or to the northern regions to find jobs.
Apple picked up Naples because the university (Federico II) has a good reputation so I guess it was the best place to chose in the south of Italy.

You make it sound as if it was an entirely unselfish, disinterested deal (which would make it the first of its kind to involve the Naples officials)

 

[Helmlein]

I would actually find it more appropriate if universities taught programming languages/techniques rather than how to cater for a specific group of devices; the same as schools should teach how word processing works rather than "how to use Microsoft Word".

Obviously, as Apple is sponsoring the hardware, a university could just get prominently mentioned all over the world taking Apple's offer, but I'm not sure if sponsored courses are the future of universities...

H.

 

[rock6079]

I'm really excited to see this expand beyond Italy and for more of these courses to eventually make their way onto iTunesU

 

[villicodelirant]

I would actually find it more appropriate if universities taught programming languages/techniques rather than how to cater for a specific group of devices; the same as schools should teach how word processing works rather than "how to use Microsoft Word".

Thankfully, at any respectable CS/engineering program you are not evem taught specific programming languages, but programming language principles that are reusable to evaluate and understand any programming language to come out in the next 20 years (which will probably be still a descendant of either LISP or Algol, which will be statically or dynamically typed, et cetera).

What is being offered here is not a college degree - it's (quite possibly top notch) vocational training.