The 42 program is a master's-level software engineering or coding program in a professional environment. There are no classes, teachers, or courses and instead we use project-based learning, skills mastery, peer-to-peer correction, and gamification to foster learning. Our program is designed to prepare students for the workplace using an instructional design that means students learn skills for the digital world and for the technology industry.
The heart of 42 is code. Software development is the driving engine of all digital activity. Gain fundamental technical competencies and indispensable adaptability skills necessary for integration into the digital workforce. These technical competencies ultimately allow students to comprehend any programming language as well as allowing for each student to develop his or her own understanding of programming paradigms. Rather than a series of languages and specific technologies, 42’s program follows a logical sequence of 17 long-lasting skills. These skills also have the same fundamental element: personal adaptability, learning, coping and solving new challenges that they will inevitably face regularly. Even if it has a few obligatory paths, 42’s program is individually tailored throughout.
Major learning milestones are expressed as levels of experience rather than years; your individual experience sets the pace for learning– not the administrative calendar. There are 21 levels total, but students are eligible for internships around levels 7-10, get basic software engineer-related jobs level 10+, or are ready for the likes of Tesla, Uber, Google, Samsung, etc. around levels 17+.
PROGRAM DURATION
Although the 42 program was designed to be completed in roughly 3 years, this suggested duration includes two required internships that last anywhere from 4 to 6 months. How long each student takes to complete the program depends on their needs, learning style, and internships.
LEARNING AT YOUR PACE
Each student advances at their own pace. Some notions are instinctively simpler for them to develop, while others will require further attempts. On this basis, lessons at 42 do not have fixed time limits; each student progresses not in relationship to their position within the whole graduating class (where the individual who is the furthest behind slows down the entire group), but at their own pace. It is difficult to fall behind when following 42’s educational curriculum because it is 100% individualized.
TIME COMMITMENT
If you are in the dorms on campus, you must complete 37 hours a week and advance at least one level per month.
If you are not in the dorms, there are no time requirements - you come when you want.
The school is open 24/7 365.
Here are some of the topics students can cover:
IMPERATIVE PROGRAMMING
Arkanoid Rush – In the space of a weekend, students must recreate the famous brick breaking game of the same name, which was available on consoles during the 80’s.
FUNCTIONAL PROGRAMMING
A-maze-ing – Find a way out of the labyrinth! Functional languages are particularly suitable for this type of problem.
OBJECT-ORIENTED PROGRAMMING
Piscine C++ – Addressing for the first time object-oriented programming through 2 weeks of intense immersion.
ALGORITHMS & AL
Gomoku – A variation of puzzles and tic-tac-toe, this project explores game theory, a branch of artificial intelligence.
GRAPHICS
42run – Who hasn’t played Temple Run on their phone? But who would be able to recreate a complete game using OpenGL in order to run on the university’s premises?
WEB
Big Web Project – Eagerly awaiting all the latest web technologies which are constantly changing, this project constantly demands students to adapt their final project according to the latest trends.
TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION
Docker – Visualization technology at lightning speed, Docker requires students to push aside everything that they know through this initiatory project.
SYSTEM PROGRAMMATION
42sh – Well known to Unix users, the command interpreter is a key program to understanding the workings of the operating system, and to completely rebuild, as part of this project.
NETWORK & SYSTEM ADMINISTRATION
Corporate Network – As part of this project, visualization techniques make the creation of a complete corporate network, with all of its vital services, accessible to everyone.
SECURITY
Viruses – Understanding how computer viruses work and implementing one are the first steps towards the following project on protection techniques.
DB & DATA
Challenge Big Data – Your data is worth it’s weight in gold. Explore the techniques needed to analyze large amounts of data in order to anticipate upcoming events.
PARALLEL COMPUTING
Plazza – Your pizzeria is hiring, organize your cooks so that everyone will be served promptly.
RIGOR
libFT – A collection of small software components which do not tolerate any margin of error, and which are extremely simple yet extremely precise.
ENTREPRENEURHSIP & PROJECT INCUBATOR
We also have a project incubator where students can spend 3 months making an MPV, 3 months getting traction, and 3 months trying to get funding. Students must pitch and prove a rigorous business model and be at least level 9 before being accepted to the incubator.

Intensive Basic Training is a 28-day coding challenge. It's a new and immersive experience in which only motivation, willpower, and hard work will keep you afloat. Many students consider it to be one of the best and most challenging parts of their 42 experience.
Basic Training is the final step in our merit-based admissions process. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to come and spend 4 weeks, 7 days a week, day and night, coding your heart out with several hundred other candidates all hoping to earn the same prize: to be a full-time student at 42.
We start with the basics, and using a computer, you will write your first lines of code before moving on to more complex coding exercises. No previous programming experience required! We simply ask that you know how to use a mouse and a keyboard.
Throughout this experience, you will try and you will fail, over and over again. That’s the point: learning the trial-and-error process builds stamina, determination, and process skills that are necessary to be a software engineer.
Basic Training is done using the 42 style of learning: no teachers, no classes or courses, no books. You work by yourself and in groups, ask your peers for help, help your peers, and complete projects. Not convinced? Try it!
Basic Training is free. It is not a bootcamp where you gain employment afterwards: it's the admissions process to 42. It's all in C :)

42 School