Best Classes Birmingham, AL

Birmingham is a role model of building upon existing successful businesses to turn itself into one of the hottest up-and-coming modern tech hubs to be found. A new wave of startups and companies relocating to the city has been building up tech economies. Savvy entrepreneurs have taken note, realizing it’s often wiser to find a city that tech pros want to enjoy life, not just elevate their careers. Established companies solidly on the Fortune 1,000 list know that their continued success is due to long-standing support, as well as new life through innovation. Birmingham has three Fortune 500 companies that are heavy on tech hiring: Regions Financial Corporation, Vulcan Materials Company, and Encompass Health. Companies that vie for top tech talent in the city include BE&K, EPL, Allstates Technical Services, Security Engineers, Computer Technology Solutions, and Help Lightning. Private companies are excellent places for techies to find their niche, with several boasting revenues of over $1 billion. These companies that strive to hire and retain top tech professionals include American Cast Iron Pipe Company, Brasfield & Gorrie, EBSCO Industries, and O’Neal Steel, to name just a few. With a rich history of so many world-changing companies that call Birmingham home, it's a city that is a tech paradise for those who want a lucrative—and secure—future in tech.

TechBirmingham is the voice of technology for the region to promote the region’s technology ecosystem. The group assists in recruiting and retaining tech pros by providing a website that is practically a one-stop shop for those who want to keep up with the latest tech news. Their mission is to demonstrate the strength, diversity, and economic impact that technologists make by living and working in the state’s second-largest city. The organization works with companies and tech talent to provide opportunities for networking, mentorship, and upskilling. An advantage of being a part of TechBirmingham is the opportunity to be a part of its many events and seminars. The organization believes that collaboration breeds innovation and provides a comprehensive list of special events and ongoing programs.

The heartbeat of Birmingham's tech scene is the Switch District. The area has no hard line boundaries but is a hub of tech giants. By the name, many instantly recognize the connection the city has historically had with technology. Originally, the Switch literally turned the system of technology in Birmingham. The 14th Street Switchyard still has tracks in the area still in use to curve the framework of where rails once stood. The energy of the switches of yesterday have now morphed into modern technology buttons. In the district, switches now transmit information, data, energy, and ideas that move the city forward. The Switch is where innovation now flows freely, anchored by Innovation Depot, one of the largest technology centers in the Southeast.

The Switch’s center is the Innovation Depot, which provides opportunities and innovation that radiate throughout the region. The tech center’s abilities to put Birmingham on the tech map stem from tapping promising new businesses to join the ranks of well-established corporations. As a place designed for startups and budding ventures to thrive in the Magic City, all involved have ample opportunities to showcase their success. The Switch and Innovation Depot have created an epicenter that techies are proud of, and further inspiration comes from the Velocity Accelerator program. Each year, the program recruits promising tech companies and gives them access to $50,000 in capital, along with the resources and mentoring that ensures progress and rapid growth. Recent fields that have benefited from the Velocity Accelerator program include artificial intelligence, EdTech, sports and entertainment, construction, consumer apps, healthcare, sustainability, and logistics. Birmingham clearly is experiencing a renaissance, and the startup community is fostered with great care by local government and businesses.

Tech Careers in Birmingham

With the vibrant hub of Innovation Depot centered within the Switch, securing a lucrative career in technology is easily within reach of trained tech pros. Industries that the city has identified as consistently solid areas that offer opportunities include medical technology, life sciences research, automotive and light manufacturing, computer and internet-related businesses, financial activities, and green industries. Birmingham’s economic base industries are the key to creating economic prosperity. Technology within these areas sells its products and services to businesses and consumers worldwide, establishing jobs and increasing overall revenue. Sustaining and growing these industries is central to Birminghpas, overall development, and the growing population. Subsets of the success of key sectors create further tech opportunities that are related to construction, the development of real estate, project management, education, and business assistance. The city also realizes the importance of promoting all technology-based fields to sustain and strengthen the entire region. With persistence and diligence, Birmingham has moved up the ladder as a tech mecca.

Healthcare is the largest industry in Birmingham, especially in the areas of medical technology and life sciences research. Private health care employment totals more than 42,000, and public sector healthcare employment is estimated at more than 20,000. Within the health system, job growth has remained excellent, moving at a rate upwards of 8.2% per year. Large employers include UAB Health System, Cooper Green Mercy Health Services, and the Birmingham VA Medical center. The city serves as a hospital center for the MSA and larger central Alabama region, with approximately 80% of total hospital employment. University Hospital ranks within the top 40 hospitals in 11 specialties, including neurosurgery, pulmonology, orthopedics, diabetes, cardiology and heart surgery, and cancer treatment. A number of local medical hubs are expanding and modernizing their technology and upgrades to their entire systems, including examples such as Children’s of Alabama’s recently complete construction of a new $400 million campus.

Historically a manufacturing powerhouse and the center of the south’s steel industry, Birmingham has transitioned into more advanced areas of the ManTech. Total growth in employment rose dramatically within the last decade, adding thousands of jobs in a sector that often sees a decline in other areas. Reflecting its industrial heritage, manufacturing in Birmingham continues to be dominated by metals manufacturing and moving towards more recent developments in additive manufacturing. One of the largest employers in this sector is American Cast Iron Pipe, with approximately 2,000 employees. The city continues to support the construction of additional industrial parks and other sites suitable for small and mid-size manufacturing operations. The Jefferson County Economic and Industrial Development Authority takes into account the site requirements of smaller technology-oriented firms that are proving to be leaders in new manufacturing development.

Tourism provides many opportunities for the entire community. Birmingham’s tourism industry has four essential segments: conventions, sports, heritage, and entertainment. The Birmingham Convention and Visitors Bureau helped arrange services to more than 600 meetings in the past year, many of which were virtual. These opportunities to showcase a modern way of providing visitation also show off the city’s treasures and the surrounding area’s treasures. Birmingham is not a secret to those who love to travel, including Travel and Leisure, which named the city one of the “Top 50 Places to Visit in 2021,” an extremely tough list on which to land.

Residents and visitors enjoy a temperate climate much of the year, allowing for plenty of opportunities to play golf, stroll into a lush green park, and take advantage of abundant Southern hospitality at any one of hundreds of festivals and events. The city is also geographically advantaged with only a day’s drive to warm and sunny Gulf Shores or a fun-for-all trip to “Space City” in Huntsville, home to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center as well as Space Camp. When a road trip finishes back at home for B’hamers, sitting down to eat fabulous cuisine is what has named the city “The Dinner Plate of the South.”

Tech pros in Birmingham enjoy more than job security, robust salaries and a high sense of satisfaction keep tech talent evolving. Sample annual salaries for tech pros include around $90,000 for a career in software engineering and an average of $94,000 for those in data science.

Tech Schools in Birmingham

In Birmingham, solid salaries across all tech sectors make acquiring the skills it takes to enter a career in tech a wise investment. There are an amazing amount of technology classes and bootcamps in the Birmingham area. More than 100 of the best course offerings from five schools provide in-person, live online, and on-demand course options. For all tech students, schools cover a vast array of subjects in technology, including Design, Digital Marketing, Data-related training, Coding, Business, Web Development, and IT. Two schools, Certstaffix and ONLC, hold classes in a computer lab, pre-loaded with the latest equipment and software, led by a live offsite instructor. Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, has compiled a list of high-ranking schools to find any tech class a student could want and offers numerous live online classes, too.

Birmingham has two schools that offer bootcamps and classes in Graphic Design, Certstaffix, and ONLC. Both schools hold courses in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. Types of programs that can be found include bootcamps/immersives, certificates, and classes, ranging from six hours to twelve weeks in length. Topics across the graphic design spectrum are Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Visual Design, and UX Design.

The school that offers Data Science bootcamps and classes in Birmingham is Certstaffix. Certstaffix holds classes in a computer lab with a live onsite instructor, offering small class sizes that guide the student to success. Courses range from three hours to 72 weeks, including bootcamps, which dive deeply into hands-on instruction in this fast-growing field. Subjects within the realm of Data Science include Python, SQL, Machine Learning, and R.

For Web Development classes and bootcamps in Birmingham, students can choose from multiple classes held at TrueCoders, Certstafixx, and ONLC. TrueCoders is located south of the city center, making it convenient to avoid downtown traffic. ONLC and Certstaffix are schools that hold courses in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. Additionally, Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, offers live online classes in web development and beyond.

There are more than thirty course options presented by highly-ranked schools to choose from for coding classes and bootcamps in Birmingham, including Certstaffix and ONLC. Hybrid-style courses from both schools are held in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. All courses take students through the learning process step-by-step and provide object-based experiential learning experiences. Students can find coding-related options in Web Development, Data Science, Computer Science, iOS Development, Front End Development, Back End Development, Python, JavaScript, Java, SQL, HTML & CSS, and PHP & MySQL. Offerings range from comprehensive and immersive bootcamps to extensive information certificates and classes. Most courses are also available live and online and offer a variety of times and lengths. For more extensive programs, financial assistance is often available.

Those looking for Web Design bootcamps and classes in Birmingham can choose from many courses provided by several schools, including Certstaffix and ONLC. Both schools hold courses in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. Topics within web design include Front End Web Development, Visual Design, UX Design, WordPress, HTML & CSS, JavaScript & jQuery, Sketch, and Adobe XD. Courses include bootcamps and hands-on classes, ranging from three hours to twelve weeks, and are offered in-person, live online, and via on-demand sessions.

Attending a Digital Marketing class or bootcamp for residents in Birmingham is a wise investment to get ahead of the competition in the booming digital world. Students can choose from many courses provided by two schools, ONLC and Certstaffix, which hold courses in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. Additionally, with live online courses, students have the convenience of taking their sessions from anywhere they’d like, perhaps at the home or office. Subjects students can choose from include Google Analytics, Google Ads, SEO, social media marketing, email marketing, and ecommerce.

Birmingham is an excellent place to learn Python skills in a bootcamp or class. Students can take courses from ONLC or Certstaffix in a computer lab with a live offsite instructor. Since courses are held in real-time, students get prompt attention from the instructor. Python is essential for most careers in technology, and certain professions require knowledge in specific syntaxes of the language. Instruction in Python for all levels and career-related topics can be found throughout the schools listed and offered live online, as well as on-demand by Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool.

Students can choose from Video Editing classes and bootcamps in Birmingham at Certstaffix, which holds courses in a computer lab, while a live instructor leads the course offsite. Video editing classes are fast-paced, hands-on learning experiences that range from two to ten days. Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, also offers many courses in video editing that are held live and online. General areas of study in video editing include motion graphics, Premiere Pro, After Effects, and First Cut Pro.

live online UX Design bootcamps and classes in Birmingham are convenient ways for residents to take a course from any location they choose, perhaps at home or the office. All schools offer comprehensive overviews of the user experience (UX) and place particular emphasis on Sketch and Adobe XD. Throughout the courses, students practice UI foundations, including design iteration and development and best practices when working with a product development team.

Students have a choice of many unique in-person and live online Excel classes and bootcamps in Birmingham. All Excel sessions range from three hours to three days, and students can choose from courses provided by Certstaffix or ONLC. Both schools offer instruction in a state-of-the-art computer lab with a live instructor leading sessions from an offsite location. Since classes and bootcamps are held in real-time, students receive the attention they need for success. Further options for Excel and other business-related skills are offered live and online by Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool. The need for Excel skills stretches into most professional career areas, so essential general and specific classes in the software are available face-to-face, live and online, or on-demand.

Corporate & Onsite Tech Training in Birmingham

In business-minded Birmingham, it’s essential to keep your team up-to-date with the latest developments in technology. That’s why Noble Desktop, the creator of this tool, provides onsite corporate training in technology. An expert Noble Desktop instructor will arrange a session in a vast array of technical subjects and can provide training at your location. Additionally, a live session can be arranged via a video conferencing platform such as Zoom.

If it is easier for individual employees to attend a class on their own schedule, vouchers can be obtained for them to attend an open enrollment session. There is a discount on the purchase of multiple vouchers. Contact Noble Desktop to arrange a tailored training session for your workplace and employees.