Level Up Your Career: Per Scholas and Cisco Partner to Build the Next Generation of Network Specialists

At Per Scholas, the mission has always been to drive economic mobility by providing rigorous, tech training at no cost to learners, unlocking the potential of individuals from communities across the nation. For alumni seeking continued growth, Per Scholas has deepened its commitment through a partnership with Cisco and its Cisco Networking Academy platforms.

This collaboration focuses on bringing advanced, career-accelerating training tracks that bridge the gap from a tech generalist to a high-demand specialty role.

The Power of Partnership: Per Scholas and Cisco

Cisco is a major force in internet infrastructure, and the skills needed to manage and secure modern networks are consistently in high demand. By integrating Cisco’s industry-leading curriculum and tools with the Cisco Networking Academy, Per Scholas is able to offer specialized training that is directly aligned with the needs of top employers. Alumni are trained to be career-ready, with experience working with platforms and programs used throughout training.

Per Scholas New York Alumnus Obosa Ogbeide can attest to the advantage of the collaboration of Per Scholas and Cisco. Initially a Cybersecurity training track learner, Obosa returned for alumni courses for CompTIA Security+ and Endpoint Security, which featured the Network Academy tools. “Going through the Per Scholas program and then in conjunction with that, going through the Cisco networking courses, I knew I was going to be able to get a lot out of it,” Obosa reflected. Now, he is excelling in his role as a Telemedia Analyst at PIMCO. 

Thanks to the Per Scholas and Cisco partnership, learners and alumni build confidence and experience through hands-on, industry-recognized programs. Obosa noted, “Confidence was instilled in me during my Per Scholas experience, and then through my role, I’ve tried to build on that experience.”

This partnership ensures the courses leverage Cisco IOS and practical tools like Packet Tracer, Ansible, Python, PowerShell, and Wireshark to provide essential, hands-on experience for learners and alumni to feel confident in their tech roles. 

Accelerate the Path to Success with Per Scholas and Cisco’s Network Academy

Per Scholas is dedicated to closing the tech skills divide by empowering learners and alumni with access to high-quality, relevant technology education. This mission is central to their partnership with industry leaders like Cisco, ensuring learners and alumni are equipped with the most in-demand, advanced skills to thrive in today’s evolving tech landscape.

A Career-Focused Model

One of the most compelling features of the Per Scholas model is that training is provided a no cost to the learner. While the average college student faces significant debt, Per Scholas empowers aspiring technologists by offering rigorous, boot camp-style training programs at absolutely no cost for low- to moderate-income adults. This removes a major financial barrier, allowing learners to focus entirely on their training and begin earning money sooner in a high-growth career field.

Per Scholas Pittsburgh Alumna Petyon Brooks was researching tech training programs that were less costly than a college degree when she came across Per Scholas. Eager to start a career in tech without the debt, she knew Per Scholas’ Cybersecurity cohort was the right path for her. “The idea of going to a boot camp and paying ten to twenty thousand dollars was just unfeasible for me at the time. Then I came across Per Scholas and was surprised it was free training,” she said. “I highly recommend [Per Scholas’ training], a hundred percent. As long as you have the internal drive and natural interest, there’s no way you can’t be successful.” After graduating, she continued her learning journey, completing an alumni course through Per Scholas’ Career Accelerator in Ethical Hacking, a course that leverages Cisco Network Academy tools. 

Peyton’s story is one example of how Per Scholas training is designed for a direct path to long-term careers:

• Intensive, Hands-On Curriculum: Courses typically last between 10 to 15 weeks and require a full-time, Monday-through-Friday commitment. This intensive, immersive approach—which includes a mix of in-person, remote, or hybrid options—ensures learners gain a deep technical proficiency in a condensed timeline.
• Industry-Recognized Certifications: A key component of the training is preparation for essential, industry-recognized certification exams (such as CompTIA A+, CompTIA Security+, or AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner). Per Scholas often covers the cost of these exams, providing learners with a valuable, employer-validated credential upon graduation, with experience using platforms in the Cisco Network Academy.
• Employer-Driven Design: Per Scholas works directly with employers, large and small, to design curricula that match real-world job demands, resulting in an 85% graduation rate and an 80% job attainment rate within one year of graduation, earning 2.6X a graduate’s pre-training income. 

Per Scholas Baltimore alum Victor Aviles is another example of how the Per Scholas<>Cisco partnership supports alumni to continue their learning journey. Victor completed the AWS re/Start training at Per Scholas in 2023, launching him into a career in tech. His commitment to continuous learning didn’t stop after securing his first role as a Help Desk Administrator, with dreams of going into cloud technology. He leveraged the Cisco Networking Academy again for an alumni course in ethical hacking. He praised the platform’s ability to introduce him to new, complex skills.

When asked about the alumni course, Victor emphasized its quality and hands-on rigor: “That was a completely new world for me. I had never touched any of that technology or done any of the labs that [Per Scholas and Cisco] provided, which were great.” He later added, “It’s very hands-on, and that was something that I liked.”

The collaboration between Per Scholas and Cisco Networking Academy marks a pivotal step in developing the nation’s next generation of network and cybersecurity specialists. As the stories of Obosa Ogbeide, Peyton Brooks, and Victor Aviles illustrate, this partnership provides rigorous pathways at no cost to the learner that combine the foundational strength of Per Scholas’ model with Cisco’s industry-leading tools like Packet Tracer and specialized curricula. By equipping both current learners and alumni with advanced, hands-on experience in high-demand specialties, this initiative not only empowers individuals to build confidence and advance in their careers but also ensures that employers have a robust pipeline of highly skilled, job-ready talent. This is more than just training; it’s a shared commitment to accelerating economic mobility and closing the tech skills gap, one specialized, career-defining opportunity at a time.