iDeaLabs – Live.Learn.Succeed (Apply Now)

The iDeaLabs Program was created by Slatecube to bridge the gap between qualification and employment which has, for so long, been a leading factor in the high unemployment rate of youth all over Sub-Saharan Africa. The iDeaLabs project is a 4-month residential training, internship and job matching program designed to develop and place up to 50 world-class professionals annually into top-notch jobs across the globe.

Download iDeaLabs Prospectus

Download iDeaLabs Faculty List

Since launching our early beta (first market entry) in 2014, we’ve maintained an 80% success rate in converting unskilled graduates into world-class professionals and matching them with well-paying jobs. 10% of our beta testers have gone on to start their own business and also got access to funding ranging from $5,000 to $25,000.

As winners of the Anzisha Prize in 2015, we were featured on BBC, CNN and a host of media partners across the globe. The Slatecube model presented at the African Union during the eLearning Africa Conference received a lot of accolades and in 2016, we were invited by President Barack Obama to attend and present at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit at the Silicon Valley, USA. Many notable countries and organizations including the French Government, Germany’s Online Educa Conference, the Bill Gates Foundation, MIT, Andela, Grand Thornton and Tree House have also recognized and partnered with Slatecube at various levels. In particular, our partnership with the African Careers Network has opened up over 10,000 companies with whom we have successfully implemented the job placement phase of our programs.

This prospectus is divided into three parts and an appendix namely:

1. Academics and work;
2. Residencies;
3. The Remote iDeaLabs

Academics and Work

The iDeaLabs are run on a rolling basis and there are three batches annually.

• The first quarter batch; running from January to April;
• The second quarter batch; May to August;
• The third quarter batch; September to December.

Each batch of the program is divided into three phases viz:

• Learning Phase: This is a 1-month professional on-boarding process where participants are exposed to advanced concepts and courses in their selected fields. The idea is to orientate residents on how best to maximize opportunities in their chosen stream, and to make them fit to compete at the global level. Minimum attendance requirement is 80%.
• Expert-in-Residence Phase: Also known as the EiR Phase, is a 3 month paid virtual internship period where residents work remotely for companies around the world for the purpose of building job experience and networking with world-class professionals.
• Job Matching Phase:  This stage follows the EiR Phase. We work to place the candidates into world-class companies in the Slatecube network.

At each stage, the candidate’s progress will be evaluated by our academic team before being allowed to progress to the next phase.

The iDeaLabs program covers courses across Business, Entrepreneurship, Technology, Management, and the arts.

Training Tracks Offered

There are three tracks into which the courses in relevant fields are built and upon admission, successful candidates will be asked to select their preferred tracks. We have an option that allows for reasonable modification of the contents of each track to fully satisfy the requirements but the standard tracks offered are:

1. Entrepreneurship

• This track is geared towards visionaries with groundbreaking innovations. If you are looking to move Africa forward with a great idea, this track is perfect for you. It consists of Entrepreneurial courses designed to help you develop your wonderful idea including:
• – Disciplined Entrepreneurship by MIT*;
• – Bootstrapping for Start-ups*.
• Unique to this track is the funding mentorship offering. Here, an expert from Slatecube will guide the residents on how to apply for funding and entrepreneurial grants from organizations around the world. In the past, we have helped Slatecubers source funding from between $5000-$25,000.

2. Technology, Media, and Design

This track is built around content from our awesome partners over at Tree House. It includes a wide range of both amateur and professional courses on Web/Mobile Development and Mobile Parsing Technology (Java, Angular.js, Node.js, React.js, PHP, JavaScript, CSS3, HTML5, etc.) *

This track also caters for those interested in:

• Graphics Design*
• Animation* (including 3D animation)

3. Corporate Career Development

Specifically designed for the corporate world, this track is geared towards developing career gurus in all areas of the corporate world including finance, marketing, business development, and administration. Content includes:

• Project Management*
• Public Relations*
• Business Development*
• Finance/Bookkeeping *
• Customer Service *
• Interpersonal skills**
• Knowledge management**
• Public Speaking**

COURSE ATTENDANCE

There are both general and specific courses. The general Courses grouped under (**) are to be taken communally by participants in the three tracks. We believe that the contents of these courses are useful for all round professional development. The specific courses are grouped under (*) and they are unique to each track.

GRADING SYSTEM

Each course has two grading components. These are:

• Percentage score grade
• Letter grade

To complete the learning phase, each candidate must attain an overall performance of at least 70% in their courses.

Award of Slatecube Certificate

Slatecube has the right to withhold the certificate of participants who fail to meet the requirement. The award of certification is subject to completion of courses with an excellent result and satisfactory letter from employers.

Residencies

Learning to become

For the duration of the program, the residents will live in the iDeaLab Hubs which are Slatecube Residencies located in serene off city locations in Lagos State (Ayobo, Ibeju-Lekki, and Ikorodu). The hubs accommodate 10 people per batch at any given time. The atmosphere is learning conducive as we want our candidates to maintain complete focus on their work and learning in comfortable environments. The facilities at the Hubs include:

• 24 hours internet access
• Common rooms for relaxation
• Comfortable bedrooms
• State of the art Security
• Alternative Power Supply
• Constant water
• Refrigerators
• Board games

A high standard of personal discipline and decorum is expected of every participant during the course of the residency.