Providence Fab Academy

From AS220Labs

The Fab Academy is a program originally born out of MIT designed to teach digital design techniques in a formalized instruction setting. The Providence Fab Academy is one of more than a dozen Fab Academy sites around the world and its "campus" is the Fab Lab at AS220.

The Fab Academy offers Certificates on relevant technical topics, and a Diploma aimed at vocational and technical training for employment and investment (along with assistance to its graduates in those areas). These are accredited by the Fab Academy; it is anticipated that they will by followed by a Bachelor's degree to be offered under applicable regional accreditation, along with post-graduate study.

Fab Academy Certificates provide familiarity with technical options and capabilities, hands-on experience, and direction for further study. Each requires, and is evaluated by, developing and documenting projects. They are periodically renewed to reflect best practices. The Certificates typically require 1-2 weeks. They are combined in the Diploma, which is roughly comparable to completing MIT's rapid-prototyping course "How To Make (almost) Anything". It requires about 1 year, with progress evaluated by skills and projects rather than time or credits.

Instructional programs that are part of the Providence Fab Academy are separate and distinct from the general workshops offered by AS220 Labs.