BeCode
TLDR
BeCode is a Belgian non-profit coding school founded in 2016 that provides free, intensive digital skills bootcamps for job seekers across campuses in Brussels, Ghent, Charleroi, and Liege.
Overview
BeCode was founded in 2016 by Karen Boers, Laurent Hublet, Rodolphe Verhaegen, and a broader founding group including Dirk Peusens, Sarah Unger, and Stephania Ter Hark. The organisation is a non-profit (VZW/ASBL) structured as a public-private partnership, receiving support from regional employment services, the European Social Fund, and corporate partners.
The model targets adults from underrepresented groups, including people without a technical degree, the long-term unemployed, and career changers. Training is entirely free for participants and covers seven-month intensive programs in web development, AI, and Cybersecurity. BeCode operates from campuses in Brussels, Ghent, Charleroi, and Liege, with Brussels serving as the headquarters.
Karen Boers co-founded BeCode alongside her role building Startups.be, the national startup support organisation. Beatrice de Mahieu served as CEO of BeCode from 2021 to 2025, succeeding the founding team and overseeing the school's reskilling programs before moving to finance&invest.brussels as Deputy CEO in 2026.
BeCode is a resident organisation at BeCentral, the digital campus inside Brussels Central Station, which gives it a physical presence at the centre of the Brussels tech ecosystem alongside Google Atelier, Le Wagon, and 42 Belgium.
Key People
- Karen Boers - Co-founder
- Beatrice de Mahieu - CEO (2021-2025)
Notes
BeCode's social impact positioning and public-private funding model distinguish it from commercial bootcamps. Its graduates feed into Brussels and Walloon tech hiring pipelines. The organisation has run AI-focused bootcamps in partnership with Microsoft.
Sources
- becode.org
- European Digital Skills and Jobs Platform profile
- People pages: Karen Boers, Beatrice de Mahieu
- Hub page: BeCentral