Over 900 people have taken the plunge into the ‘piscine’ at the 42 campuses

Campus 42 Málaga

From June to August, seven piscine sessions were launched: the 26-day immersion trial to find out whether the 42 method suited each participant.

But what did these 900 people have to do before jumping into this immersion process?

First of all, each of them had to demonstrate their mathematical logic skills through two initial tests. Some chose to take them from home via the websites of 42 Madrid, 42 Urduliz Bizkaia, 42 Barcelona, and 42 Málaga, while others preferred to attend one of the Open Days held on-site in 2025.

But what is the ‘42 picine’ really about?

These more than 900 individuals began the final step of the selection process to become students at any of the four campuses mentioned above.

The piscine consists of a 26-day immersion in the 42 learning method, which involves acquiring basic programming concepts hand in hand with others who have also taken the plunge. In other words, at the free programming campuses 42 Madrid, Urduliz (Bizkaia), Barcelona, and Málaga, there are no teachers, no theoretical classes, no timetables, and nothing resembling the traditional educational model.

And if you’ve read this far, you may now be wondering: How do you learn at 42?

The answer is simple: at the 42 campuses, both students and “pisciners” learn from and with each other, through a method known as peer-to-peer, in which everyone is both a student and a mentor to their peers.

And… Do you need any prior technical knowledge to take the plunge or study at a 42 campus?

No — the only requirement is to be of legal age. You don’t need any prior training, just a strong desire to learn with a model that’s very different from the usual. Not only because there are no teachers, but also because the 42 campuses foster and develop transferable skills such as resilience, adaptability, teamwork, communication, and critical thinking.

These human skills are, without a doubt, among the most valuable for preparing for today’s digital-era job market. That’s why the 42 programming campuses are true hubs for developing both digital and human skills that are essential today. In fact, in 2025 the 42 project was ranked by WURI as the third most innovative university in the world.

Campus 42 Urduliz

Curious to learn more?

For 26 days, the more than 900 people who took the plunge this summer at the 42 campuses put themselves to the test to see if gamified, peer-based learning, programming, and of course, the acquisition of human skills suited their needs and their way of learning.

During this nearly month-long period — in person and free — the candidates worked on daily projects that gave them the opportunity to gain a solid foundation in C programming while also learning to work in a team.

Over that time, they experienced frustration when facing programming challenges, overcame difficult moments, and gradually gained practical knowledge in an environment that, for many of them, was completely new.

The 26 days of the piscine are an immersive, round-the-clock, 7-days-a-week programming experience, alongside many others in the same situation — an experience that has likely changed the way they think about their education and career development.