Access Partnerships are part of edX for Impact – a collective effort to help marginalized learners get the education they need in order to develop the skills to pursue rewarding careers. edX has active Access Partnerships with 19 academic institutions serving learners in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Kansas, Maryland, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin in the U.S.; Birmingham in the U.K.; and New Brunswick in Canada. The partnerships are supported by more than 90 agencies and community partners, each carefully chosen to support their region’s unique learner populations.
As one of the world’s largest developers of technology talent, edX has supported more than 75,000 boot camp graduates globally with the skills, knowledge, and career resources to achieve their goals. According to a 2U-Gallup survey, boot camp graduates surveyed reported being nearly four times happier with their jobs after graduation from the boot camp, and over 86% reported achieving a positive outcome.
MTN DEW is continuing its ongoing commitment to support and uplift diverse gamers by bringing back the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge in 2023. With a focus on increasing representation in esports and gaming, the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge will support HBCU student gamers by sponsoring a nationwide tournament featuring Mortal Kombat 1, the latest installment in the acclaimed Mortal Kombat videogame franchise developed by the award-winning NetherRealm Studios. Contestants will compete for a piece of an overall prize pool of $500,000, coaching and exposure to esports professionals.
MTN DEW Invests in HBCU Gamers to Level the Playing Field with the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge “Following the success of the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge last year we’re pleased to continue this initiative once again in 2023,” said JP Bittencourt, VP of Marketing, MTN DEW. “Mortal Kombat is one of the most iconic game franchises of all time, and being able to partner with them for the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge is truly an honor.”
For the 2023 MTN DEW Real Change Challenge, the brand is once again partnering with Cxmmunity Media, an organization dedicated to future-proofing diversity and equity in gaming and creators of the HBCU Esports League, to bring the Challenge back to HBCU students nationwide. New to 2023, the Real Change Challenge will for the first-time be a nationwide HBCU Mortal Kombat 1 tournament. The tournament will kick-off October 2nd, 2023 with sign-ups open to all current HBCU students, now through September 8th at hbcuesports.co/realchange.
To celebrate the launch of this year’s Real Change Challenge, MTN DEW is joining forces with RDCWorld, a creative collective of entertainers, and bringing the Real Change Challenge to its annual Gaming and Anime convention, Dream Con, from July 28th to July 30th in Austin, TX. At Dream Con, 20,000 attendees will join MTN DEW and RDCWorld to celebrate the return of the Real Change Challenge, as well as enjoying the MTN DEW hosted Mortal Kombat 11 Amateur and Celebrity tournaments, and The Faces of Real Change in Gaming panel – which will focus on representation in the esports industry.
The 2023 MTN DEW Real Change Challenge will be a 64-player 1v1 bracket style tournament with 4 rounds of double-elimination style game play, leading to the final 12 going head-to-head in a Live Championship in Atlanta on October 28th. The Championship will culminate in a face-off between the top two players for the chance to not only take home the bragging rights, but also taking home the 1st place prize of $45,000.
To bring fans along on the journey of our 64 participating HBCU students, MTN DEW and the HBCU Esports League will broadcast all tournament matches highlighting the HBCU gamers and their paths to the Real Change Challenge Championship. DEW Nation and gaming fans everywhere can tune in to Cxmmunity Media’s Twitch Channel beginning October 2nd to catch the tournament live.
To get more information on the MTN DEW Real Change Challenge and find out how to enter check out mountaindew.com/real-change and follow @MTNDEWGaming on Instagram and Twitter and @MTNDEW_Gaming on Tik Tok.
