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Capabilities
Custom AgentsReliable RAGCustom Software DevelopmentEval Driven DevelopmentObservability
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Talk to a builder

We'll turn you into an agent engineer

Go from senior software engineer to agent engineer in three months, then prove it on real client work.

Apply to the program
Is it for me?
/ First cohort November 2026 · Denver + Chicago /

Agents are still software.

/ Why Agent Academy

Agents are still software.

You already know the hard part. We'll teach you evals, tools, context engineering, and how to lead with clients.

Built for senior engineers

You ship
real software
You're a hands-on, full-stack engineer in Python or TypeScript who delivers on collaborative, agile teams.
You test
first
TDD and pairing are how you already work. Here, that instinct becomes eval-driven development for agents.
You like working
with clients
You explain tradeoffs in plain language and would rather build alongside a client than behind a ticket queue.
No agent
experience needed
You don't need to have built agents before. You need strong fundamentals and real curiosity about what's next.
You're already
senior
This isn't a junior program. It's for engineers who already ship with confidence and want to learn a new craft.
Not sure it's you?
Read the principles we work by every day, from extreme collaboration to continuous delivery, then decide.
How we work

Learn. Build. Ship.

Three months from senior engineer to agent engineer. It's full-time: 40 hours a week with your cohort, three days in our Denver or Chicago office, plus the practice it takes to get good.

Apply to the program
/ 01

Weeks 1–6: Learn the craft

Build real skills in real applications, not notebooks. Every challenge starts with the same question: how do I evaluate this? Drop-in help, group syncs, and regular assessments keep the cohort moving together.

Build real skills in real applications, not notebooks. Every challenge starts with the same question: how do I evaluate this? Drop-in help, group syncs, and regular assessments keep the cohort moving together.

/ 02

Weeks 7–8: Build your capstone

Design, build, and demo a production-ready agent end to end, with evals, tools, and context engineering working together. It's your proof that you can take an agent from idea to something a client would trust.

Design, build, and demo a production-ready agent end to end, with evals, tools, and context engineering working together. It's your proof that you can take an agent from idea to something a client would trust.

/ 03

Month 3: Ship for a client

Join a Focused team on a real client engagement and put everything to work alongside experienced agent engineers. Engineers who meet the bar by the end of the program get a full-time offer to join Focused.

Join a Focused team on a real client engagement and put everything to work alongside experienced agent engineers. Engineers who meet the bar by the end of the program get a full-time offer to join Focused.

Walk out with the skills every agent engineer needs.

Evals
first

Know whether your agent works. Label datasets, write evaluators like LLM-as-judge, and let results decide what ships.

Tools and
integrations

Give agents safe, reliable access to real systems, and learn when a plain deterministic workflow beats an agent.

Context
engineering

Control exactly what the model sees and when, with retrieval, summarization, and compaction that keep agents on task.

The language
of agents

Talk fluently about models, LangChain, LangGraph, and agent architecture so you can lead client conversations.

Two
certifications

Earn the LangChain Certified Agent Engineer certification and the Claude Architect certificate during the program.

Built by
practitioners

Learn the same patterns we use every week as a LangChain partner shipping production agents for enterprise teams.

Questions about Agent Academy

The quick answers are here. The job posting has the full details on the role.

Do I need experience building agents?

No. Agent Academy is built for strong senior software engineers who haven't built production agents yet. You bring the engineering fundamentals; we teach the agent-specific skills.

How much time does it take?

A lot, on purpose. It's a full-time program: 40 hours a week during the workday with your cohort. Most people also put in practice time outside work hours. Getting good at this takes reps.

Am I guaranteed a job at the end?

No, and we want to be upfront about that. Engineers who meet the bar by the end of the program get a full-time offer to join Focused as Agent Engineers. If it isn't the right fit, you still leave with two industry certifications and skills that are in high demand.

What does the interview process look like?

Our interviews focus on how you engineer and collaborate, including a pairing session on a traditional software problem. We look for test-driven development, clean design, and clear communication. You won't be quizzed on agent frameworks.

Where is the program based?

Denver and Chicago. It's one cohort across both cities, working together as a single team, with three days a week in the office.

I already lead teams. Is there a role for me?

Yes. We're also bringing Lead Engineers into the cohort in both cities. Look for the Lead Engineer: Agent Academy postings on our careers page.

Can Focused sponsor a visa for this program?

Not at this time. Focused is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa for Agent Academy.

Ready to become an agent engineer? Join the November 2026 cohort.

Apply to the program
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Suite 1100-C

Chicago, IL 60607

work@focusedlabs.io

(708) 303-8088
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