Applying to Ada Developers Academy —Part 1: Why and Why Not

Hi there. My guess is you found my blog because you’re interested in Ada Developers Academy (ADA). While I’ll keep my blog content, I want to clarify that at the moment of June 2023, I don’t support ADA the organization nor do I encourage people to apply. This is the second time I put this statement in my blog, the first time was in March 2022.
That’s said, if you’re applying to ADA, I hope the content of my blog will be useful to you. Good luck and happy coding!

Photo by Chester Ho on Unsplash

Let’s just say I’ve heard about Ada Developers Academy (ADA) from a few sources, and that was enough to intrigue my curiosity (besides from the fact that I was looking for apprenticeship in software development). The first place to know about ADA is (drum) their website and social media, so head there first if you’ve not done it yet (also because I believe you’re here for information and thoughts from an applicant’s viewpoint).

I couldn’t find much review about what I wanted to know about ADA. Most of the (quite old) blog posts by ADA alumni/applicants are stories citing chronological steps of the application process, plus some notes on the emotional roller coaster (which is helpful, I’ll get there), and plus they got in. I wanted to know about the quality of the course, the internship, or some details about the application process. And since I didn’t have them then, I’ll share them now.

There’re a few things to consider before (and during the time) applying to ADA. These are applicable to me, and my personal view/experience alone. If they resonate to you, I would be so happy, but if they don’t, please remember that my view in no way can, or should, invalidate yours. Feel free to share your thoughts, because I would love to listen to them.

And now, what I think can make or break my decision to apply to ADA, or any other training programs, given that I’m their target demographic group:

1. Academic quality. Honestly there’re not much I’ve found about this important aspect online. Every single program, from college to bootcamp to online platform, will tout their (high) quality and student success. Even if the program got glowing glittering reviews online, I tend to get skeptical if all those reviews are nothing but positivity. So I reached out to a few alumni and asked. What I was looking for was not how good they would say about ADA, but rather how objective they were when talking about ADA. Two things I need to note here: first, I was looking for intermediate — advance level course, and second, I will have a post dedicated to ADA’s academic quality when I actually experience it.
2. Free of charge for students. Well, SWEET? I was in dire financial situation (all of my savings before I moved to the US was spent on my mom’s medical expenses) so this is HUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE on my criteria (they also offer childcare support now, and I gotta show appreciation for that). I was already considering deferred tuition and sharing income models (even thought they mean I would need to wait until my children get to school age, and then I would need a job to save some money), so I would say there’re ways to finance a bootcamp if you’re finance doesn’t allow full-payment. An Econ would tell you that any tuition models other than full-payment mean a trade off with extra (paper) works before and after admission. It’s true with ADA’s admission process, but with ADA I think it worths it.
3. Intensity. ADA does point out that their program is intense. Look at their curriculum! All that in five months. But also I know this curriculum is what you’ll need to know to go full stack (basic, but you can see everything necessary there), so back to academic quality, I would give ADA a thumb up. My reference is fullstackopen (I’m working on it) and if you haven’t checked it out, do it, please. I would say gauge your pace with fullstackopen: how many hours (not days) you spent with, say, part 0 and compare that with ADA’s curriculum.
4. Network. This is called the most valuable things from ADA by many alumni. The thing with a network is …actually I don’t know much about network and networking to the point where you have 500+ connections on any social platform (laugh). Before applying, I just wanted to know if ADA’s network is open to questions, especially controversial ones, and also the way they response when some members ask for help. (Not ADA related, but I believe a good help/support should be specific. If someone give only generic answers, it may be wise to ask someone else.) Also, I came to the US knowing no one except for my partner and children. Outing with my partner’s network looks like an interrogation about my job, and when I told them I was pivoting from legal service to software engineering, they either told me it’s impossible for someone like me, or laughed. I need to tell you that the network of ADA applicants is pretty supportive, and some alumni are there to help too, so you can consider joining this Discord server (and also this one) and see if you like the vibe.
5. Internship. To me this is a big BONUS point. It’s so hard to get through the Resume screening without a CS Degree, without some big projects, and without connection (back to network). ADA is a rare chance for you to get interviewed by many big names (who pay ADA to have you trained) without any of the above (well, ADA is still a connection, I guess, but it’s far more objective than having your family member who is a principal engineer to refer you). I have to write this out to prevent any misunderstanding: ADA don’t guarantee an internship, let alone a full-time position. Heck, I don’t see any education institutes guarantee such a thing.
6. Application Process. When I read about the emotional roller coaster in the blog posts, I didn’t think it would be that bad (and the rejection, and re-rejection were also bad, too). Let’s say ADA’s application opened on February 2nd, and the result would be announced on May 5th. No matter if you were rejected from the first phase or the last phase, you would not get rejection email until that day. You’d get no feedback on the reason of the rejection, due to ADA’s shortage of human resource. Talk about all that time waiting!! But after three times applying, I think it’s ok whether you spent the time refreshing email every five minutes, or (try to) keep yourself away from electronic devices. Each one of us will have their own way to resolve the pressure during the application process, and the applicant network is here to support each other through this journey.

In the next part(s) I’ll share my experience, as well as (all) tips for prepping and doing the application! In the mean time, if you want to share/ask/challenge anything, feel free to drop me a word. In the meantime, happy coding!