Lessons I Learned Working Full-Time while Enrolled in Coding Bootcamp

Although I live in the wonderful world of software documentation now, I wasn’t always a technical writer. Like many folks of my generation, my B.A. from a four-year university wasn’t netting me the salary or stability that I needed — especially in Austin, Texas where there is a high cost of living. I knew I needed to advance my career and make myself bulletproof in the face of an uncertain economy. Since 2017, I’ve worked at BigCommerce in a variety of different support roles and in 2019 I decided to do a crazy thing. I gave up 9 months of my life to learn full-stack web development and enrolled in a coding bootcamp while continuing to hold down a full-time job.

I chose Austin Coding Academy because they offered a flexible, part-time program for students who can’t quit our jobs and attend a 3-month full-time course, which is what most of their competitors offer. The course was broken up into three, 3-month blocks. The first few months covered basic web development with HTML/CSS and working in a local environment with git for version control. The next 3 months were devoted to learning basic computer programming concepts with vanilla Javascript. We focused on principles such as sorting algorithms, for loops and recursion. Our final 3 months were devoted to learning the React framework, using Redux for state management and MongoDB to store data.

I’m going to be honest; committing to something for that long stretch of time put a huge strain on me emotionally. I didn’t have much time to see friends or spend time with my significant other. I did have a game plan, though, and stuck to three principles that ultimately helped me be successful and keep my eyes on the prize.

Be Prepared

The first and most important piece of advice I can give to anyone who has decided to enroll in a bootcamp without serious consideration: don’t. What I mean by that is, you shouldn’t make that kind of financial commitment without investing time and energy first to ensure it will pay off.

Before I enrolled in the Bootcamp, I spent the better part of a year teaching myself basic HTML and CSS. I practiced with online tutorials and videos like CodeAcademy, FreeCodeCamp and YouTube Channels like TheNetNinja. As cliche as it is for me to say, the Internet has opened a door of vast possibility for those of us who want to learn a new skill but can’t afford to go back to traditional university. I set a schedule for myself after work to code at least twice a week before enrolling in my bootcamp. I chose a coffee shop near my house to work at and made this part of my weekly routine. I also immersed myself in the developer world by listening to podcasts like CodeNewbie and perused sites like DEV.to.

By the time I was actually enrolled in my bootcamp, I was familiar with setting up a GitHub repository, creating a basic front-end with HTML, and could understand the basics of Javascript (although I couldn’t write it yet). This prior study was THE most important factor for me being able to stick through the bootcamp to the end. I noticed many of my classmates simply couldn’t keep pace with all the new information we were being taught each day. Some folks dropped out because they were overwhelmed. Eventually, I did feel bombarded with new information and had to hustle to keep up, but being armed with the basics allowed me to spend more time on the harder concepts instead of focusing on just keeping my head above water.

Discipline

If you’re a person who is very social, like me, this one is going to be the hardest pill to swallow. During the nine months that I was working full time and attending class, I didn’t have much of a social life. My classes went from 6 pm to 9 pm Mondays and Wednesdays. On the days I had class, I’d ferry myself straight from my job to Austin Coding Academy. The rest of the week, I was hammering away late into the night on coding assignments after work. On weekends, I spent my time taking advantage of the free tutoring services that my bootcamp offered. We were assigned homework every single day. The reality is you’ll be coding most of the time you’re not eating, sleeping, or working. And if you aren’t coding, you’ll be thinking about how much work you’re not doing.

My default response was “no,” anytime friends tried to make plans with me for that nine-month period. If I did hang out with a friend, it was to work together side by side in the library or at a cafe. I can’t say I was having much fun during this time in my life. I felt exhausted and burnt out by the end. But the trick is to keep your focus on the long game. This is one of the hardest things to do when we have so many opportunities for instant gratification around us. Sometimes I did want to skip working on my app to go to brunch, or plan a nice dinner with my partner instead of going to class. I can’t tell you whether or not this kind of life is for you, but it’s very important that you determine if you’re able to make these sacrifices before you jump into a bootcamp.

Support

Working and going to school full time is a massive commitment. I had only ever worked part-time during college and wasn’t quite prepared for how hyper-focused I was going to be during the bootcamp. Despite my huge workload, life continued to go on around me. That will be the case for anyone who is thinking of taking the leap. That year was a turbulent time in my life, and I had a lot of difficult family issues arise during those nine months. I wasn’t able to drop everything and be present every time that I wanted to be. Ultimately, I think I was successful because the people around me also wanted me to be.

I was already working at BigCommerce in an entry-level role and I received nothing but encouragement from my managers and peers. Engineers offered me advice, and internally the company worked things out so I could get to class when I needed to. If you are fortunate enough to have a positive work environment, I can’t stress enough how important it is to rally troops around you. Tell your employer about your career aspirations. If you have a good manager, you might be able to shift your work schedule around to better fit your class schedule. If you work in technology already, you might be able to make the case to your employer that your new skills will benefit the business. Some employers will pay for their employees to attend a bootcamp if they can see that you’ll bring increased value to the team.

I’m also incredibly fortunate to have supportive family and friends. Throughout the whole process, my people cheered me on and encouraged me when I wanted to quit. My parents were very proud of my decision to become a full-stack developer and were always there to talk on the phone when I just needed to vent. The friends who matter were still there for me when I was done, even though I wasn’t always available for every hangout or happy hour. My partner at the time was very supportive of my goals and for that, I’m endlessly grateful. Having your significant other in your corner is a winning strategy for life in general, but when you’ve got something putting such a huge strain on your time, it is paramount that your partner agrees to the deal. I wasn’t always able to contribute to things like dinner or household planning because I was so busy. If your significant other can’t give you the space and time you’ll need to get work done, it’s not going to work. Ultimately, the time you’re going to be fully committed to a bootcamp is temporary, but you’re going to reap the benefits of a specialized skill set for the rest of your working career.

In the end, I made it through the course. I created a health and wellness app that I deployed via Heroku. I built most of the front-end functionality using BigCommerce’s React pattern library, BigDesign — (check it out here). I later applied for a role on BigCommerce’s Developer Documentation team and received an offer shortly after (read more about my journey at BigCommerce here). As a technical writer creating docs for our software and tools, I’m constantly working to ensure we’re providing developers with the best starting point for building amazing solutions for merchants on our platform. I still get to use the communication and writing skills I gained from my traditional education, but the technical skills I gained through the bootcamp have allowed me to go further than I ever thought was possible in my software career.