how to pick a coding bootcamp
During the summer of 2016 I decided to make a change.
After spending the previous 6-years at the helm of a fast growing software company, I came to a cross-roads — continue what I was doing or step into the unknown and take on a new adventure. Put simply, I love adventure.
While I did spend a few months traveling through SouthEast Asia, I knew I wanted to spend time learning a new skill before finding a different role. Working on the business and marketing side my entire career, I understood how valuable being more technical could be in addition to my existing skill sets. So I decided to enter the matrix and learn how to code.
A Bootcamp? But why?
There are many paths to learning how to code and I know the time and money commitment required for most bootcamps is unrealistic for damn near everyone. However if you have the opportunity, I believe a bootcamp can potentially save you years of time that would have been spent self educating.
Evaluating schools..
Choosing a coding bootcamp is similar in many ways to selecting a college, your goal should be to go to the best one possible. While price is obviously a huge consideration, it shouldn’t be your only one. The cheapest school you can find will most likely cost you more in the long run.
A few things I took into consideration…
- Tuition cost
- Program length
- Course objective
- Technology stack
- Alumni network
- Job search support
- Graduation rate
- Coding experience requirements
- Years in business
- Online Reviews
A few helpful sites I found while doing research..
Most schools have campuses in multiple locations and sometimes all over the world. It is important to see how students are rating the specific campus you’re going to. For this I found yelp to be the best source of information.
Switchup is a great resource for finding out more details on bootcamps based on what you’re interested in learning.
Course Report is a Coding Bootcamp directory featuring thousands of alumni reviews.
You don’t want to go to a school where people hate working. See how their employees feel about it.
Also, once you narrow down your search I would suggest reaching out to previous alumni through LinkedIn. Nothing like some real feedback.
Picking a school..
I looked into several different schools while conducting my search..
- generalassemb.ly
- anyonecanlearntocode.com
- bloc.io
- codercamps.com
- devbootcamp.com
- hackreactor.com
- makersquare.com
- appacademy.io
After some research and based on several personal requirements, I narrowed my list to General Assembly and Hack Reactor.
While both are excellent schools, I found General Assembly to be more of a fit to what I was looking for.
However before I decided to enroll there was a technical and in-person interview. When you get to this stage, remember it is a two-way street, you should also be interviewing them! Get a tour of the campus, meet your teachers, meet current students, get a feel for the place!
A few questions I brought up..
- Enrollment timeframe
- PreCourse work
- Class size
- Teacher experience (you don’t want to be in anyone’s first class)
- Their take on why I should take a coding bootcamp
- What happens in case of a family or medical emergency
- Networking opportunities
- Teacher turnover rate/burnout
- How often is the curriculum updated
- Top reasons for drop outs
- Payment plans and options
- How they level the playing field of diverse student experience
- Finally, do you have any concerns about me? Great time to feedback on where you stand.
How to get ready....
As mentioned, there is some given pre-work ahead of joining any bootcamp however you should have at least some basic coding skills before jumping in. It would be a huge waste of time and resources if you realized a week in that you hate coding.
One option is a Bootcamp prep course. Several bootcamps provide this and if you complete it and decide to go full-time, they usually apply the cost into your tuition.
However if that is not for you, there are a ton of useful online resources.
Out of all the online sites I tried, I found treehouse to be the most inline with my learning style. If you’re planning on joining a bootcamp I would highly recommend getting the paid version, it’s awesome.
Get your hands dirty with some easy challenges from Coderbyte
Read chapters 1–6 in Eloquent JavaScript.
Learn MORE about JavaScript (Never stop learning about JavaScript!!).
Work on your typing speed!
In the end I choose to attend General Assembly for a 3-month immersive web development course. I’ll be sure to update about my experiences.
Good luck in your decision and if you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!
// my story is anedoctal, if you’re considering taking a bootcamp — DO YOUR OWN RESEARCH
