Covid Career Transitioning
Why I Chose A Coding Bootcamp Over Finishing College
I was over half way through an Associate’s Degree for Computer Programming at my local community college and had just had my second child less than a year prior. In college, I had managed to make the Dean’s List and was invited to join Phi Theta Kappa National Honors Society for my 4.0 GPA. I loved everything about computers. I even enjoyed college math courses. It was going splendidly! There was one problem…I hadn’t written a single line of code.
Each semester I would eagerly check my credits, counting down until graduating and landing my dream software developer job. “After I finish technical writing, college algebra, ethics, a few business classes and some intro to programming courses, I’ll finally be able to dive into some languages and frameworks and really start building things!” I would tell myself as I attempted to match up course codes with my increasingly packed schedule.
Sure, networking fundamentals was a pragmatic class. But, with two children under 3 years old at the time and half of our household income reliant on me working, I was struggling with the limited course schedules and lack of actual programming in my college courses. I became increasingly frustrated and, being passionate for problem solving, I just knew there had to be a more efficient way. That’s when the pandemic hit. I found myself stuck at home, suddenly out of work and still no closer to becoming a developer. Lucky for me, in my haste, I had already secured a spot in Actualize Coding Bootcamp, based out of Chicago, that was offering an online live classroom setting.
I know that community college is no MIT, but I started so excited and eager to learn. My heart was in the right place, really! Due to having kids and a job (they call us “non traditional students” in college), most of my college courses ended up being online. Intro to computer programming was sixteen weeks of writing lab reports in Microsoft Word. On my maternity leave with my second child, anxious to program something…anything…I attempted some self-guided courses using various online platforms (Udemy, Skillcrush, Codecademy). While these platforms are rich in information and did help me build some actual projects for a portfolio, I was still missing the understanding of essential fundamentals and one on one interaction, in the expedited time-frame that I needed to build a career in software development during a global pandemic.
Why a bootcamp? Trust me, I scoured the internet for courses and alternatives after I decided I needed to get my hands on some actual code ASAP. Once I did some research, interviewed with five different bootcamp recruiters and read hundreds of reviews online, I decided an online live bootcamp was everything I was looking for. It was a 12 week program (17 weeks if you count the pre-work) that fit into my schedule. They offered evening or day courses. I finally felt like there was something out there for those of us wanting to change careers amidst the chaos of life and these strange times we suddenly found ourselves in.
The Pros of attending a coding bootcamp for me included…The live classroom environment. I was held accountable to show up every day. Structured course curriculum. We started with backend programming concepts and got into the nitty gritty before the pretty (I just made that up). The educators are actual software engineers with real world experience to pass on to you (my instructor was also a public-school teacher prior to being a software engineer). Within a few weeks I was building things using OOP, Ruby, Rails, API’s, Javascript and some front end essentials. What is more important though, is that each week I gained proficiency in my ability to learn and problem solving, since that is what being a developer is about.
The cons of bootcamps are obvious for some, though I would consider these trade offs… The price. Most bootcamps will run anywhere from 4K-24k and lack the diverse financial aide options that college has available. After what I had previously spent on college, this was not a deal breaker for me and in my opinion, well worth the expense. Another drawback is that bootcamps are very fast paced. You’ll be cramming as much info into your brain as you think is possible. That’s kind of the point, though. Right? Here is where accountability comes in. If you are determined to learn programming and genuinely enjoy showing up every day, even the challenging days can still be fun.
I am by no means discouraging anybody to stray from higher learning. I learned some really useful things in college. It typically makes for a well rounded individual. That being said, for programming and tech, I highly suggest you examine your goals, timeline and budget and decide which road to take on your own personal journey. I can tell you from my personal experience of having attending college and a technical trade program in my younger years, that a coding bootcamp is different than other education experience. I would recommend it to anybody. With much smaller class sizes in comparison to college courses, the classroom dynamic of bootcamps is inherently more personal. Being in a smaller class with the same people 5 days a week also allows a certain amount of fun and humor into what can, at times, be an intimidating experience. My particular instructor was invested enough in us as individuals that he anticipated and validated the times when we were silently questioning ourselves and abilities. He met that anxiety with encouragement and a solid curriculum. This was a vast contrast to feeling like I was alone on a deserted island in college and to me, was priceless.
If you’re a busy working parent, professional, or looking to change careers, you may want to seriously consider looking into bootcamps. You will build some really cool projects, meet some great people and even build lifelong professional relationships and friendships. I share my experience to provide others with hope in their search for alternative learning choices in a time where we find our lives turned upside down. In this time of distance learning and lack of social interaction, I feel grateful for the timing of the opportunity to attend a coding bootcamp online and finally feel like a real developer…Well, once I tackle that imposter syndrome. But, that’s a blog for another time.
