Peek Behind the Bootcamp Curtain 🧐
Truths, challenges, and how to make the most of it
All coding bootcamps differ. This applies to the people who participate in them, too. Every experience is different!
I completed a bootcamp after 2 years of learning on my own. I'm driven but needed more accountability and opportunities for deeper understanding or to locate trusted resources. A rapid feedback loop helps to retain complex information long-term.
After months of research, I selected the best program for me, my partnership, and my career goals. I chose the part-time Hack Reactor (by Galvanize) Software Engineering Immersive*, which encompassed 9 months of nights and weekends plus a significant cost. Afterward, I was better prepared than I managed on my own!
We’ll cover my experience for someone considering this path or for curious minds!
🤔 Takeaways
🤯 Challenges
😌 Advice
*The part-time program was discontinued in 2023; as of this writing, only full-time is available.
🤔 Takeaways
I learned so much, even beyond the technology!
Communication is extremely important.
Working in tech necessitates clear communication to solve challenging problems. Our projects involved “clients” and instructors acted as engineering managers, offering project scope navigation.
Asynchronous communication is common in a remote program. For some, this was new. Having worked remotely since early COVID, it was already normal for me.
These experiences highlight communication layers that happen in tech. The importance is discussed in newsletters like
, , or .Not everyone makes it.
I was surprised I didn’t get in the first time. When I applied, Hack Reactor required a technical test for acceptance. They offered free prep training, but you had to take advantage of this. Rejection pushed me when I found it wasn’t easy; I got in on the second try!
Along the way, my cohort lost several people at various stages and reasons. Some were personal, others decided the content wasn’t working, and a few opted to pick up with a later cohort. I learned recently that a later cohort lost about half of their number!
Hack Reactor gave the ability to stop or postpone at various points which could result in a full or partial refund, a do-over with a later cohort, or a complete removal without a refund. The stipulations for each were fair to me.
You learn quickly in a fast-paced program.
With strictly planned coursework, there’s a tight deadline. The first weeks included foundational training followed by projects with quick deadlines of 4-6 weeks. Mid-way through was a major test to confirm we gained the knowledge to finish the second half of the course.
We had to quickly pick up new tech to complete projects on time while practicing existing tools and communicating with our team and instructors. We learned to ask questions early and often. It’s not worth struggling well into a deadline!
Projects are the best possible learning tool.
I’m certain you’ve heard this before. Tutorials and reading can only get you so far.
Touching the tech, working through confusion, and practicing in a project are the best ways to learn. I’ve taken that seriously since diving into my career and side projects.
🤯 Challenges
No one told me bootcamp would be easy. I was well-informed that it would be difficult. We talked about it at length during our first week of onboarding. I was unprepared for it to be one of my toughest experiences.
Investments are high.
Of course, there was a large financial investment. I chose a high-cost program because acquaintances completed it and did well over the last 5-6 years. Real results are the best recommendation!
I underestimated the time investment. The course itself involved Zoom meetings over 10 hours each week. Then another 10-15 hours were needed to finish projects, outside learning, and assignments.
The info was clear, but living it was harder. I didn't have the luxury to leave work during my course, so I also worked full-time throughout.
Weekdays for me consisted of meetings with customers, my team, and other teams. When I didn’t have meetings, my work was also on a computer. Most evenings, I took a short break before class started but I was still overwhelmed and exhausted. I’m extremely grateful to my partner for taking on more so I could focus.
Saturdays involved a 5-hour class followed by outside coursework. The program recommended taking Sundays off, and I tried, but it was my best time for a clear mind to focus and grasp content. I often worked on Sundays as a trade-off to rest after long workdays.
Life goes on during the course.
Whether a program takes weeks, months, or one or more years to complete, this is a valid challenge and the one I least expected.
I suddenly lost someone important to me, learned my father had lung cancer, and we learned our beloved dog had bladder cancer, and we needed to make tough decisions as caregivers.
I’m sure others had hardships, too, but this was a level I had never faced. My career and coursework were challenging, and my personal life added even more to juggle in the last half of the course.
😌 Advice
You get out of it what you put into it.
No matter the program, you get reciprocal success for the effort given. If you learned the fundamentals, you were quicker to grasp the next phases. If you spent time on individual tools, you were more capable of applying them in projects.
My engineering manager wrapped up my effort neatly in my first annual review as a Software Engineer.
He was blunt with me. He wasn't thrilled when he learned my company committed to hiring a new engineer who recently completed a bootcamp. He shared that immediately, he was impressed by my ability to speak to technical challenges, the smooth onboarding for a newer engineer, and my ability to communicate.
Which leads me to my next point.
Career changers are powerful!
These days, many people find tech after pursuing other careers. This brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from different domains and levels.
Right away, I applied my experience in US real estate to my company where we build tools and websites for North American agents. My empathy and understanding of customer needs from my time in Support and Onboarding brought new insights to our team and projects.
If you’re a career changer, take your experience with you! It’s truly valuable.
If you’re a hiring manager, your team will be more diverse if you hire folks with varied experience. Even if it’s not as directly correlated as my experience, we bring all sorts of skills to build better software!
Job searching.
Here is the best I can give: leverage your network. For my first role, I am grateful that my company supported my efforts and moved me to engineering after completion.
I didn’t go through what many in tech have in recent years. Multiple interviews, tests, projects, problems, recruiters…I leveraged opportunity.
I worked hard for them and clarified my goals - to give myself proper credit. I talked to the leadership team early and often. Granted, I work for a small company with under 100 full-time employees; I had the ability to speak with the C-suite directly.
Conclusion
Results will vary. Honestly, I could leave it there, but I’ll wrap it up.
My bootcamp was hard and I learned a crazy amount in a relatively short time. My investments were large, but my rewards have been great thus far.
Bootcamps are not for everyone. There’s more communication involved than many believe when considering this career, but it’s an extremely important asset. Some people learn coding isn’t for them or choose to leave before finishing.
Bootcamp grads should share their career goals with their network to help them find that first role! I’ve heard it gets better once you land the first one. I’ll have to get back to you when I eventually move to my next role. 😉
For more stuff from me, find me on LinkedIn / YouTube or catch what else I'm up to at mindi.omg.lol
Thanks for reading! Did I miss anything, or would you like to add anything? Let me know! I appreciate constructive feedback so we can all learn together. 🙌