Codesmith

This program is parallel to none. I went to undergrad at Berkeley, and my three months at Codesmith was more academically rigorous than any semester during college. But there is a great deal of support. The instructors, TAs, and fellow students all put... Read More in the extra hours to support each other and make this place feel like home.

I had another friend who went to a different coding school in the same city two years ago, and he's been working as an engineer in industry since. I'll be commanding a higher salary than him upon my graduation here from Codesmith.

If you are still unsure about which school to attend, I would seriously recommend going to the meetup and seeing the level of engineering excellence that they can provide. The program itself is difficult and rigorous, but the level of knowledge and skill... Read More that you walk away with is amazing. They really encourage a good community among each cohort, and it was a real treat being able to meet like minded people who were also as passionate about learning as I was. The job support is awesome and very helpful. I would 100% recommend this program as it has really helped me achieve my goals.

To me, CodeSmith can best be described as an accelerator. If you're a self-driven learner, CodeSmith will challenge you with a very intense and in depth JavaScript based Computer Science curriculum. Every day, you'll be pair programming with a group of... Read More like-minded students and pushed to explain your thinking and build up your technical communication skills.

By the end of the experience, you will have multiple projects in your portfolio and feel confident going out to the search for a mid-level or senior-level software engineering role. More than teaching you Node.js, React and Redux - Codesmith teaches you how to tackle and conquer any new technology.

While the computer science education is fantastic, perhaps the greatest value CodeSmith provides is its rich career development program. The insights you get from the founders of Codesmith - who teach the career development curriculum themselves - is worth the price of tuition alone.

Codesmith allowed me to expedite my path to becoming a software engineer far more than I could have on my own. The day-to-day agenda kept me busy at all times, but I enjoyed every bit of it. I feel that their curriculum not only targets the most relevant... Read More technologies desired on the job market, but also ensures that students learn from the bottom-up. Aside from the program, the culture that's fostered at Codesmith is both welcoming and engaging. They heavily emphasis pair-programming, and I feel that that's allowed me to better articulate myself and my approach in code. I would easily recommend this program to anyone interested in software engineering.

I've never been surrounded by a group of more supportive and compassionate people in my entire life. This is what makes Codesmith such an amazing place. From the academic team to the felllows to your cohort mates, everyone is always willing to lend a... Read More helping hand to ensure your success in the program.

The curriculum is rigorous and gets more challenging as the program goes on, but it never feels overwhelming because of this supportive structure. You'll learn the basics in popular web technologies like React / Redux and Node / Express in a very short amount of time but you'll master these concepts in group projects.

The hiring support is extensive with Will Sentance and Erik Kirsten leading lectures about the interviewing process and salary negotiation towards the end of the program. Every bit of advice given in these lectures is invaluable to your job search.

Attending Codesmith has been one of the best decisions in my life. You'll not only gain a deep understanding of popular web technologies and engineering best practices but you'll learn how to overcome any obstacle as a software engineer. If you're looking for a program that will push you to your limits but supports you every step of the way, look no further than Codesmith.

"Transformative." "Easily worth the investment." "Unlike anything I have or will have ever done in the best possible way."

Believe me... I was sitting in your position just months ago reading through the reviews and contemplating which one of these software... Read More engineering immersion programs was a fit for me, if at all.

Do this instead: Attend a JavaScript: Easy Parts then a Hard Parts Workshop (cost: always free) this upcoming week. Then go back again over and over.

Why?

No one goes into as much depth about the intricacies of how JavaScript works, especially with respect to asynchronous features, the event loop, and the microtask queue. You will learn so much from the Codesmith faculty as well as from your peers, because pair-programming is a huge part of it.

Still lost? Don't worry, I was too. But believe me, the effort this place puts in guiding you through the core pillars of software engineering is one-of-a-kind.

Now onto the program. It's phenomenal in every sense of the word. Bright engineers from the residents you'll be building amazing open source projects with, the stellar fellows who will stay late in the night to help you debug, to the instructors who have an incredible track record of molding you into the model mid-level / senior engineer you will soon become.

So again. If you're thinking about heading down this route, do yourself a favor and attend a workshop. You've got nothing to lose.

Thank you, Codesmith!

Codesmith is an amazing program that can push you as far as you're willing to go. This isn't a beginner "learn how to code shop". This is a full-stack, immersive engineering program that will more than prepare you for a career as a software engineer if... Read More you're willing to put in the work. The program is split into two halves. The first half focuses on core technologies and strengthening technical communication skills as you learn. This includes daily paired programming exercises and group projects that will challenge both your creativity and your engineering abilities. This is the best way to learn this stuff! And you will stand out as a technical communicator after Codesmith.

The second half begins after a one week "break" that you'll spend brainstorming with a small group. You'll get to solve a developer facing engineering problem that you'll discover during this week of ideation. You're solution will be an open source library. Open source development is an amazing way to get experience solving problems. And the caliber of problem you'll be tackling will be much larger than a typical CRUD problem. It may even at times feel like an impossible task, but somehow everyone makes it through and they're much better engineers because of it. After that Codesmith, goes above and beyond helping you prepare for the job search. They've been doing this for a while now and the number speak for themselves. Work hard, follow there advice, and you'll be crushing interviews and on your way to a job offer.

I had an awesome experience at Codesmith. My cohort was amazing and so hard working. The staff was extremely supportive and really friendly (always stuck around well into the night for Thursday night drinks :) ). I'd do this program again in a heart beat. The job search wasn't fun, but I got through it and now I'm an fully employed software engineer and I have Codesmith to thank for that. If you're considering programs in LA or NY and you're willing to put in the work. This is the one!

The instruction was very good and I became close with some of my cohort-mates. Ryan is a supremely knowledgeable teacher and an incredibly nice guy. The course helped me to fill gaps in my knowledge as well as build up more confidence before doing a technical... Read More interview for Codesmith.

Since the lectures move quickly and the concepts require time to digest, I would HIGHLY suggest becoming familiar with ALL of CSX--the online pre-course material--before attending. If not, you may feel behind in the pair programming sessions and not get the most benefit from the course.

Cs prep helped strengthen the weaker areas and gaps in my software engineering knowledge and helped me feel more confident in applying for the full-time Codesmith program. The instructor did a fantastic job of covering each topic in a way that was engaging... Read More and inspiring. He also was open to answering questions and made sure that some of the more challenging concepts were understood at a foundational level. This was helpful because the people within my cohort all varied in their level of experience. Cs prep also put a strong emphasis on pair programming as a learning tool and I couldn't agree more with how beneficial it has been to my overall growth. The program ends with the building and presentation of a group project. During this time, you get the opportunity to apply what you learned to something more tangible and although it is challenging, it is really nice to see it all come together in the end into something you and you group can feel proud of. I would definitely recommend Cs prep to those who are serious about applying to Codesmith but are still on the fence about their technical communication and foundational software engineering skills. I am happy to say that after I attended cs prep I got accepted into the December 17 cohort and I am really looking forward to all that is to come.

I chose to enroll in CS Prep because I had started to learn to code on my own, but with no prior experience or community of fellow programmers I felt stuck. I was drawn to the part time schedule and short time frame, along with small group size of CS... Read More Prep, and the syllabus seemed thorough in covering the fundamentals of Javascript.

I appreciated that there were students of all different experience levels, and the instructor (Ryan) was incredibly encouraging while still pushing everyone to extend their individual knowledge. The class was structured around empathetic learning which helped everyone feel at ease, and encouraged all of us to really care for the learning of others, not just ourselves.

By far the most effective part of the course for me was pair programming. Since I had only learned to program on my own, it was amazing what working with one other person could do for the growth of my learning, and it especially enhanced my technical communication. I think it was important to pair program in the context of this course because we were easily able to check in with the instructor or other classmates if we had questions or clarifications.

I learned so much in two weeks that I decided to take the course again and learned so much more because I had created a solid foundation to build on. I highly recommend this course to anyone who is starting to learn Javascript or needs to brush up on fundamentals.