Codesmith

I am posting this to let people know how I got tricked into thinking I can be job ready for the tech industry with only 3 months of classes, which is EXACTLY what Codesmith advertised...

Let me just start by saying that you will learn a good amount of... Read More knowledge from this program, I don't want to take away how rigorous this 12 week bootcamp actually is, and I actually learned a lot about programming and made a lot of friends at Codesmith.

That said, I am extremely disappointed in Codesmith, and felt like they scammed me out of 17k in tuition. I'll just go right ahead and say it:

Codesmith tells you to LIE when looking for jobs! They want you to put your so called "production project" in your resume as WORK EXPERIENCE!!!! They ask you to NOT put Codesmith in your resume, create a website and make it look really really nice so employers can be fooled that your project is a company, and reach out to random developers to "star" your repository to get a lot of stars in an attempt to pass as a legitamte professional project! They NEVER told us this in the beginning, and I felt duped and unsatisfied after close to a year of trying to follow their "Marketing" and "need-to-know-info" strategy to find jobs!

I knew it was too good to be true, when I first attended their Javascript Hard Parts meetup, the founder, Will, who by the way, was really really "Markety", claimed that Codesmith had the best hiriing rates than other bootcamps(by the way, they have NO outcomes reports whatsoever, to this day). Someone else that worked at Codesmith told us that, upon graduation, it takes less than a month to find a job...boy how I took the bait. I saw the culture there and lucrative promises that I eventually joined their July '17 cohort.

I graduated in October, and to this day, I am still struggling to even get phone interviews, I did have several interviews, but I had several recruiters and HR managers tell me that I'm trying to dupe them in my resume...I don't blame them, I mean, it LITERALLY is lying, we WERE trying to trick them into thinking we had PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE, what Codesmith told us to do, it is so shady and wrong!!! I didn't have the guts to come out and say it earlier, partly because I didn't want to believe that I paid 17k to get scammed, I wanted to believe that I chose the right program, so do some other students in my cohort as well as the cohort before us, but we're in so deep in commitment and money that we were in denial of the obvious.

For those of you wanting to change career, stick to a 4 year college! For those that are considering bootcamps, stick to the well known, proven bootcamps, like App Academy, Hack Reactor, or Full Stack Acad, those that acutally publish job outcomes and will not ask you to sell your soul and trick your interviewers, even if you do consider ANY bootcamp, ask them outcomes questions, the job search process, ASK them for outcomes numbers, ASK them a lot of questions, if they're being standoffish, it's usually a big telltale sign. If it's too good to be true, it often is!

I will still try to find a software engineer job, but I am going back to the drawing board and learn more on my own, for free, there are many resources online for anyone to teach themselves how to code. the program did teach me a lot, but not enough to be job ready, I mean, its so laughable that Codesmith will tell you to market yourself as a react engineer without even teach you REDUX.

I felt scammed, I felt duped, and I felt that I HAD to say something so other people looking for bootcamps or potential attendees won't fall into the same predictament that I did.

I had heard about coding camps prior to Codesmith but I never really had the intention of signing up for one. I figured I could learn web development on my own and apply to junior positions with that knowledge. I didn’t realize how difficult the industry... Read More was to break into though, even for a junior developer. It was near impossible to even get an interview.

Then I attended a Hard Parts class Will was teaching. I was impressed with his knowledge and how engaging the class was. Then I explored the Codesmith campus and saw the current students working and talked to a couple of them, and it seemed like such a great and inclusive atmosphere. My positive impression along with my disappointment in finding a job pushed me to apply for Codesmith where I ended up being accepted.

The experience of Codesmith itself was amazing. I met so many motivated people that motivated me more, and I met a lot of good friends from my cohort and other cohorts that I still hang out with. It really does feel like a family there. The course content was also great and they taught us a lot of difficult and advanced topics in detail. That’s one of the biggest differences with Codesmith compared to other schools: You will struggle. But you come out at the end of it very knowledgeable in a lot of areas and you have projects that are genuinely impressive, even to experienced developers. Many other schools will have you make generic, junior-level projects that you see a million times on inexperienced programmers’ resumes. That won’t make you stand out.

Keep in mind, even by the end of my time there, I was still skeptical about finding a job because I remembered how difficult it was before Codesmith. We went through a lot of job preparation like resume reviews and mock interviews, but I was still unsure. The key here is you have to follow what Codesmith tells you to do to a T. It’s very easy to get lazy when job searching after your graduation. But I followed exactly what they taught me and I ended up getting interviews left and right. Some of them didn’t go well, but most did.

I ended up getting two offers and went with a company that currently pays me a six figure salary doing something I love. Before Codesmith, I would have been surprised to get an offer of even half that. I’m still in disbelief that I was able to get to where I am now in such a short time.

Everything about Codesmith was life changing, from the friends I met to the experience of being there to my new career now. If you’re on the fence about this school just because you think it might be too good to be true, know that I felt the exact same way. I just pulled the trigger on it and it was the best decision I ever made.

Codesmith was the right decision for me. I graduated with a Math/CS degree and was unsure about whether any of these coding programs would be useful for me, but I eventually decided on attending Codesmith and I'm so glad I did! The vibe and energy from... Read More the people there was always positive, always friendly, and always collaborative. I was free to ask for help and work with others on what I had trouble with and at the same time others could always come to me with their questions as well. And that was important because the program was dense and without that kind of community, I couldn't learned what I did, and I wouldn't have been able to built what I did. It felt like we were all in this together and trying to raise each other up to become the best engineers possible!

My experience in the program was incredibly valuable and I would choose to do it again in a heartbeat!

I went through Codesmith a few months ago and it was absolutely one of the best and most enriching experiences of my life. It's a challenging environment and a stretch of time that completely absorbs you. In that regard, it’s not for the faint of heart.... Read More But you absolutely get what you give; the education and career support at Codesmith delivers.

I was initially very suspect because of the sad reality that many bootcamps take prospective coders for a ride. I went to a ‘bootcamp’ in 2016, Beach Coders, and felt I walked away with nothing to show at all for my investment of time and money. Prior to Codesmith, I spent a year at a company working as a junior engineer and I felt that my day to day did little to move me towards software engineering autonomy. At Codesmith that all changed in three months. I not only learned some of the most relevant technologies of today, the ones demanded by the vast majority of senior positions at great startups and corporations alike, but I also learned the context behind these technologies and how they fit together to build a complete and empowering skillset. I feel completely ready to walk into a remote gig or into a senior level position.

And that’s only one half, the software education aspect, of Codesmith. The career support is the best I’ve ever received. You’ll have lectures that teach you how to present yourself and your skills in an authentic manner. The resume guidance gets people with no experience through the door and onto the tech screenings. As engineers with years of experience know, doing great at a tech screen is a different skillset than actually building full stack applications. Codesmith prepares you to overcome both of these barriers. I wouldn’t change a thing about my experience other than the fact that I spent too long trying to learn how to program by myself. The time I wasted trying to figure out how to code at a professional level by myself cost me money and experience in the long run. I wish I had gone all in sooner; I’d be further along in my career.

I took a risk and moved all the way from San Francisco to attend Codesmith's August 2016 cohort. At the time, Codesmith was still a relatively new Software Engineer program and trying to build its reputation as the best in the nation. There were already... Read More well established and reputable programs like Hack Reactor and App Academy. I got into all 3 programs, but I chose Codesmith for the following reasons:

1) Small, intimate cohort size (15-20 students max). You will get a chance to pair with everyone in your cohort and connect on a deeper level beyond the curriculum. The staff and peers will not let you fall behind.
2) Very selective. Codesmith only admits smart, motivated, empathetic, and thoughtful peers. You will meet amazing people from all walks of life and build relationships that will last beyond the 12 weeks.
3) Projects. You build challenging and ambitious projects you are proud to put on your portfolio and speak passionately about when you are job seeking.
4) Curriculum. Modern tech stack with emphasis on best practices.
5) Support. Routine check ins , interview practice, job search tips, algorithm practice, soft skill practice, etc.
6) Hiring day. 20ish companies come out on the last day to hire you! What other program even has hiring day anymore?

Tips:
Be prepared and committed work 8-12 hrs a day for 6 days a week.
Continue to work just as hard when the program has concluded. Remember nothing is guaranteed.
You will have the confidence and knowledge to become a mid-level developer.
Imposter syndrome is real. Just know it happens at every level. The more you know, the more you don't know.

Finals thoughts:
It's been 1.5 years since I completed the program. I made a choice, and it paid off. Codesmith was one of the best experiences of my life and I would do it many times over.

I'm very grateful to Codesmith as it accelerated me from junior to mid level in my time there and provided me the tools and mindset to jump from mid level to senior at my first full time job in the time span of 2 months. YMMV but you will at least be... Read More a mid level developer out of Codesmith.

From what I know, the hiring support and tips and tricks to get mid level positions even without any developer experience puts Codesmith head and shoulders above any other bootcamp out there.

The only downside is having to listen to the CEO's speeches every Thursday night. But in spite of that, it still makes Codesmith more than worth the cost and the 12 weeks of intense learning.

I have a very strange situation.

The first week of attending Codesmith, I was invited to interview onsite at a few companies. This was because of some resumes I had sent around before Codesmith.

During that first week, we reviewed a lot of JavaScript and... Read More CS fundamentals. During my lunch breaks, I went and did those interviews.

I did so well that many of the interviewers said they've interviewed developers with 5 or 6 years of experience, but never seen them get so many of the questions right.

A lot of that was due to Codesmith's great way of teaching fundamentals that many bootcamps don't teach, and many engineers don't know very well.

A lot of my success in these interviews is due to Codesmith. Thanks!

Me, before: Technical, non-software-engineering role at a software company. Engineering (non-CS) MS and BS from UCLA (Go Bruins). Very very little JS web dev experience.

Me, now: Software Engineer in LA. Making 67% more than I was before. Doing lots of... Read More JS web dev and kicking ass.

Thoughts: Codesmith is an amzing way to get 1000+ hours of guided, designed, supported time learning a useful, in-demand set of skills to get hired as a software engineer. It's super fun, too.

I think Codesmith's effectiveness is shown in my hiring experience. We set up profiles for platforms like AngelList near the end of the program and I got a handful of outreach messages from companies nearly immediately. Two turned into interviews, one into an onsite and an senior dev offer before I even graduated. I spent the three weeks after graduation ~50% applying to jobs and ~50% interviewing/preparing for interviews, getting 5 offers in that time. Every onsite interview I had turned into an offer. I accepted one within a month of graduating.

I think part of my success comes from my technical background and fancy degrees (I didn't put Codesmith on my resume), but I wasn't having many results from these kind of companies in my immediately-previous job search. Codesmith set me up with the skills, confidence, polish and support that made the hiring process actually kind of fun.

Coming from a .Net background I was looking for a way to accelerate my training of using Javascript throughout the full stack and to familiarize myself with modern frontend frameworks. After attending a couple of Meetups hosted at Codesmith including... Read More the wonderful, ‘JS: The Hard Parts’ lead by Will Sentance, I knew that Codesmith was the place for me. Even as a guest, I could already feel the genuine excitement for tech and self-improvement just by walking around the space.

From day one, the support from the staff and fellow students was outstanding. Whether there be a technical issue or something else there was ALWAYS someone there to pick you right back up and steer you in the right direction. I really loved hanging out with my cohort mates and to be honest asked myself more than once if I was enjoying it too much. Don’t get me wrong, long nights and stress were part of everyday life but it really helped knowing that everyone had your back.

Overall, my 12 weeks at Codesmith was a life changing experience and I am incredibly proud to be part of the Codesmith family.

I began looking into software immersion programs in the winter of 2016. In searching for pair program partner to study with for technical interviews, I came across a person on Reddit, who was at the time a Codesmith student, who offered to help me study.... Read More Only at the end of our studies did he ask what program I was shooting for. I told him Hack Reactor, since it had a solid rep, and I was already living in the Bay Area. He pushed me to look into Codesmith, telling me he too had looked into HR. He moved all the way from Florida to LA to attend.

I applied to both, and got into both. I chose Codesmith, because my Reddit buddy praised the school so highly, and believed in the program so strongly. Since graduating, I firmly share his beliefs, and know I made the correct choice. There are three major factors that make Codesmith such a standout; an especially capable and talented student body, an emphasis on technical communication, and the strong sense of community the program fosters.

The student body at Codesmith is carefully selected . The standards for admission are tough. The technical interview was harder than HR by a long shot - it took me a couple of tries to get in. This was frustrating at the time, but this system results in a cohort with stronger technical abilities, so the material and the rate at which they teach it can be upped. There’s a cultural interview too. It’s not enough just to be really smart. Empathetic, team-focused, communicative, and social personalities are sought from applicants. The curriculum revolves around pair programming and project teams, so people who fill this criteria are strong fits for the program. This combination of technical abilities and conducive personalities results in learning environment where you can maximize your growth.

The most powerful skill set I was able to develop at Codesmith wasn’t learning JavaScript really well (though I did that, too), but technical communication. I can’t stress how important this ability is. When you’re interviewing for mid and senior level developer positions, being well-spoken and concise is sooo important. After all, asides from a coding challenge or two, the only way these interviewers can judge you is by the words you share with them. Being able to answer questions in an elegant, precise, and confident way is the best way to shine. But the perks of a strong technical communication ability don’t end there. After you’re hired, you’ll have to communicate with your team, both technical and non-technical members, in an efficient and approachable way. This’ll make you an especially valuable asset to your team.

The most enjoyable part of the program is the community and culture the Codesmith team has created. Graduates consistently maintain relations with Codesmith. Whether it’s coming back to for mock interviews of current students, host an open forum that details their job search story and their current roles, or just dropping by to hang out, alumni are a big part of the culture and are always looking to give back. Thursday nights are special night each week where students, staff, alumni, and friends put aside their work a little earlier than usual, and have a few drinks with each other. Very often the karaoke machine gets busted out. You haven’t seen anything until you’ve watched half a dozen engineers singing along to some N’Sync. There are beach days, bonfires, family-style dinners, kickball. And all of this fun happens alongside some of the most intense and rapid-paced learning you’ll ever have.

I really can’t say enough good things about Codesmith. I’m not trying to be dramatic, but it has been a bit of a life-changing experience. I’ve gained a large group of friends I’ve bonded very strongly to, an amazing job I feel proud of, and a new perspective on communication, problem solving, and life in general.