Epicodus

I went to Epicodus for the CSS/Design track in 2017. The course was very rigorous in the best way possible with at the very least 8 hours of each day (often times closer to 12-15 hours) spent either writing code, designing, or testing code/prototypes that I had created. I feel like the experience prepared me to step directly into the tech community and get to work. Since graduation, I have been working as a UX designer applying all that I learned as well as expanding upon that knowledge in intelligent and meaningful ways. Not only did I learn how to program at Epicodus but more importantly I learned how to learn technologies as well as getting in touch with the vibrant local tech community.

Overview: I attended the 6-month full-time Design/CSS program back in 2017 and graduated in late October. Prior to Epicodus, I was working for 4 years as a Makeup Artist and Lash Extension Artist. I managed to continue working part-time while attending Epicodus, which was extremely challenging but doable. Luckily, I have a very supportive partner who picked up a lot of duties with our 1-year-old daughter so that we could make this happen. The late nights and stress was worth it, as I just accepted an offer with a great company. I'll be making more money (not to mention, have great benefits for my family, as well as fun things like paid vacation) now as a junior-level designer than I made as an experienced business owner. Without a doubt, completing the rigorous coursework at Epicodus wa...

The Epicodus 6 month bootcamp program is for the courageous and dedicated person who desires to transition into a high tech career.

It is NOT like a college or university program with several classes and a schedule you can design for yourself.

It is like a demanding entry level job. One must be there 8 to 5, Monday to Friday week after week for 6 months. One cannot afford to take days off. And yes, one needs to stay dedicated and regularly study during nights and weekends.

The reward for completing this program, is knowing that you can in fact work in a fast paced software development environment. You can in fact work well both alone and also all day with colleagues. And you can work with a variety of modern computer languages, frameworks and tools, in a short amount of tim...

I took the evening intro program because I was enrolled full time in college and I wanted a course that would fit my schedule. I also wanted to learn a lot in that short amount of time. After the course my interest in programming increased and I am planning on taking the full-time course once everything settles down. Thank you to Epicodus for all your programs.

I began in May 2016, pivoted to switch tracks form Ruby to Design, and finished in early 2017.
This gave me an unusually broad perspective on this excellent school as a result!
For instance, I had to slog through the JavaScript courses twice, and I saw them change in those few short weeks. Humbling and very, very educational.

+ Constantly evolving curriculum, just like the industry
+ Learning with a cohort helps keep you motivated; pair programming teaches soft skills
+ Awesome staff, very welcoming and supportive
+ Outrageous value
+ Persistent help with resume, job placement; they invited me back to Demo Day until I found a permanent position
+ Early start time and strict attendance policies help you take your learning outcomes seriously

- Code Reviews formulaic; if you d...

I attended Epicodus after working as a project coordinator for 5 years after college. I had some experience of basic HTML and CSS which intrigued me to want to learn more. I had heard great things about the code school from an alum and former coworker. If you want a quick way into the tech industry Epicodus can help you get there, but you definitely need to dedicate yourself and put in a lot of work on your own if you want to be successful.

Teachers are there more so for moral support and to help you learn better. It is up to you to do the heavy lifting, which is what it will be like in the job world. The initial curriculum can be overwhelming for someone with no experience. I would highly recommend trying to code on your own through free online resources to determine if this is so...

I'd been trying to teach myself C# and failing, due to a lack of motivation. I heard about Epicodus from a grad, and saw they had a C#/.NET track, and I knew that I would be doing that asap. I withdrew my enrollment from PSU (just 2 days before class started), and paid for Epicodus. I had some background with Web based Programming, and video game development, but what I needed was a positive and open space to dive deep into the .NET stack. Having an instructor that knew the curriculum well, and (more importantly) was willing and able to learn with us when we found difficult problems, really went a long way. She was an excellent mirror for our collective excitement. I graduated this past October, and within 3 weeks was hired.

This worked so well for me because the curriculum was chall...

The most important point I want to stress is that I saw far too many people enter this program without doing ANY programming experience at all. How can you know if something suits you if you've never tried it? There's no excuse, simply sign up for udacity's CS101 course and see if you're into it. If you don't find the challenge fun, do NOT sign up at any coding bootcamp. Programming jobs pay well because it's very challenging work, not because there's a shortage of entry-level programmers (there is a shortage of GOOD programmers).

With that said, my experience at Epicodus was almost entirely positive. I learned A LOT, very quickly and pair programming was a blast. If I were to recommend any changes for the curriculum, I would include 5 weeks (or more) of CS fundamentals and raise the...

Great course! I had a really good experience with Epicodus in Seattle. The classroom setting was inspiring, coursework was thorough and engaging and instruction was there when you needed it. Ultimately, besides the fundamentals of coding, what I learned was the ability to find answers to problems, troubleshoot, be tenacious and rely on my problem solving skills to figure out lessons. I would definitely recommend if you have the drive and motivation to challenge yourself here.

Every 6 months or so I get approached by someone asking about my experience at Epicodus. It is from someone who knows someone who is on the fence of switching careers and they aren't sure if Epicodus is for them. I love connecting with these people, because I love sharing my experience. They usually have the same concerns I did, "Is it worth the cost", "Will I find a job?", "Is this the best [coding] language to learn?" I can tell you it is worth it. My biggest skepticism was that I thought Epicodus was another Coding bootcamp cash cow, taking advantage of the tech trend. After the first few weeks my skepticism faded because I was learning how to code by writing and testing code 8 hours a day. It was hands on, real world practice. At the end of the bootcamp we were setup with i...

This was one of the best things I have ever done.

I chose Epicodus after researching a few different fast-paced coding programs- some were shorter (and still cost more), some were longer. I picked Epicodus based on price, location, and the pair programming.

Though I didn't think I would enjoy pair programming, I thought it would be valuable to learn how to collaborate, not just have a role on a team, but actually build something together. It ended up being far more enjoyable than I had thought! It was fantastic to learn from, lean on, teach, and support eachother through our courses. I rarely had any issues with others, and in fact made some very good friends.

The staff is great. The teachers do not hold your hand- they are there to help you learn, not provide you answers. Th...

Since I don't want to write a completely separate review, I'm copying mine over from Coursereport.

I'm a recent graduate of Epicodus's C#/.Net program and if you're serious about making a career change and doing this right, then read on.

I was very hesitant to buy into the bootcamp hype. I spent a tremendous amount of time doing research and making sure that I was making the right decision before I decided to apply to Epicodus. Epicodus is unique in the sense that not only are you going to go through a high-intensity program, but you're also going to end up with real on-the-job experience at the end. Not only that, but the program is one of the cheapest around.

What sold me on Epicodus was the fact that they also include an internship portion. This is absolutely the most imp...

Graduated and was lucky that my internship turned into a job. All the staff were super friendly and supportive at Epicodus. Great place to meet likemined people and grow your network. Would highly recommend to anyone wanting a career in tech. The course is challenging; be prepared to work hard especially if you are not familiar with Internet technology.

I graduated from the very first Java/Javascript/Android co-hort in August 2015 and have been asked to write a review about my experience at Epicodus. Many, many things have changed at Epicodus since I graduated, so I don't think my review would accurately reflect what a student would encounter now. Please keep that in mind as you read my review. Feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn if you have specific questions about how to get into the world of Android development.

Why Epicodus?

Epicodus is dirt cheap in comparison to other programs. I would not have been able to afford attendance at other bootcamps. I don't know any other in-person program that also offers an internship that costs so little. This was a huge factor for me.

What did I think of the teachers, curriculum, pa...

Epicodus provided the learning environment and support that I needed to become employed as an Android Engineer with a really great company.
I’m in touch with pretty much everyone from my cohort, and we meet about once a month to hang out and talk shop.

What Epicodus does for you:
Epicodus provides excellent curriculum, teachers that are committed to student success, and an excellent learning environment.
The work is challenging, especially if your prior programming experience is limited.

The work is largely self-driven, the assignments are available online, and you are given the tools to complete them. It’s a bit of a race against the clock everyday to understand and implement all of the new concepts that get thrown at you.
You certainly get out what you put in to this pr...

I had a mixed experience at Epicodus. I enjoyed pair programming and my internship was awesome.
But I do have some issues. Epicodus has not been that helpful with job placement. Yes, we worked on a resume, did a mock interview, and the like, but there was no solid guidance in the job search or worthwhile connections to companies like New Relic, which is practically across the street. When my career counselor saw my Epicodus approved resume, she was shocked and immediately made me rework it. Demo Day was very disappointing. A few "employers" (New Relic was NOT one of them) meandered around the room looking at projects. I had to actively flag them down to present my project to them. I don't know anyone who landed a job from Demo Day.

I also don't feel that the instruction prepared me...

Before attending Epicodus, I spent about a year, off an on, teaching myself to code through various online materials. I felt that I needed a lot more experience to confidently apply for jobs in programming, and discovered Epicodus while searching for bootcamps in Portland. For the cost of the program, I think it was a really great value, and the curriculum was beneficial. Going in each day, knowing that I would have to create a minimum of one program per day, I was confident that the repetition would really help ingrain different principles of programming.

The curriculum is also very honest. During my time at Epicodus, Angular2 hadn't been fully released yet, and there breaking changes almost daily. This meant that sometimes the curriculum wasn't 100% update. Don't get me wrong,...

Background:

Prior to starting at Epicodus in October 2016, I was a full-time student pursuing a degree in Computer Science. The desire to have more hands-on experience, in an accelerated program, motivated me to research the different “bootcamps” available in Portland. Bottom line, I wanted to get to work. Ultimately, I chose Epicodus based on price, my initial experiences with staff (shout out to Debbie for hosting a great informational open house), and the opportunity to have an internship at the end of the process.

Overall:

As many others have said, Epicodus changed my life. Today, I am working as a full-time Web Developer for a company that I absolutely love. Epicodus provided me with the tools and opportunity to jumpstart my career in web development. That being said, you...

I would not be where I am now if it was not for Epicodus. Prior to Epicodus, I worked as a support developer as a startup and I always felt lost and suffered from imposter syndrome. Epicodus helped me to develop the right mindset to to become a problem solver, and not just a developer who remembers things. I learned to recognize patterns across many technologies which allowed me to familiarize myself with the unfamiliar with confidence and speed. That alone is huge in the world of software development. On top of that Epicodus covers a huge bredth of knowledge. My only complaint would be some of the later Javascript curriculum which covered Ember.js which you just don't encounter that much. I know that Epicodus plans alleviate these minor problems in the future though as they are pushing...

I was drawn to Epicodus by their low tuition, which I think is outstanding amongst its peers. You never get the feeling that you're being ripped off in any way, which was something I was generally apprehensive about when searching. The school is genuine and transparent, which as much as anything made my experience there cherished. Staff there was always engaged and helpful - albeit w/ an air of having a lot on their plates!

And that's something you have to understand about Epicouds - it's not an experience that's going to be able to hold your hand the whole way through. You're really working with your fellow students to wade through the world of resources available to you, guided of course by the Epicodus curriculum.

You pair with another student everyday and work through assignme...

Why Epicodus worked for me:

-great price
-great location and a nice space
-pair programming + group projects (I wanted experience working with others)
-the curriculum gave me direction and motivation i lacked when working on my own
-the cohort (I met and still am in touch with - so many great people)
-the internship (it was great to get some experience working with a tech company)
-job finding assistance (I actually found my current position through an Epicodus job posting)

Why Epicodus might not work for everyone:

-the curriculum is more broad than deep (that means extra studying if you want to go in depth into anything, which doesn't work for everyone.)
-it's better to think of the instructors as TAs (they'll help you when you get stuck, but there's no direct instr...

A few years ago I wanted a career change, and I started looking into learning to program. I had a few friends in Portland's tech scene and heard about code bootcamps through them. A lot of them seemed expensive for what you got. Then I discovered Epicodus. The price seemed reasonable for the curriculum offered, and they also had the best-sounding process for entering students into the job market after classes. I applied right away and was accepted several weeks later. The first week of class was a whirlwind. I began learning immediately. It was difficult, but the teachers and even the other students were extremely supportive. I cannot recommend pair programming strongly enough as a great way to learn how to code. You'll want to have the support, feedback, and knowledge provided by other...

I had a great time at Epicodus. I was always interested in programming and web development and decided I'd give learning it a shot. My instructor was great - very knowledgeable and supportive, and an all around pleasant guy. I really liked my classmates as well. I spent a lot of time studying, and made sure my time in class was productive and focused. I received a job offer upon completing the program, as well as an offer to be an intern for a company with the idea of becoming permanent after 3 months. As some of the other reviews say, I think if you are ready to put in a good amount of work and study (and be sure to pair with people, even if you don't really want to every day!), you'll get a well-balanced and valuable background in entry-level web development from Epicodus. The tone at...

Overall I give Epicodus 5 stars. I got what I needed out of the experience, and am now employed in the tech industry.

The most valuable part of the program is being in a room with a large group of people that are at the same level of experience as you. This is invaluable. The networking, collaboration and pair programming experience really accelerated my skills. Working with a team on final projects and solving problems together added a new level in learning that was lacking in online resources I used previously.

The curriculum is largely very good. The inclusion of text resources to back up videos was awesome. The only frustration I had with it was when it was being updated while I was in a course. Sometimes I would read up for the next week, and by the time I got to working on ...

I went into epicodus because I was curious. They introduced me to programming and I was instantly hooked. You start with the basics of learning a markup language (HTML) and applying basic styles with CSS. You will gloss over a lot of fundamentals of programming like how to make a for loop, or basic debugging techniques. You will get to know a little bit about everything.

The rest is up to you. You need to study on your own time. You need to make programming your whole life while you are at Epicodus and the only person holding you accountable is yourself. Because Epicodus covers a little bit of everything, you need to take the time a learn a lot about one thing. As an example, they'll teach you basics on JavaScript, but to really harness the full power of JavaScript you're going to n...

I took courses at Epicodus a while back, and am now working full-time as a developer. The classes offered a personal and effective education and provided a good network and valuable work experience. I got portfolio pieces, an understanding of the industry, and the tools to find a job all for a much more affordable price than other leading competitors. The staff are beyond friendly and helpful, and they make being successful possible and enjoyable.

My epicodus experience was great! I came in to the course not having a lot of coding knowledge. I left the course with a broad range of knowledge and new skills to improve my chaces in the tech world!

You can read all the reviews of the numerous schools, but the Department of Education recently reviewed many coding bootcamps to partner up with traditional educational institutions. Taking from their press release, this was their selection criteria:

["Innovating to Improve Outcomes: The extent to which the proposed activities will produce innovative, high-quality programs likely to lead to positive student learning and employment outcomes;

Equity and Access: The extent to which the programs will provide equitable access to high-quality postsecondary education programs, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds;

Quality Assurance: The extent to which the proposed quality assurance processes have the potential to address key questions about how best to evaluate and...

I attended Epicodus earlier this year and ended up finishing the program with a bad taste in my mouth. It wasn't all bad but there are some major concerns for Epicodus ( and programming bootcamps in general ) going forward.

Curriculum:

The curriculum is okay. They focus alot on the how and very little of the why of things. I commend them for making all curriculum available online but there are a lot of issues as it stands now. You will learn a lot about basic web development and how to use version control, and how to plug and play various frameworks to drive your applications.

What you won't learn is how to actually program. The standards are very lenient when it comes to code review ( the daily peer review didn't really occur in my experience ) and essentially everyone "passes...

After staying at home with my children for 7 years, I was ready to get back into the job market with them in school full-time. With 7 years out of any income-earning work, my resume was not exactly going to pull the crowds. I decided I wanted to pursue software development and was delighted to find Treehouse and Code Academy and Code School. After working through a number of modules, I realized that I needed humans. I could ace every challenge and exercise but I had no one to ask questions, no one to feed off of, no one to explore ideas and possibilities. Though I am perfectly capable of working independently of others, I realized I needed to be more plugged in to the coding universe. I wanted to find a network of people to be a part of on the adventure (and the pursuit of turning...