Galvanize

I recently (end of 2018) graduated from the web development immersion program (I think they are changing the name toward - software engineering program) at the Galvanize Platte location. It was a 6-month intensive program which is changing! It will be a 3-months intensive next year. I learned a ton through the program and acquired some pretty incredible skills, but I had to work my ass off in order to be successful at the program. The time required to be on campus is from 9:00am to 5:00pm (although, class usually ended 45 minutes early everyday). However, I was there usually from 7:00am to 6:30 or 7:00pm. I spent so much time at campus because Galvanize preaches a "learn to learn" pedagogical philosophy that expects YOU to do all the leg work in learning the material and only will provi...

My overall experience with the Galvanize data science immersive was very positive and something I would recommend to others. I felt like I was always supported throughout the program by staff (technically, and career-wise), the curriculum was well developed, pacing was ambitious, but not too fast, and ultimately left feeling well prepared for my career.

Pro's:
- Diverse curriculum, with room for flexibility at the instructors discretion
- Well educated and credentialed instructors
- Great facility
- length of course
- Good preparation for career hunting (mock interviews, content testing, etc.)

Con's
- Cost
- Lack of depth in learning concepts (mostly due to time constraints however)

Galvanize's (Denver-Platte) WDI program exceeded my expectations. I joined the 6-month immersive totally new to the field, and the program and it's astounding staff took me from the ground up. The curriculum is top notch, and instructors do a phenomenal job of guiding you along the way while teaching you to be independent and job-ready. Being in a co-working space, students have the unique opportunity to network with companies of all sizes and background. In addition, the career services team is an exceptional asset to the program, as they give you personal feedback on your resume/cover letters/etc. to be job search ready. Thanks to their help and the modern curriculum, I accepted a job offer less than a month after graduation! This program is tough, but anyone willing to work hard will...

I was a part of the g63 DSI cohort. While I do think what is taught is valuable and useful, it doesn't really matter since I can't find a job. To get anything valuable out of galvanize you have to focus on what you're interested in so that you can explore certain topics to a deeper extent.

I regret going through the galvanize program as at $16k, I'm now still unemployed (6 months after the course finished) and have basically been left in the dust by the school/company. Career services has completely stopped responding to me after the last time they emailed to ask for an update on my progress (I told them I still hadn't found anything). In addition, weird things happened during the course, such as losing our lead instructor to a different company, and there were several days where th...

There is a reason the contract for Galvanize states that the school can alter staff and facilities.
It is so that you have no recourse when they play the bait and switch on you.

The first quarter was great. We had an engaged instructor, meaningful lectures and exercises, and useful, organized resources.
That all went away in quarter 2 when Galvanize acquired Hack Reactor. Our instructor was reassigned, along a vast swath of the facility, to accommodate the addition of dozens of new students. Our cohort was left borrowing an instructor from another cohort. His engagement and enthusiasm were tepid at best. Along with the acquisition came the departure of the once-renowned career services staff, one of the main reasons I'd chosen the course.

Our class was essentially left paying...

Stay the heck away from this program.

It's difficult for me to even list all the problems with the program, but just to name a few:
-Most of the instructors just graduated from the course, and have no actual experience working in Web/Software Development.
-They are horribly understaffed, and instructor turn-over is atrocious.
-The course has no organization whatsoever. They'll keep randomly throwing new ideas into the mix (advisor groups, remedial training, etc.) only for it to fizzle out because the curriculum is all over the place and no one has any idea of what is supposed to happen.
-They don't give a crap about how much students understand the material, they just need to graduate you because they need to make space for the next cohort. We had several people in our class wh...

Pros:
-The instructors are generally fairly knowledgeable and are nice people
-Campus and amenities are nice
-Career services is actually pretty good, and they clearly care about trying to help you, even post graduation.

Cons:
Pretty much everything else
-Probably 80% of the instructors are people who literally just graduated from the program, and have never spent a day actually working in Web/Software Development.
-The instructors might know Web Dev well, but few of them have any formal teaching experience. Being a great coder doesn't make you a great teacher.
-I've seen pick-up Basketball games that are more organized than this place. Half the mornings the instructors had no clue what was supposed to happen that day and would just pull lessons and exercises out of their a...

Intro

I used to work as a principal software engineer at a big software company for many years doing full stack Java web development. I wanted a new job but everything in web development has changed from Java/php/Ruby to JavaScript frameworks. I looked at a few bootcamps in the (Coding Dojo, Hack Reactor, Dev Mountain and Dev League in Hawaii - nice but no time to surf) and was accepted by them all. They are all good schools but Galvanize was 6 months (24 weeks), not 3 months to help us learn more and one of their instructor Josh used to teach at Hack Reactor and gave us a free Saturday course in JavaScript.

Precourse

I was accepted at all the schools. Hack Reactor had a one month prep course, other schools were easier to get in and Galvanize had an online test with an instru...

Great beginners-level Python class. The instructor, Chris, was very dedicated. He wasn't only knowledgeable about Python but well-versed in teaching methodologies . I grasped concepts that I couldn't understand while taking online classes. The curriculum was well-thought-out and jam-packed--I was shocked how much we covered in six weeks. I would absolutely recommend this course for anyone trying to learn Python--if you want to do the work , you will get the support and tools you need here.

Background: Retail customer service and sales in the tech/electronics industry, no prior software experience. Some general education teaching experience.

Now: Just hit 10 months in as a software engineer for an ed-tech company that services students around the world.

My review could just be those two lines up there and it would speak for itself but that would be an injustice to both Galvanize as a school and it's staff. From the admissions staff to the career services director, everyone there is working constantly to see you, the student, succeed. I went in interested in learning software development and hoping for a career change, I left with those hopes fulfilled and an insatiable drive in continuing my education as both an evolving engineer and a possible instructor in the fu...

If you are going to a (data science) bootcamp to pivot careers, be open to opportunities along the way. Despite encouragement from and within the program to stay in San Francisco, I had to move back to Chicago after being offered a teaching position for another semester. I did not plan on not being hired on hiring day and spent about a month figuring out what I wanted to do. When I got back to Chicago, I applied to teach data science and Python at General Assembly. I was hired due to my previous teaching experience. I found myself teaching Python for data science to people saying that they were data scientists at Google! Then, I was hired at my current company as a data scientist by the COO. He told the CEO on my first day that I taught data science. So goes the winding road. M...

Back in the day when data science was a new a shiny object and every company was trying to build up a data science group, graduates of the Data Science Immersive were able to find jobs in no time. I was lucky enough to have finished the course in time to catch the tail end of this wave, but I realized my shortcomings when I arrived at my new job feeling completely overwhelmed. Luckily I had a tolerant manager and thanks to her I have been able to fill in my knowledge gaps.

However, others are not as lucky as me. Around the summer of 2016, it became evident to the employers that these DSI graduates only had very superficial knowledge of data science because (surprise!) they had to cram 1 year's worth of course work in 14 weeks. Their job placement rate has dropped precipitous...

I went through Galvanize's Web Development Immersive (formerly full stack immersive) program last year, graduating in mid-December. The first thing that I'll say about them is that the classroom environment was excellent. My instructors were intelligent, knowledgable, funny, and friendly, and I can confidently say that I learned a lot from the course. That said, Galvanize's stated end goal is to get it's graduates jobs, and in that endeavor they have failed pathetically.

When I applied for the program, one of the aspects that most interested me was the fact that the course culminates in "hiring day." I knew from friends who had been through gSchool previously that hiring day was an incredibly important event wherein a huge number of graduates found jobs immediately after graduating. ...

Galvanize is the worst way I have spent money to date. I have to admit that I fell for all the marketing here. I attended a bunch of free events, got to know the teachers, fit in with the community... I've heard mixed things about different bootcamps so I wanted to try the Introduction to Python course and ensure my bootcamp investment would be worth my time. I went in pretty excited, my faith blided by their great marketing. I should have seen the red flags when the instructor of the class snipped at everyone and dodged questions on the first day and Tara MacSomething would wait entire WEEKS before responding to my email with a simple question (other students complained of the same experiences, apparently I am lucky I got a response). Did I make it through the class? Yeah, but mainly d...

The pros of attending Galvanize were their ability to remain organized and methodical despite being very agile and fluid. The community aspect was huge. The networking opportunities were real and constant. This is a place where people want to connect, want YOU to succeed and make sure you know it every step of the way. You absolutely get out what you put in, and if you give it you're all, you're sure to succeed.
The cons of attending Galvanize were surely the time required, and thus, the time neglected in other areas of life-For example, your relationships, ability to stay up to date with other life matters, like laundry, often fell by the way side. Every cohort is unique and the mix of specific personalities-both teachers and students is the gamble you take. From one cohort to the ne...

Galvanize was great because of the immersive nature of the course. While that's also something that heightens the intensity, it allows for you to come alongside peers in similar stages in life despite varying backgrounds. The culture of Galvanize made it a place where I was excited to come to learn everyday; the instructors were not only knowledgeable, they were approachable and friendly - not the kind to look down on you for your questions. As a female, I was slightly apprehensive on what to expect in the gender-arena. Though there were few women in my class, it was obvious that they (and the women in the working suites) had every right to be there and were treated according to that. The support teams of Galvanize (admissions, community coordinators, etc..) were constantly keeping in ...

First off, I'll start this review by telling you all that I didn't end up graduating from the SF Galvanize bootcamp (the only one out of 13. I'll also state that I graduated UCSC with honors, so it's not like I'm completely dumb). Despite my own personal situation (more on this later), I share many similar sentiments with the rest of the cohort about the school.

Secondly, I'm trying to leave a fair review despite not graduating; however, this review is subjective and, of course, is based off my personal experiences at Galvanize.

A typical day unfolded like this:

9-10: warm-up algorithm
11-12: Reviewing the algorithm's answer, and then lecture.
Lunch from 12-1
1-2: Another 1-2 hour lecture.
3-Rest of day/evening: More work to be done; projects, homework review, etc (typical...

Pros: I was able to learn everything j needed to have a great quick start to programming, and at the end of the program I was able to dive into areas I was most interested in in the world of software development. This allowed for a unique yet structured experience.
Cons: I was not faced with many negitive points in the program. I did have an issue with my computer being broken by another student, and then being left to deal with it on my own with no assistance from Galvanize in any way. That out a huge extra stress on me for a good amount of time and still had not been resolved. Other than that issue (which was very random and unlikely) I loved the instructors, environments and lessons.

Pros: smart classmates; most teachers were great
Cons: material not organized; exercises were not well-designed; expensive

Best decision I have made in my professional life so far. They gave me the skill set to be successful after graduation. They spend a lot of time teaching the importance of learning how to learn, and the course is designed in such a way that it gradually takes off the training wheels and you can begin to be self-sufficient. This is by far the biggest benefit, as the odds that a job you'll get hired into afterward that is using the exact same technologies you spent 6 months learning are basically zilch. "Learning how to learn" is the benefit that gives you dividends in the future.

Beyond that, learning the basics that will apply to every technology you will end up touching is the basis of the course.

The cons are that it is a little pricey, and the 6 month course schedule makes for ...