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About Parsity

Location: Online

Parsity (formerly Project Shift) is a full-time and part-time, online software engineering training program. The curriculum covers the pragmatic and theoretical fundamentals of full-stack JavaScript, including HTML, CSS, NodeJS, SQL, NoSQL, React/Redux,... Read More

Parsity provides assigned, paid, one on one mentors for accountability, motivation, and vocational support which students meet with regularly to assist with the self-paced curriculum.

In addition to the technical curriculum, students will go through an entire Career Development curriculum to set them up for job-searching after graduation as they transition into Career Services, where they’ll have up to 6 months of one on one Career Coaching.

Parsity accepts students who are smart, ambitious, and humble (in other words, "character matters much more than accolades.") The admission process consists of an application and an in-person or video interview. Parsity encourages applicants of any background, but you should expect a brief technical assessment, so Parsity requires that students be knowledgable in one programming language, or take the Parsity Prep Course.

Courses

Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Cost: $7,900
Duration: 13 weeks
Locations: Online
Course Description:

During this course, students will learn full-stack JavaScript and web development in a hands-on training format.

Selection is limited and based on aptitude, and applicants must complete a coding challenge as part of the interview process.
During and after the program, students will have the opportunity to engage with a community via Slack and exclusive Social Media groups. Project Shift offers unlimited career services assistance that includes, at a minimum, a weekly one-on-one meet with career development coach.

Subjects:
Functional Programming, Software Testing, React.js, Algorithms, Node.js, Database Design, Express.js, JavaScript

Parsity Reviews

Average Ratings (All Programs)

Parsity logo

4.94/5 (16 reviews)

Ryan Passer
Associate Software Engineer | Graduated: 2021

5/6/2022

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Great Program & Great Value"

As someone who wanted to make a 180 degree career change and quickly develop marketable coding skills without breaking the bank, Parsity was the perfect bootcamp for me. From a top level perspective, it checked off a lot of the boxes I was looking for:... Read More

Benjamin Scott Pryor
Software Engineer | Graduated: 2021

5/4/2022

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Career Changer!"

Switching from teaching into the software engineering field was a daunting prospect but joining Parsity helped me transition smoothly. Like many others have said Parsity has great hands-on practical activities and experiences. You deeply learn the principles... Read More

Justin McCarty
UI Engineer | Graduated: 2018

5/3/2022

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Very Reputable Coding School"

I was part of the first cohort to attend Project Shift, now Parsity. It was a great experience and has been one of the best decisions of my life. Even in its infancy, and with all its growing pains, which you can read in some of the other reviews, Parsity... Read More

Alicia Hetrick
Graduated: 2019

4/29/2022

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"3 years out; still extremely satisfied with the program"

The experience at Project Shift was better than I expected & more than I could have known to ask for, and definitely set me up for success in this field. A few years out of the program, I'm still regularly leaning on fundamentals that I was taught there,... Read More

Ashley Hardin
Software Engineer | Graduated: 2018

4/26/2022

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Great experience - I highly recommend."

I was a member of Project Shift's (now Parsity's) first cohort and, being a former teacher, I knew the first iteration of any course was probably going to be a bumpy ride. But I did it anyway for a couple of reasons. First of all, I just really liked... Read More

Otto Frankel
Associate Software Engineer | Graduated: 2021

4/26/2022

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"An Amazing Experience"

After taking some Udemy courses and doing some 'self-learning' regarding coding, I decided to join a bootcamp to get more hands-on and practical experience. Parsity delivered that and more. From the very beginning, I was learning not just about how to... Read More

Joanna
Junior Frontend Developer | Graduated: 2020

11/11/2020

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Best decision I ever made"

I researched a lot of different programs before deciding on Project Shift, and one of the main reasons I went with them came down to a gut instinct. They seemed really genuine and invested, and it turned out my instincts were right. Everyone was genuinely... Read More

James DeVore
Software Developer | Graduated: 2018

6/7/2019

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Project Shift - If you are serious about becoming a software engineer, this is the right place."

I attended this school from October 2018-Feb 2019, as part of their 4th cohort. To sum up my experience, I absolutely loved this program. If you are reading this review, and weighing different schools/programs, trust me, we all have been there. Here is... Read More

Classroom experience: I learn best when physically in the classroom, interacting with instructors and other students, and this program offers just that, 2 instructors and a TA working with 9 students. I loved being able to turn next to me, and ask my fellow students or an instructor with any question I had, or even help walk another student through a concept. An often-unmentioned skill in programming is being able to communicate your code to others, and in my opinion, an in-person classroom is the best place to hone that skill.

Instructors: The instructors are incredible. Sean is an experienced developer, teacher, team leader, and provides extremely valuable insight into what managers are looking for, and how the things we learn are actually going to be valued and weighed in a professional setting. The majority of the actual instruction is done by Aaron, who is also an incredible developer, he does a good job walking through all the concepts and keeping everyone up to speed. There is a LOT (LOT) of material, and Aaron balances the need to get through it all while also slowing down to get through the more complex / challenging material. Definitely knows what he is doing in this environment.

Career Services: Not all of these programs offer career services. Project shift does, and they do it right. Throughout the course they emphasize the importance of the personal side of chaning careers. Turns out, it takes more than just code to get a job. The career services representative (Morgan) has such a talent for explaining the ins and outs of networking, crafting a resume, interviews, communicating with hiring managers, and literally any part of finding a job that has a human aspect. They continue this support well after the course finishes, along with slack channels with real developers whom you can ask questions, set up times to talk, and just get a sense of what it is like to be a developer.

My final review / advice: I cannot emphasize this enough, you will get out what you put in. There are weekly projects, they are 'graded' and if you go through this program, doing the minimum to 'pass' the weekly projects, you'll get through just fine. But remember: Its your investment, if you want to become a stellar developer, you aren't going to get there doing the minimum. This program doesn't force you to put your all into it. There is room for you to jump in 100%, there's enough material to keep yourself busy well more than the ~750 hours the course outlines. I spent ~50-60 hours a week in the class, and I wish I had spent more. It's a once in a lifetime experience, take full advantage if everything they offer, you'll kick yourself if you don't go in absolutely 100%.

Would I do it again? Absolutely.
Is it worth the tuition? It was for me, I dropped most things in my life for the duration of this course, and I think it was well worth the cost.

If you want to ask any other questions, feel free to drop me a line (if this is allowed?) I'm not an employee of Project Shift, just a satisfied customer
here is my linkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdevore4592/

Rich Eldridge
Full Stack Developer | Graduated: 2019

6/5/2019

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"Is it worth it? YES!!!"

I was one of the oldest members of my cohort. I am a father of two, a husband, and I have bills to pay! I spent the last ten years at a job that I was growing increasingly burnt out on, and I decided it was time for a change. I didn't make a lot of money,... Read More

It was then that I started researching code schools in my area. I looked at several, one "affiliated" with a local university, a couple of online bootcamps, some part time, some full-time. And then I found Project Shift. It stood out.

They focused on teaching programming fundamentals. They included some Computer Science topics in the curriculum. They purposefully kept their groups small. And they taught full stack JavaScript, which I liked. Basically, they ticked all of my boxes. They gave me the warm and fuzzies, where all of the rest seemed to fall short.

So how was I going to pay for all of this? It's not just the tuition, but also living expenses as I would have to quit my full time job. It was a tough decision. It would be (in my mind) a big gamble.

So how did it turn out?

I'm two weeks out from graduation, and I have a wonderful job offer with a large tech company! Your mileage may vary, but for me, I nearly doubled my income. Not to mention the other great benefits. And I get to work on cool, cutting edge, technologies. It's literally everything I could have hoped for.

The curriculum is thorough, but not exhaustive. After all, part of learning to code is learning to learn new tech, and Project Shift encourages that.

There is a ton of mentorship. You will have an individual mentor, access to a team of mentors on a Slack group, as well as the staff; all of whom are incredibly helpful.

There were several opportunities built in for networking with local devs like an invitation luncheon, a few panels/discussions, field trips, etc.

The work environment and the local scene are very conducive to being productive. You have 24 hr access to the coworking space where they are located. I spent many nights and weekends coding away at the office.

There is plenty of help if you get stuck on a problem. The onus is really on you to seek help when you need it.

There will be boat load of career services training in addition to all the programming. This is invaluable and has played no small part in the traction I've been able to gain in the short time since I've completed the course. And it continues far beyond graduation.

There are wonderful moments of ephiphany where you accomplish more than you thought you could.

So...the cons?

It is a lot of work. A LOT! I spent a good 70-80 hours a week most weeks.

It moves fast. Sometimes it felt like we were moving on to an entirely new topic before I could grasp what were were just talking about.

Some of the material starts out pretty esoteric, but becomes clearer as you progress. So it takes a bit of faith in the process, but can be a bit frustrating at times.

And of course, it isn't cheap. But what kind of value is it. Well, like I said, two weeks from graduating and I essentially doubled my salary.

Is it for you?

You'll need to be driven and proactive. Seriously, not just buzzwords. This isn't high school, the responsibility will be solely on you.

You'll need to be humble and willing to ask for help. Throw whatever shred of ego you have out the window. It will only impede your progress.

You'll need to be able to play well with others. Much of the learning is done in a pair programming environment, and it is a small, intimate group.

So, do I recommend it? Unabashedly YES! If you are considering investing in a code school to help you change careers, I could not recomment Project Shift any more highly.

Linda Vu
Software Engineer | Graduated: 2018

2/11/2019

Course
Immersive Fullstack Software Engineering Fellowship

Overall

Curriculum

Job Support

"More Than a Bootcamp"

I would do voluntarily do this program again just to hangout with Aaron and Sean in the fun learning atmosphere they created. The intimate class size and heart that they have for this program is not to be understated - I genuinely felt like I was a part... Read More

Pros:
-Intimate class size allows you to get to know peers as well as instructors

-Convenient location in downtown Durham's WeWork, which is fully stocked with amenities and surrounded by cool local businesses

-Offers a part-time preparatory course that is very cheap and can be applied to your tuition for the full-time class, should you enroll

-Despite his expertise, Aaron has the energy of an upbeat puppy, which makes you feel un-judged and able to learn things even though you may feel a lot of self-doubt

-Curriculum is highly relevant in terms of full-stack JavaScript technologies and frameworks

-Inctructors take care to give you the context and history of the technologies you're learning so that you have a big picture of the web development world

-Algorithms and Big O notation

-Has an impressive local network of recruiters and current software engineers to connect you with

-Assigned a personal mentor that I connected with outside of class for added perspective

-Sean's tough love is exactly what I needed to prepare me for the most challenging job interviews

-They STILL help me with technical questions and career advice over slack even though I'm no longer a student

-I moved to my hometown of Charlotte right after the course ended, and found an amazing local network of developers thanks to a tip that Sean gave me via message (this same network helped me land a dream job as a Software Engineer at Skookum)

-The group project final and your solo demo are challenging and way more relevant to a potential employer than the projects I've seen from other bootcamps

Cons:

-You feel the repercussions more in a small group if some of your classmates have a different definition of working hard compared to you (referring to the final cohort project)

-It's a fast-paced program and you WILL fall behind if you don't constantly push yourself. This is all bootcamps though.

-Our cohort felt the growing pains in a pronounced way because of the location changes leading up to the new WeWork building's grand opening. This is unlikely to be a factor for the cohorts after us since Project Shift is all settled into the new building now.

-Communication pitfalls were frustrating at times when we weren't sure which instructor was arriving/when with how the days were split.

-Typos and grammatical errors in the lessons occasionally annoyed me, though the actual intellectual content and resources of the lessons were all there. Just something that should be improved for professionality and branding's sake.

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