Tech Elevator

Career Differences
Yes, going to Tech Elevator is absolutely one of the best things you can do for your career. A year ago I moved to Philly and I was applying for writing jobs with salaries around $30-45k. Most were closer to $30k, similar to the $28k... Read More I was making before moving here. Exactly one week after graduation, I accepted an offer at a global company tripling what I was making before from a company I met at matchmaking. Aside from finally being able to afford paying off college debt, I actually do something for a living that I love. I'm nine weeks into my job as a software engineer and the relaxed environment still baffles me, especially compared to previous positions where I spent all day on the phone. I mean, I'm able to listen to music or an audiobook while I work; I always have help when I need it; I'm encouraged to spend time at work learning new things outside of my day-to-day responsibilities (like using Pluralsight); there are so many opportunities to attend random events that I'm interested in throughout the week (PRIDE meetups, AI meetups, etc); and I could go on and on. I started virtually, of course, but when asking others about the office culture, I was told my team takes ping-pong breaks, works on puzzles together, brings in food for each other (all pre-covid). Comparing it to a traditional office job... it's still hard to wrap my head around. I enjoy working and coding for hours because my employer wants employees to be happy at work - who knew enjoying going to work was a thing?

The People
Some of my best friends were made at Tech Elevator, starting from week one. Throughout the program, there are many pair programming assignments, and you always work with someone new, so it's easy to get to know everyone. With assignments that can take hours and capstone projects that take days, you really become close friends with people. I know things are virtual right now, but the in-person campus was my favorite thing. There were so many nights where I went on a mini-lockdown with friends, staying up very late trying to finish assignments, playing games, enjoying food the staff would bring in for us, etc. My cohort did things like going out to lunch, grabbing drinks, going to karaoke, going to a museum, playing games together, etc etc etc. As for the staff - they were absolutely wonderful. The instructors were extremely accessible, especially when we went virtual halfway through the program. They both had a lot of experience in the field and were such great teachers overall. I gathered other students for a group project (highly recommend doing a group project if you want to stand out to employers!) and they spent hours and hours helping us with it, even though it was completely outside of the curriculum.

The Career / Pathway Program
One of the reasons I chose TE over other bootcamps was how impressive the career services were in the reviews and statistics I read. Other bootcamps in Philly mentioned career prep help, but I can't imagine it was anything even close to what TE offers, especially after reading reviews on Reddit about Philly bootcamps. Imagine having someone push you for 2-3 days out of every week to get yourself together and prepare for a job, starting from day one. I remember thinking, "Why are we starting so early? We have nothing to prepare with??" Yeah, it was necessary to start that early. The coursework picks up so quickly and 14 weeks seems like a lot of time to prepare for a job, but you need that long if you want to prepare the right way. I remember giving my first elevator pitch for an employer visit or talk and my social anxiety was the worst. I almost forgot my name. The idea of matchmaking later on in the program--meeting a handful of employers in only two days--was terrifying, but when it came time for that, I felt really prepared and confident in my abilities and hey, it worked! Those rounds of mock behavioral and tech interviews, the resume reviews, the elevator pitch practice sessions, the employer advice events--I mean, we had everything we needed to succeed. Even with those, Caitie, the pathway director, was absolutely one of the biggest reasons I was able to land a job within a week of graduation. She makes sure you're doing what you're supposed to be doing, and that you're doing it right. She's obviously an expert in what she does, and I knew when I met her for my Tech Elevator interview that she is truly in this position because it makes her happy. I still keep in touch with her occasionally :) Despite the economy completely crashing and most employers closing their hiring doors, at Tech Elevator... it almost seemed to not make a difference. Some employers backed out of matchmaking, yet most (all? I haven't checked in with other students lately...) found jobs fairly quickly, most through the companies we met through the program.

Coursework
I'm still wondering how I was able to learn so much, so quickly, AND be qualified for a software engineer position with only 14 weeks' worth of experience. A lot of my computer science friends from college who graduated around the same time as the bootcamp ended are still searching for jobs, and they have years of experience over me. In talking to my coworkers, it seems like the ability to learn so quickly is more attractive in a candidate than how much you know. Of course, you still have to put in the work to show them how much you can learn in a short time. The first few weeks were spent learning basic programming principles and intro to java stuff--the need-to-know material. Seriously though, make sure you're reviewing these basic concepts every week because you there's a 100% chance they will come up in an interview. We moved on to some database stuff, which was pretty interesting and necessary to learn if you move to a full-stack position. After that, we moved onto servers and web stuff. Ah, the good stuff. My one critique, now that I'm out and about in the real world, is that what we learned at the time was fairly outdated compared to working applications. It was a weird transition going from Spring MVC to regular Spring Boot. The course also teaches Vue.js, which I also learned isn't as popular. I don't think I saw it in more than one job posting. Despite learning tools that weren't directly applicable to a lot of jobs, I still learned the fundamentals of how databases and web frameworks work. Plus, interviewers were genuinely interested in hearing about technologies they've never used, which contributed to a nice conversation. Regardless, as I mentioned, what's more important is that you're able to learn the given material and apply it, because that's what's going to happen on the job anyway.

Going Remote for Covid-19
Honestly, going remote was a very smooth transition. The first few days were kind of weird to adjust to, but that was mostly because it was so sudden. I think it was a Sunday afternoon when I got an email that said we're going remote the following day? IIRC the staff found out pretty last minute too, but even with that, I really enjoyed virtual classrooms. It was much easier to pair program when you're screen sharing, and it's easier to work together from home/remotely when you don't have to worry about catching a trolley or train on time etc. The difference in learning environments was mainly that our instructor had to screen share instead of writing on a whiteboard, but the quality of teaching/learning didn’t change.

Compared to Other Philly Bootcamps
I didn't look too heavily into other bootcamps--maybe three or four--but I noticed many of them aggressively try to sell you into their program. They seemed to care more about making money off of their students, rather than educating them. With Tech Elevator, they only accept students who they think will do well in the program. They want to make sure you have what it takes. After comparing curriculums between a few local bootcamps with the help of my friends who are software engineers, Tech Elevator definitely outranks the others in that realm. I will note that Tech Elevator did not once reach out to me by phone or email with promotional material, unlike the daily phone calls and emails I received from other bootcamps. Anyway, it's clear Tech Elevator doesn't have to have a sales department to push people to apply and spend thousands of dollars. Students don't need to be pushed to apply to Tech Elevator; it's the clear choice.

Conclusion
If you like coding, and want to do what you love for a living, then do this. The curriculum gives you the knowledge you need to impress employers on your skills, but the Pathway Program is designed to help you tackle your individual professional weaknesses and highlight your strengths. If you put in the work, you will succeed.

Before Tech Elevator I was a chemist with absolutely no knowledge in coding. The science industry wasn't what I thought it was going to be after graduating college so I was looking for a career change and software development caught my interest. In the... Read More 14 weeks I spent at Tech Elevator I learned how to do front end and back end development, gained enough knowledge to know how to create my own website and did so, made a bunch of friends, laughed a lot, worked really hard and got a job before the bootcamp ended through Tech Elevator's pathway program (even in the midst of the COVID madness). I am so happy with how my experience went. I have an awesome job that I get excited about now and a whole career ahead of me.

Overall a great experience. I made lifelong friends, not just in other students but in the staff members as well. The instructors are incredibly knowledgable and amazing at sharing that knowledge. A job is not guaranteed once you graduate but they have... Read More some of the best placement numbers around. I obtained my current position through the matchmaking process, which is probably the distinguishing factor for Tech Elevator versus other bootcamps and very valuable as a new member of the tech field. I highly suggest the .NET course; John Fulton is hands down the best teacher I've ever had the honor of learning from and Matt Eland is on his way to be of the same caliber. I went from never looking at a single line of code to being a functional full stack developer in the span of a few months. It was exactly what I was looking for in a career change.

As a creative person, I always thought that computer programming was way too analytical to be a career option for me. But I went to an event hosted by Tech Elevator in which they showed me how I could utilize my creative genius to create beautiful websites!... Read More
I took the test and signed up for the Spring Cohort. I had several months to hash over my decision... "Did I do the right thing?" "Was the risk going to pay off in the end?" I went through with it and I am so glad I did!
The instructors are out-of-this-world amazing! The curriculum is incredible. But the best for me were all the amazing people I met that I now call my friends. The pathway program is the best and within a month of graduating I was able to land the most amazing job I have had in my life!
If you are concerned whether or not it is worth the risk, I can assure you, it is more than worth it! I don't regret a single thing and have already recommended it to a friend who is currently in the program and loving it. Even with Covid-19, they work with you and help you become the best you could be. Thank you Tech Elevator!

So if you're like me, prior to signing up for Tech Elevator (TE), you're reading every review you can find about TE because it sounds like a program you want to do but you're a bit terrified of the price tag. I assure you that if you are willing to put... Read More in the work and time required (and are aware that learning to code isn't easy!!!), you will be very glad you chose TE.

I went through TE's C#/.NET cohort starting in January 2020 and graduating in mid April... right when it sounded like a terrible idea to be looking for a job due to the coronavirus situation. I was worried the job market would not be friendly to those of us with no work experience in the field, but I was contacted by a recruiter from a company that was looking for junior developers and already had many TE grads on staff and I ended up getting a job offer from that very company just a few weeks later.

The staff at TE is incredible. The instructors are all extremely well versed in the curriculum and are dedicated to helping you get through the material. Do not be afraid to ask for help. In addition to technical instruction, you will spend some of your time with the Pathway program. Don't dismiss the importance of pathway. This is the part that focuses on the job search and you should take it every bit as serious as the tech skills side. Even the elevator pitch, take it seriously.

The curriculum is all very relevant and the exercises, pair programming assignments, and capstone projects are very well designed to challenge you and make sure you understand the materials. Do not fall behind. It is called a bootcamp for a reason. Do your homework and the daily reading.
Take this seriously and you'll have a new set of very valuable skills, new friends for life, and be in my position where you are eager to encourage people to take the leap.

When I chose to come to Tech Elevator to become a Full Stack Developer one of the large draws was the in person instruction. After trying multiple online courses I knew I needed that personal connection with an experienced, knowledgeable developer. I... Read More was a student spring of 2020 when COVID19 hit. When we had to transition to a remote classroom I know there were some reservations by a lot of us in the program but Tech Elevator came through and delivered a great experience like they do in all other areas. I still got live lectures with my instructor every morning and was able to interact with them in the same capacity. They were always available to help out and answer questions I may have had about lecture or an assignment. Tech Elevator also set up several virtual spaces for me and my classmates to collaborate and socialize during a time of social distancing. Throughout this entire transition Tech Elevator was extremely transparent and incredibly supportive to all their students. Upon graduation at record high levels of unemployment in the US we were still able to interview with a ton of companies and within a couple weeks of graduation I had my first job as a developer. I couldn’t be more happy with my choice to enroll at Tech Elevator!

I was torn between return to college to finish my computer science degree and attending a bootcamp, and ended up choosing to attend Tech Elevator. From day 1 it was clear that I had made the right choice, the technical portion of the course was top notch... Read More and comprehensive, but what makes Tech Elevator stand above the rest is the pathway program and their commitment to getting you a job in the field after graduation.

One of the best decisions I have made. Met a lot of great people and mentors. I felt very prepared when looking for jobs and received a job offer two weeks after graduation. The staff at Tech Elevator really cares about you and will be there for you even... Read More after graduation.

Possibly the best money I spent. I pored over reviews and spent months looking for a coding bootcamp. No regrets, super happy with my decision. Granted, I graduated pre-coronavirus so things may be a little different now, but knowing what I know about... Read More everyone at Tech Elevator, I have no doubt that the latest graduates are in the best hands. Their goal is not only to prepare you for a job, but to get you one. I seriously recommend them to my friends and random people whenever it gets brought up.

My profile before Tech Elevator:
* Had some experience with programming (Java in high school, Arduino/Raspberry Pi/Python stuff in college, Android development as a hobby after). Already knew I loved it
* Was a tutor for a couple years, then an assembler
* Bought a Web Development Udemy course, but couldn't focus on it and finish
* Didn't know how to get a programming job, or if I was even qualified
* Thought about getting into software for years, but didn't have an actual plan. Any time I'd start trying to learn something, five new questions would pop up for every answer I'd get

Just a few reasons I love Tech Elevator:
* The instructors are amazing and really care about your learning. Always happy to share their experiences (and they each have tons of experience). Some of them are working on some pretty cool stuff outside of work as well, I'd ask them about it!
* The academic fellows are also graduates of the program, so they know exactly what you're going through. They're also always there to help
* Pathway people are on top of it. I'm pretty sure Katie Detore remembers where every student ended up lol. They meet with you individually, and you can also reach out to them with question or concerns. It's great
* Pathway program does more than show you how to write a resume. There are panels, visitors, employer showcases (companies coming to speak to you), mock interviews, real interviews...
* "Always learning" and "get comfortable with being uncomfortable" are phrases I heard a lot there and they've stuck with me. I'd never been one to do extra work outside of work, but now I see myself seeking out new things to do and learn

Me after Tech Elevator:
* Associate consultant working at one of the many retailers here in Columbus. I can't imagine what my life would be like right now if I hadn't gone through the bootcamp and gotten a job in an industry where working remotely isn't a foreign concept
* Making more money. Thinking of buying a place soon
* Happier with my job
* Not that this field is immune to coronavirus, but I'm not that worried about losing my job. Chances of it happening are relatively low, and even I do, I'm still seeing recruiters reach out.

Advice:
* Especially for those who aren't working or have kids while in the bootcamp, put as much time into this as you can. If you're done with your assignments, work on side projects or learn something else. As confusing as some of the topics may be at first, go to Meetups.

I had been trying to break into the programming field for several years by the time I started seriously considering bootcamps. Stagnant office jobs that paid the bills but left me bored were all I could seem to find. I was caught in the old catch-22 of... Read More needing experience to get experience. Knowing that programming bootcamps were focused on getting entry-level positions for their students, I came to the decision that I'd give one a go. After doing several weeks of research, including open houses and reading plenty of reviews, I finally decided to apply to TE's Cleveland campus, and joined the Fall 2019 class (if the review says 2020, it's because it didn't let me choose the right one on their dropdown!). The technical instruction was stellar, and thanks to Mike, Josh, and Craig I learned more about programming in a few months than I had in the prior eight years.

But the real ace up TE's sleeve is their Pathway program, which was ultimately the reason I went with them over similar bootcamps (including the one from my alma mater). They focus on the soft-skill portion of job hunting, with a laser focus on the tech industry in particular. Resume crafting, interviewing, social media profile building, and pitching yourself--all things I kind of hate doing, but that are vital to actually landing a job, no matter your technical skills. Val, Marty, and Kelly are some of the most dedicated people I've ever met, always available to help and eager to push their students into improving those sometimes-uncomfortable areas. Not only do they arm you with the skills (and practice!) to sail through interviews, they've built up a wide network of contacts with the northeast Ohio tech community, and use those connections to help you get a foot in the door. Easily the most important factor in choosing TE over others.

Over three quarters of my class including me were placed with jobs before the bootcamp had even ended, and after four months in my new career I'm still having a great time. I'd highly recommend the program to anyone who's looking to get started in programming.