CareerFoundry vs Springboard

This is both the worse and best course I've ever done. The worse because: The staff is totally careless and the mentors/tutors don't have time for you. The curriculum is outdated so expect to run into bugs that have nothing to do with you coding skills... Read More but more with installing tools etc... So keep this in mind, you will be on your own. The best because: being totally on my own helped me figuring things out and also find alternative ways to resolve whatever the course wanted me to do. I hit my head against the wall so many times that I ended up becoming an expert in debugging and solving problems. All and all, I DO NOT recommend this course to anyone expecting any degree of mentorship/help. If you're okay with running into bugs and figuring them out by yourself then this is course for you. Otherwise save your time and money. Go to Udemy, YouTube and Google. Create your own projects and use tutorials for your own projects. You'll learn a lot more that way.

I decided to retrain during the pandemic and went with CareerFoundry as their program is very flexible and comprehensive. I needed something I could work on in my own time alongside my full-time job. My background is in Fine Art Print Publishing; even... Read More though I had worked with designers for many years, I had very little experience of actually designing myself. The course absolutely exceeded my expectations: in just about 8 months, I learnt an incredible amount and managed to secure my first job as UX/UI Designer within a couple of weeks from graduating. I'll be starting next month and I'm so grateful I picked CareerFoundry. The wide-ranging program is split across 2 main parts: Intro to UI Design (to set you up with all the basic principles), and the UI Immersion program, which gets you really deep into the subject with focus on the creation of an impressive portfolio through hands-on project work. Access to your own tutor and mentor was crucial and excellent. The tutor is on hand for the day-to-day tasks, and the mentor reviews your final projects. You can book regular calls with them to discuss anything from the projects you're working on, the industry, technical tips or just when you're in need for a motivational boost. Those calls were so useful and really helped guide me through it all as the program can be overwhelming at times, they certainly throw a lot at you. But I always felt very supported throughout. As well as these 2 main parts, you get to pick a Specialisation course with a choice between Animation, Frontend Development or Voice Interaction. I went with Frontend Development as I felt it would set me up as a more 'rounded' designer to understand a little more about that side of things. I noticed many job ads for UX/UI Designers here in the UK required some knowledge of frontend so I went for it. This course was a real challenge for me as I had no prior experience of coding, but again, the mentor was instrumental in getting me through it. The content was overwhelming at times as there is a lot to cover in a short 6-8 weeks course. Having said that, it was truly rewarding to complete it. I may not be a coder, but the skills I acquired with this part of the course made me more credible when it came to talking about my process as a designer when facing the Director of Development for my second interview. On top of all this, you also get access to the Job Preparation course which is absolutely brilliant. This course gives you all the tools you need to tackle the job market with plenty of confidence. By the end of it, your CV is exemplary, your portfolio is polished, your interview technique is convincing and you know how to write a striking cover letter. You also get access to the career specialist for another 6 months after you graduate so you can get all the support you need as you start to actively seek your first position. I feel this part of the course was instrumental in making me a strong candidate when applying for jobs, it gave me all the confidence and tips I needed to really stand out from the pack. Of course things were difficult at times, and it's certainly a commitment. You have to keep motivated but the CareerFoundry platform gives you access to great resources with a brilliant and proactive Slack community where you can get plenty of technical tips, industry advice as well as fantastic networking and career leads. I couldn't recommend this course enough, I'm delighted I took the plunge.