| | Andrew Chen | App Academy's curriculum is well designed and really reinforces fundamentals so every new lesson is built on what you have learned. By no means is it easy and you will definitely have to put in the work, but you are offered lots of help and resources from the TA's, fellow cohort-mates, and through additional readings. A majority of most days is filled with pair programming, which I really came to enjoy and realize its usefulness. However, there are only a handful of days where you get to tackle projects on your own, which I did not like, but that is merely my preference. After the curriculum, I feel that App Academy provided me the tools and fundamentals needed to further my programming skills and create full-stack web applications. Being a bootcamp that is only a few months long, I feel they do a great job in transitioning anyone, who is willing to put in the work, into a software engineer. |
| | Christopher Oney | I cannot express enough how much I enjoyed this program. The instructors and staff are all supportive, intelligent people that are able to cram a large amount of information into a relatively small amount of time while still making the lessons enjoyable and understandable. Unfortunately due to the Covid-19 outbreak, my cohort was forced to take the classes online, but even this wasn't unmanageable thanks to the efforts of App Academy. One thing to mention is that if the job fairs App Academy normally works with are extremely important to you, I would wait until quarantine measures are no longer in place.
That being said, the teachers and staff can only do so much. If you intend to apply to App Academy, be prepared to put your life on hold for several months. The coursework is rigorous and often overwhelming. If you fall behind too much you may not have the time to catch up with everyone else again, even with the help and resources provided. Do not ever grow complacent about the work. Overall if you think you can handle the bootcamp experience and are passionate about learning, I highly recommend App Academy. |
| | Matthew Tolentin | Yes, there are articles coming up all the time criticizing App Academy's pricing plans and now freely available curriculum, but you will not find another group of dedicated instructors when you choose to take the plunge. They also help you all the way with admission advisors the very same day you submit the first admission form.
Yes, a lot of the concepts can be learned by yourself with hours pouring over Wikipedia, Stack Overflow, and elsewhere, but the greatest value to the intensive and immersive 16-week journey is not only the opportunity to have a glance at tech industry culture through the curriculum path and curated lectures, but the challenge at your fingertips everyday in pairing with another cohort mate to solve nontrivial projects and problem sets to actively mold into and further change the culture yourself.
App Academy is truly the one-stop-shop from beginning Ruby lessons to the job coaching that guides you the whole way after the 16-week course until you get your offer letters. Yes, you very well could go the route of learning JavaScript by yourself or maybe C by yourself, but everyone in App Academy upholds their standard everyday and provide living breathing proof that their techniques work, through their connections with tech companies all across the country and the regular alumni panels that return to talk to share their success with current students and encourage them on their way.
If you've stuck with me and read this far, start the application process and have a go at the webcam coding challenge. If you blow them away with no raise in heart rate then yes maybe this bootcamp is not for you. However, if you fall in love with Alvin's lessons and through intense study and dedication pass this first hurdle (an accomplishment you are reminded of even up to the final week of class), you will not be disappointed with the adventure set before you.
Thank you again to every single instructor and coach that guided my cohort and never quit on any one of us. |
| | Sheava Danesh | I'm switching over careers from a completely non-technical field to software development, and I couldn't have picked a better bootcamp to help me through this transition. Although I just graduated, I can say that in just the past 4 months I have learned a myriad of languages, technologies, and frameworks that I never would've imagined I could. App Academy's curriculum is prepared in a way that regardless of your technical background, you learn so so much in such little time and learn enough to compete with other aspiring software developers with university degrees in computer science. The only thing I wish App Academy did differently is to advertise themselves clearly as web development since thats basically what the curriculum is centered around. I can make a full-stack web application now, but not much more than that. Either way, I am super grateful to be able to have attended App Academy and would highly recommend this bootcamp over others to anyone who asks! |
| | Ahmad Alqadhy | I will start with the obvious: App Academy is a very rigorous bootcamp and a huge commitment both physically and mentally. But with that comes a valuable education that really carries the name.
The Pros: App Academy has a thoroughly developed curriculum, so you can rest assured knowing that you are receiving an education that would reflect highly in the job market. It's also structured in a way that is easy to follow, starting with basic coding projects like finding prime numbers in an array and ending with building full stack web apps. When I finished the program I truly walked away feeling like a full pledged software engineer. It may seem hard at times (it will definitely seem hard at times) but you have to trust the process.
The Cons: We spent the first half of the cohort learning how to code, which in essence was finding a prime number and doing the fibonacci sequence in a hundred different ways. And then the second half ways Rails/JavaScript/React/Redux/MERN. It would have definitely been nicer if the curriculum was divided up in a better way because the concepts in the latter half are definitely more valuable but much less stressed and taught. Also, going into this I thought App Academy helps you find a job. But in truth, you're, pretty much on your own there too through hundreds and hundreds of applications. They don't have an actual job placement thing as some reviews have suggested.
All in all, App Academy does deserve recognition for being a top tier bootcamp, but your success is really in your own hands. |
| | Gilbert Bui | This program is VERY challenging but it would we all worth it in the end. With great guidance and support app academy will teach you the tools and skills for your success in a software development. Highly recommend to push life aside for this course days can range from 12 - 14 hrs a day to keep up with the course. |
| | Stephanie Echeverria-Dixon | Honestly, I was convinced at the beginning that App Academy wasn’t for me. I’m a weirdo-artsy Latina with a ton of family commitments and chronic illness/disabilities that I knew would make the “valorization of working 90 hours a week” bootcamp model a huge challenge for me. I contemplated dropping out from the very first week, because without a technical background and with a glitching computer I wouldn’t afford to upgrade, I felt like the “hot mess” of the class. Coding definitely doesn’t come naturally to me— every exam was a struggle because of my anxiety issues.
Given all of this, I never expected that I would graduate this program feeling so proud and glad I stuck with it, and feeling so passionate about coding now! My TAs were incredibly supportive and there for me even as I had way more questions than it felt the average student had, and they spent hours of their time outside of formal class time to help me with material, give me pep talks, and just in general didn’t view me as an expendable number in a cutthroat environment the way I worried doing an intensive bootcamp would be like. One of my good friends died in the middle of my doing this bootcamp, and I never could have kept going to graduation if instructors and fellow students hadn’t been there for me on both a human and a programming level so consistently.
I reveal all this info about myself because there are tons of reviews that talk about the curriculum, specifics of the frameworks they use, etc. I wanted my review to speak to someone who might be reading this and see themselves in my description of myself— not sure they can fit in in the coding/techie world, or handle a high intensity bootcamp. I won’t sugarcoat what a challenge a/A was, but I am SO, SO grateful I stuck with it, and definitely recommend App Academy, its instructors, and its community vibe that was so welcoming to this anxious new programmer! App academy’s material is really well structured too, so I feel like I’m in a good position to keep learning and improving my skills along multiple axes with all the material being a student gives you access to forever. Excited to keep learning forever :) |
| | Anonymous | As someone who was debating between attending App Academy or another bootcamp, I ultimately do not regret my decision to enroll with App Academy. There were several unknown factors at the time of my decision making (such as not knowing if in-person learning would become available at any point during the cohort), and I think I made the best decision I could with the knowledge I had at that point in time. With that said, there are several factors that I'd like to stress for others who may be making similar considerations:
PROS:
- This program will, at the end of the day, accomplish its goal of teaching you how to code. Or at the very least, will help equip you to continue learning more on your own after the bootcamp is over
- It's recognized as one of the top bootcamps, which is significant since bootcamps can have a stigma associated with them in the actual workplace
- The TAs seem to genuinely want everyone to succeed, and the fact that they are all former students makes them more empathetic to the pressure on current students
CONS:
- Curriculum or general operating procedures don't seem as polished as they could be. Several of the recorded video lectures towards the middle of the curriculum seem more dated, which didn't instill the highest sense of confidence in the product that App Academy provides
- Intense focus on passing assessments. As other reviews mention, the foundation of the curriculum is based on weekly (and towards the end, bi-weekly) assessments. Failing any of the fundamentals assessments (weeks 1 and 2) results in being deferred to another cohort, and failing any 2 of the 6 remaining assessments results in dismissal. While this certainly keeps students on their toes, it also results in prioritizing just passing the assessment over understanding the concepts, especially if you don't have any prior CS knowledge
- Pair-programming for hours every day, especially over Zoom, is taxing. Pair programming is clearly a huge part of the App Academy experience, but as one of the first cohorts that was taught the in-person curriculum entirely over Zoom, it would have been preferable to see App Academy try to be more creative in addressing specific needs of an online experience
All in all, if you're looking for a way to accelerate your journey into becoming a software engineer, feel that you have a good support system, and are ready to work really hard, a bootcamp might be the right choice for you. |
| | Daniel Chau | There are definitely many pros and cons to the program. It can be very emotional at times, but there are strong resources and a community to rely on. It is definitely fast-paced and work-load intensive, however it is manageable with strong mentality and using the resources given to you. My tip to anyone thinking about coming in or already in, communicate with your other cohort members and TAs if you ever need help or are feeling low. Everybody is in with the same goal and TAs were in your position before this, so do not feel like you will be hindering anybody. Without being able to ask for help or communicate well with my group, I do not think I would have been able to get through it or enjoy it as much as I did.
Now for the cons, the pace and expectations can feel or be a bit unforgiving and relenting considering what is at stake. I know it is those same stakes that help everyone take the program very seriously, but it would be nice to know that there is a fall back plan for anyone who may have a valid reasoning for missing a week and not have to feel like they have to dropout . It is getting better and if you communicate well enough you can get back, but the workload is a bit worrisome in that case. Long story short, be communicative and ask for help whenever you need it, use the resources around you! |
