Actualize

I chose to attend Actualize not just for its reputation as a top-ranked online bootcamp. After thorough research—exploring online forums and speaking with former students—I found that Actualize’s approach stood out. It emphasized critical thinking and not just teaching coding skills but also how to learn coding effectively. I was particularly drawn to the curriculum, which was led by instructors with real-world teaching experience, and the availability of an evening program. This flexibility allowed me to balance the bootcamp with my work and parenting responsibilities, which was a rare offering among other top bootcamps at the time. Additionally, Actualize’s focus on job readiness early in the program felt more authentic than the typical “job guarantee” promises, especially in today’s competitive job market.
The course was challenging but also deeply enriching. I gained a lot from the experience and appreciated the program’s depth and rigor. I would advise prospective students, depending on their learning style, to be ready to dedicate time to additional weekly learning beyond the in-class curriculum to excel. Software engineering was a tough yet rewarding journey for me, and I’m continuing to learn and grow in this field.

Actualize Coding Bootcamp stands out for their genuine human connection. After speaking with numerous coding bootcamps where I encountered robotic, script-reading representatives who barely listened to my responses, I was feeling disheartened. Then Actualize reached out based on my inquiry form, and the difference was immediate. Their email responses were prompt and personal, and my phone conversation felt like talking to a good friend.

What sealed the deal was their offer to let me sit in on a class before signing any contracts or making payments. This authentic approach carried through to our instructor, Brian, whose classes were focused, well-structured, and refreshingly honest. While learning to code is challenging, they excel at making complex concepts accessible and logical.The most valuable takeaway wasn't just learning programming languages – it was learning how to teach myself. This bootcamp is perfect for complete beginners and those with some coding experience who want to connect the dots. 

Actualize's approach to class time is refreshing – unlike other bootcamps that require 40 hours of Zoom sessions per week, their schedule is more balanced. While this means you'll need some self-discipline to study independently, it's actually a benefit. After all, spending endless hours on Zoom isn't necessarily the best way to learn coding.

Although I'm sad to see the program end, I'm grateful for the great friendships I've formed and excited to be part of their strong alumni network.

I had the absolute pleasure of being in this bootcamp. We had a wonderful instructor Peter Jang with patience that most saints could not muster. He was informative and fun to learn from and I came in with little to no knowledge of coding and was able to follow along and learn the basics of coding. He made sure to spark the wonder for research and figuring out the problems not just giving up and saying I don't know. He offered time and expertise in so many ways to all of my classmates we all have come so far and truly will be successful due to this course.

I was part of a January 2024 cohort (Sundays and weeknights) and I found the course to be engaging and fulfilling. A big factor in that was the small cohort size. With only 7 other people in the class, we all got to know each other well and spend plenty of time working together to solve problems and help each other out every day. In fact, I've become friends with 2 others in the class, and we plan to hold each other accountable in our job search and continuous learning.

A special shoutout is well-deserved to Peter Jang, the instructor. He was funny, had lessons that were easy to understand, and had an positive attitude that was a great motivator. He was always willing to answer any questions we asked or even offered to stay late after class to help out with tougher issues.

I also appreciated the "job hacking" portion of the class where we spent an hour every week learning how to network, get interviews, and land jobs. An hour might not sound like a lot, but we also had homework that forced us out of our comfort zone in order to get connections and find the right jobs for us.

After 5 months in the cohort, I definitely see the improvements. I couldn't see myself learning how to do a CRUD app or realizing that I love backend way more than frontend code before the beginning of the course. Now, I have multiple side projects that I want to tackle, and it's possible to do so because of the foundation created during the bootcamp.

I'm still looking for jobs, but I definitely wouldn't be as confident in my search now if it wasn't for the bootcamp and the support from instructors and classmates.

So, I'll start this off by saying this bootcamp was basically my only choice after having called at multiple different bootcamps. They were very professional at the start of me contacting them as opposed to another bootcamp that i wont mention, and slowly pushed me towards choosing them. They were very helpful and understanding of my situation and gave me options on which course to pick (they got morning and evening cohorts as of this writing) and even offered for me to take a sit in on one of their classes. Its very much a structured learning environment, i would compare it closer to maybe like, a college class with a small amount of students. Because of this I felt as though I was watched over in a good way, they pushed me to complete assignments on time even when I fell behind, but I was able to submit them at any point (this is during the first 5 weeks for the class, before any actual zoom calls). once the zoom calls started I felt a sense of accomplishment. and again after the course. In todays job market they also told me the reality that I might not get a job within a month, but that they would help us in any way they can and they gave us strategies to go about it. Overall while being the only coding bootcamp i have attended, its definitely my favorite. Especially when comparing it to my early comp sci classes where the professor could not be bothered. 

...and that's ok. I'm a graduate, so I'm still applying to things. Ask me in 6 months how I feel about my Actualize experience. But at least, right now fresh out of it I can say: I don't feel ready. But I know I *am* ready, and that's really all that counts. If you go with Actualize, there are a few things I can guarantee: (1) you'll get a teacher who cares, and is good at teaching. (2) it'll be 100% about what YOU put into it. You'll get out what you put in. Be ready to apply yourself. and (3) you will absolutely adjust to the schedule. It'll all be ok. And sooner than you know: you'll graduate.

Good luck on your school search and, should you choose to accept it, your coding journey. 

I decided to join Actualize because I wanted to get into the coding world and make a career out of it. With the help of this bootcamp I feel prepared to enter in a junior developer role. During the pre-work they teach you the basics of coding and it is self-paced. After 5 weeks of pre-work you start the live classes. The live classes is 12 weeks and they teach you all about the frontend and backend of making an app. It is Ruby/React based which is a nice easy start when you come in knowing little about coding. Overall it was an amazing experience and I definitely would recommend this bootcamp to anyone that asks "What coding bootcamps are worth it?" 

If you are someone who is new to coding and unsure of which way forward is best for you, look no further because Actualize is the BEST COURSE AVAILABLE. I could not more highly recommend this bootcamp as the overall experience was amazing and it has prepared me thoroughly for my new career as a software developer/engineer. Prior to joining Actualize, I was completely new to coding and slogging through Youtube tutorials and other self-learning materials but didn't feel that my learning trajectory was on the right path. I had actually joined a different bootcamp but had a terrible experience that lasted 3 days before dropping as their material was more advanced than advertised and my teacher there was not welcoming or helpful. Soon after, I found Actualize and the reality could not be more starkly different. Their application process was very straightforward, and Actualize was extremely transparent with their curriculum. The pre-course work with Kevin was vital to creating a great base of coding fundamentals, and the live course with Brian exceeded all of my expectations. Brian organized the class content perfectly and was extremely attentive to each individual student's needs. He took my cohort from writing loops in Ruby to making full-stack web apps, and I truly feel comfortable using Rails and React to create web apps. Don't waste anymore time on your coding journey and join Actualize now!