Chegg Skills

I'm overall very happy with my decision to join Thinkful. Could I have learned it all on my own? Sure! But I wouldn't have had the same level of mentorship or support that I received through Thinkful. Some notes if you're thinking about joining: 1) The curriculum is very text-based. As a visual learner, I did have to supplement a fair amount of the material with YouTube videos. However, I think this is ok because I knew going in that I'd have to put in work on my own. 2) I felt that my mentorship sessions were not always as beneficial as they could have been. I think this was mostly my own fault though, and I should've come to my mentor sessions with more questions prepared. --- In the end, I feel that I definitely got my money/time's worth out of Thinkful and feel very prepared to dive into my new career. The tuition reimbursement guarantee also makes me feel great knowing that Thinkful stands behind their program. 

When I first started to look for Bootcamp, there were just too many options. I asked my friend and he suggested Thinkful, as he was currently working on a program with them. I looked into it and realized that what they are passionate about fits me perfectly. I chose the Flex program because I am still working full time and needed this program to be part-time. It was a great decision because the flex program solely depends on your dedication. This program provides pause time just in case you need the extra time or you had a vacation planned ahead. I was able to finish the program early because I was able to get through the program fairly quickly. 

The course itself is great. You read/watch videos on the topics and they give you exercises so that they know you know the material. The projects they ask you to work on are able to be put on your resume as they are based on data from different companies. Each student has a mentor and the mentor I had was amazing. He was helpful in every way when I had questions about the material or just about data analyst jobs. We had sessions twice a week and I felt like this was a great factor in learning the material. Someone was always there to help me if needed. 

I would greatly recommend Thinkful to anyone that is interested in learning data analytics!

Great course for everyone who would like to open door to Data Science. Amazing where I am in 6 months, my grad report was about 50 pages of code. Everyone who did online courses knows how easy is to quit. It's not like this with Thinkful. They're amazing, supportive and the mentorship system worked! My Academic Success manager (Ashley) and Mentor (Gary) helped to "move the stone" for sure and make it in timely manner.
 The only thing I wish to have more advanced Data Science workshops but they have a bit. 
I didn't look for a job yet much but their career modules are very much up to point and I'm sure if you need to find a job - you will be able to find with them and after the course. 

Thinkful is very good if you're willing to put in the work. When you start the program they estimate that you will need to work 20-30 hours a week in order to graduate. I think that this is a decent AVERAGE, but what they don't tell you is that some weeks you will work 50 and others you will work 20.

There were days during my time with Thinkful that I was frustrated with different aspects of the course, but in the end it was totally worth it. I learned a whole lot that I would not otherwise know through self taught development.

By far the best part of the course is the 1 on 1 mentor time. I was fortunate to get a good mentor, and they can help fill in the gaps that the curriculum leaves.

At the end of it all, I am a much, much better developer than I was before I started.

Initially, I had done a lot of research on different boot camps and was at a standstill on which options to go with however, because Thinkful had a one-to-one mentor ship program that stuck out to me in the end, I went with them and did not regret it at all. 
You get a two week grace period where they wont charge you and you're able to see if that is the right program for you. The program should take you 6 months on average however, it was fairly straight forward enough to where I finished earlier while working at my current job throughout the week. 
The program lays out the fundamentals on what you should know to be a successful data analyst and provides numerous examples. Each module has an assignment at the end for you to work on so that you can really understand what you learned and you'll be required to do projects in between to showcase what you have learned. Each week, you'll get to meet with your program mentor that will help guide you if you need help, however you can always reach out to them at any time of the week through slack or email. 
Not only that but you'll have access to an abundance of technical coaches on their slack channel whenever you have a question or need help with something. 
The program does a good job guiding you however, a minimum degree of technical skills such as how to manage through excel would help greatly. 

Some cons for when I took the program was that I wish it had videos that explained certain concepts, however a change that they incorporated into the program while I was pretty much finished with the program was video explanations which is great because they take into consideration feedback on how to make the program even more smooth and intuitive. 

I think Thinkful genuinely opened doors for me. I have been able to find a new job with better pay and better future opportunities, and I know I would not have gotten my foot in the door without my time at Thinkful.
It is very much so a case of “you get what you put in”. You could skim by and do the minimal and finish the program and have learned very little, or you can attend Q&A sessions, do all the study material, and really come out knowing what you are talking about. 
I think my time was really valuable, personally, and the support after you graduate is pretty out standing. It took me about 2.5 months to find a job but I am extremely happy with where I am now.

A few bullet points about my experience. First, the good/great:

• Successfully helped me make the complete switch from food service to tech industry. I did what they asked and was able to find a job within the 180 days/6 months post-graduation career coaching period.
• Great mentor. My mentor is based in Athens, Greece, and has 5 years Data Science experience, as well as many years of computer programming before that. He was an absolute expert on statistics, data science methodology, and practical use of the techniques. He was patient, saw where I excelled and offered additional outside material to supplement the course's, and saw where I struggled and slowed down to help me understand. He has become a friend, and is truly the best thing about my experience.
• Great curriculum covering, for the most part, the breadth of understanding required to start at a very basic role in the field (though, given that I didn't have much domain-specific knowledge or experience, I had to take a data analyst role - but I got a job from it!!).
• Links, where applicable, to further readings for complex topics and additional learning outside the scope of the course.
• Focus on building a portfolio of projects to show potential employers, not just building the skills.
• Career counseling once per week for another 6 months/180 days beyond successful completion of coursework and graduation.
• Career counselor was based in my area, which was helpful with familiarity of companies, events, etc. After a few weeks of curriculum and preparing materials (resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn workshopping), we shifted to building my skills, preparing for interviews, networking tips. It was a crucial part of the transformation for me, coming from very different background.
• I think they give you 30 "pause" days, where your course days don't accrue, for vacations, emergencies, etc. Taking this over the summer and nicer months of the year, those definitely helped.
• The tech support on their Slack channel was incredible! I was always able to find solutions with their help, and they were almost always on. Really great resource.

A few things I thought could be better:

• Obviously, timing...even putting in the time they recommended every week, I struggled to keep up and had to pay an additional $1,500 to extend my program for a month to finish. It seems likely that unless you're already trained in one of the required skills (programming/stats), you may have to as well. I was working only 2 days a week for the first half of this program and still found it very difficult to keep at the pace my mentor wanted. He mentioned that many of his mentees had to get extensions, and if multiple people are having this problem, they should perhaps change their timeline to reflect that. OR, make it clear that it's a very common situation before accepting you.
• My program manager was pretty good, but I felt she could've been a bit more attentive or helpful. Had to remind her a few times to take care of administrative things.
• It was also a bit difficult getting clear answers on timelines of things. A few times it happened where my program manager would tell me one thing and then I'd get an email from, say, the financial team about a passed payment date, or how many days I had remaining different from her quote.
• The push for networking and going to meetups makes sense, but in my city (Detroit, surprisingly), there were barely any tech meetups, let alone data related ones. I wish they had been ready with alternative suggestions for virtual meetups or some other useful options. Two times I brought up my struggle with people in the company and they were surprised and not ready to offer any other solution.
• A big thing that caught me off guard was this simultaneous "careers curriculum" which I was supposed to be working on alongside the data science curriculum. I found out at the beginning of the course, and then was reminded a few weeks or month out from graduation that I had to complete BOTH to graduate. The problem is, I never got any of the careers curriculum assigned, and I never got a clear answer on who I was supposed to report to on the assignments. And as far as I can tell, this curriculum was entirely separate from the post-graduation career counseling curriculum. Obviously, it's my responsibility and they told me of it up front, but come on! If it's important enough to be part of the course, just make it all one curriculum and make the mentor responsible. At least something to clarify.

Final thoughts:
This program was great. It was well constructed and paced, professional, full of helpful resources and people. I went from Coursera to this because I wanted mentorship and more of a safety-net, being a complete beginner. In most ways, it provided that and then some! I got a job in the field within 5 months of graduation!! I learned so much about data science, job searching and networking, but also about myself. It wasn't until I made some serious sacrifices that I realized my potential in this course, so try to do better than me if you take it. You may not struggle as much as I did to fit this into your life, but I had to give up almost all socializing. My life essentially was this course for the duration. I should also note that it wouldn't have been possible without help from my fiancée (cooking our meals, walking the dogs, doing grocery shopping, and pulling extra weight when I had a big project or something). I think if you're transitioning from a 9-5ish office professional role into this field, it would probably be easier. I was kind of an outlier, I'd say, of needing additional guidance and assistance from this program. But, I still made it and I'm sure you can, too. I highly recommend them. 

Partway through my course they implemented a curriculum update, which wasn't required for me to follow, but was good to see. It shows they care about providing the most up-to-date material presented in the most understandable way.

COVID-19 notes:
My job search pretty much followed the rise of COVID-19 (I graduated late November 2019). By the time it became clear it would have severe effects on the job market, Thinkful was coming to all recent graduates with offers to extend career coaching for an additional, complimentary month. They also offered access to one additional training of your choice (I chose Tableau), as well as a few info sessions on "job searching during COVID-19" and similar topics. It's very clear to me they are trying to do their best and serve their students well.

Overall I am pleased with the outcome of the Engineering Flex program. This course takes you through a relevant tech stack and gives you the opportunity to build two full-stack applications. Building both applications and all projects on my own seemed to be a big benefit while interviewing. You WILL need to work on your team communication and workflows on your own time but there are plenty of pair coding opportunities around, it will show if you do not do this.
The curriculum was headed towards a more visual presentation at the end of my time with thinkful, which was much needed. I often supplemented the readings with videos found online. The video content I did get at the end was very helpful and well put together. You should have a strong academic background if you're thinking about this course. You will need to reread, research and be proficient at utilizing all resources thinkful provides to be successful. It seemed that most students that did not graduate lacked this drive.
My mentor was top notch and I would gladly pay for his help again. If you do not feel the same about yours, simply attend all classroom sessions and find a good match, then request them as a new mentor. This is exactly what I did.
The career assistance was great and truthfully much needed. Expect the hardest part about any bootcamp experience, not just thinkful, to be making connections to get a job. This is easily done through meetups etc as the tech community is very welcoming. But the bottom line is if you're not out selling yourself, you're not getting a job.

Thinkful's Engineering Flex Program is amazing. It is a LOT of hard work, but you gain the skills that will make you extremely desirable in the job market. The way the curriculum is written is easy to understand. My favorite part about the whole program is the mentorship. You get paired with an experienced mentor who is there to help you every step of the way. I honestly cannot put a value on this. Learning from someone in the industry is priceless. Not to mention the technical coaches who are available via Slack...you will never be without help during this program. Students are required to do mock interviews, which is so great. By the time you get to real-life interviews, you will be ready and have a head start on your competition. And then, when you graduate you are paired with a career coach. Again, this part is a lot of work, but the coaches give you so much support and help you stay positive. I was paired with my coach in mid-February, and I had an offer less than three weeks later. Of course, I had already been applying, but the coach really helps you get polished and navigate the job search. I would most definitely recommend Thinkful to anyone considering a boot camp.

pros: they have a curriculum set up. they have some organization. i hear employees get paid a decent amount to work remotely and the employees also have access to thinkful's full catalog of courses.

let me preface by saying i ended up withdrawing from the program because of my experience so i can't speak to experiencing the full program but only based on what i saw.

cons: its hit or miss with mentors. if youre lucky, you get a mentor who knows what they're doing. unfortunately, it's more likely your mentor wont even do the bare minimum to help you learn. my mentor spent 2 meetings giving me the wrong information before contradicting himself and fixing the issue a week later. he did this repeatedly. it wasn't a big problem since my husband is an engineer but for anyone who is new to coding, i think it can be pretty awful way to lose a week's worth of progress even worse is if the student blames himself for being too stupid to code and keeps meeting with the mentor. i really caution applicants to reconsider enrolling if this sounds like it could be you. i submitted a formal complaint about the mentor but never received a response. this was before the covid pandemic so worse case scenario is that they have too many complaints to process. for a company that boasts that their mentors have several years experience, i expected them to know what they were doing but i think now that the data may be skewed. after attending office hours and interacting with mentors in the slack channel who gave me advice that turned out to be bad practice i asked them about their professional experience, more often than not, they revealed they only had a few years experience. one of them was a recent thinkful grad.

i dont want to accuse anyone of anything but i saw my academic success manager's name in one of the verified reviews. she didnt say in her review that at the time she was also an employee of thinkful. i guess it might not be a big deal, but it does come off a certain way to see a detailed 5 star review when the very first bullet in the review guidelines on coursereport says only students, grads, and applicants are allowed to leave reviews. as far as i know, thinkful employees do not fall under any of those options. their profile and titles on the thinkful website says "program manager" or "head of communications" or even "mentor" but never "student"