Dev Bootcamp

I graduated from Dev Bootcamp in Chicago over a year ago and since then, it’s been an incredible journey.

After graduation, I kept in contact with a core group of friends and it’s been great to see each of us embark on completely unique paths. One friend started out her career in a Python shop, but decided to combine her love of teaching and community to become an instructor at Dev Bootcamp. Another friend built a prototype of an app at a hackathon, which led her to a incubator where she launched her own start-up. Another friend is currently working at a consultancy where she is receiving extensive training in multiple languages and best practices before working on client projects. I recently started my second developer job where I am learning Java, Swift, Rails and Node. We’re all women; we all come from diverse cultural and professional backgrounds; and we all started our journey at DBC Chicago. 

I’ve referred multiple friends to DBC because finishing the program is really just the beginning. I continue to encounter DBC alums as speakers at conferences, leaders at hackathons, as project managers, bloggers, designers, community leaders, and volunteer instructors at events all over the city. And having access to this wide network of people -- many of whom are doing interesting, passionate things and understand what it’s like to go through the program -- is invaluable. I found my first developer job through a previous graduate, and I know I’ll be helping future grads in finding what’s next for them.

I went to DBC to learn how to code, but I now realize that it’s taught me how to professionally engage with the tech world at large.

Dev Bootcamp is an amzing experience for people who are changing careers or do not have the time or money to go to a traditional CS degree school. Not only will they give you the tools and knowledge to succeed in the programming industry, they will open your mindset to make you a more successful individual. If you are dedicated, determined and have the passion to learn how to code, DBC is right for you. Their Engineering Empathy program will teach you to trust yourself and learn to work with others by being able to give and receive meaningful feedback. 

Coming from a background in educaiton, I have to say the pedagogy at DBC is the reason I wanted to go in the first place and it's the reason I reccomend you attend!

Research shows that they best way to retain information is to work on projects and DBC's whole curriculum is just that! Actually, I take that back... Dev Bootcamp doesn't ONLY focus on code; they truly teach the 'whole student' by having additional curriculum called "Engineering Emphathy" that tackles big issues in tech and helps you understand how to work in groups. Coming in to DBC, I thought I was really good at interpersonal things and couldn't get anything out of these sessions.... Well I was wrong; I became even better.

TLDR; Attend. It's worth it.

It's an intense but supportive environment. Expect to put in long days if you want to get the most out of it, but the focus on pair-programming really sets you up to learn a lot on any given day. I was sceptical about the pairing before I started but I converted to it very quickly. It really is a great way to ensure that everyone learns all of the material at the required pace.

The curriculum is very well-planned but it moves quickly. Most people will have stretches where they feel like they're falling behind or struggling to get everything. It is a LOT to learn in a short period of time so just be ready to work stupid hard for a couple months and you'll get through it.

You will definitely learn to code more than you learn Rails. People come out of this program and land in a pretty good spread of development jobs. It really does give you a solid fountation to reason about code, and the skills you need to self-teach any framework or langauge you need to pick up afterwards.

Devbootcamp was good before, that is the fact. Up until Kaplan bought devbootcamp, everything fall apart. I am not saying Kaplan is a bad company, it is a good company. It is just not as good as my peers told me as before( 2012-2015). 

First of all, during phase 0, I thought we were supposed to get some feedback on the homework. None received. The phase 0 instructor seems to just get everyone through phase 0 without asking too many questions. I feel like asking question isn't encouraged during phase 0. I dont' feel like their part time instructor wanted us to succeed. I am not sure if the phase 0 instructor understand that we quit the job, pay 13k and hand our faith to them? That is a question for them. I just want a botocamp that care about students' success. we are supposed to  understand the materials rather than rushing through the program and finish it, right? devbootcamp. Maybe a lot of people dont' understand, but I think they should. Bootcamp is what we made out of it but not just by finishing it. Yeah... exactly.

Secondly, majority of the interviewers are really nice and knowledgable and passionate about what they know. I give them a 5 stars. While.........some interviewers from devbootcamp isn't really knowledgable about what they teaches you or interview you. I asked them if they know what c++  is.....they dont' know.  And then I just dont' know what to say. This is just one of the fact. This is my personal thought, please dont' judge what I write here devbootcamp. This is just my thought again. 

Conclusion: devbootcamp was good before kalplan bought them. That is what I am going to say. I decided to attend another bootcamp because I don't know if they actually care about students' success. 

Dev Bootcamp really was a life changing experience. If you are looking to become a web developer in 19 weeks, this program will really help you.

First off, do your research and make sure you really want to get into web development. Do you enjoy solving complex problems and troubleshooting errors? If you do, you'll be fine. Otherwise, you'll want to look into a different profession. 

The first half of the program is remote and allows you to continue working as you learn the basics of HTML, CSS, Ruby, and Javascript. Office hours are there if you need some extra help, but you'll be in contact with so many other students that are willing to help others. There is an assessment at the end of what is called phase 0. If you do not pass, you are given the opportunity to repeat the phase to get ready for the assessment again. If you've done all the challenges and gotten through the practice assessments, you'll make it through. 

The truly fun but also difficult part was the immersive phase on campus. Core hours are M-F from 9-6 but many of us worked at least 12 hours a day and put in time on the weekends as well. If you like learning and coding and bonding with your classmates, you'll love this phase. You'll be able to get your own website with a database to store information up really quick.

In this phase, you'll notice the most successful people are the ones that really put in the time and effort to learn as much as they can. You'll be supported by Dev Bootcamp but your learning will ultimately be up to you. The instructors are always there to answer questions. There's even counseling and yoga offered once a week as part of your tuition. There are so many people there to support you. You just need to make sure you really give it your all each and every day.  

There is a career week after your final project week which is really useful. Dev Bootcamp is really involved in the development community and you'll constantly be in contact with people who could potentially offer jobs down the road. I was approached by a potential employer during our demo day. This was all thanks to Dev bootcamp. You'll also get advice on how your resume and linkedin should look as you go into your job hunt. I did not find any prejudice against me for being a bootcamp grad instead of a CS grad during my job hunt. It all comes down to your own abilities and how you display them. I am currently in the final rounds of interviews for a large tech company (Google, Apple, IBM etc.)

My overall experience at Dev Bootcamp was great. I learned how to become a web developer, made some friends, and most importantly had a lot of fun. 

This is the most brutally honest review, and remember the truth is usually ugly. To start off there are 3 harsh truths I had to learn:

1. They say they can teach anyone to code. No, they cannot. I don't even have to explain it - just think about that logically.  Think about the different types of people in your life, with their varying personalities, interests, and intelligence. Can you honestly say they can ALL learn to code? in a few weeks? And if you need any further proof, yes this place kicks people out. 

2. There is no demand for dbc grads and dbc is saturating the market with them. Yes there's a huge consistent demand for developers just like there's one for doctors. But who would you go to if you had the choice? A doctor with literally 0 years of experience and somehow learned to be a doctor in an accelerated 1 year program or a doctor that went to all 4 years of medical school and have at least 5 years of experience? exactly. And that's the cruel reality you'll face after you graduate and start searching for jobs

3. The rampant sexism. If you're an attractive girl - actually, just a girl, you'll be fine. But guys prepare to get ignored and graded on a harsher scale. I understand the benefits of affirmative action and equality and that we need more women in tech but letting them slide and ignoring the men is not the way to do it

-- And just a honest warning - if you're introverted - FORGET THIS PLACE. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY. If you are introverted you will be ignored, uncomfortable with the noise level and general cultural environment, and you have no chance at a job afterwards, because their career plans is exclusively reaching out to strangers and soliciting them for a job. And like other reviewers said, forget any job support or any connections from dbc.

Also, let's not forget the favoritism, drama, and gossip. Everything is fake. half of it - yes you're learning how to code but I guarantee the other half you're going to be entrenched in petty gossip. Like the other reviews have said the instructors say they're there to help but are usually nowhere to be found - especially on Fridays when they take the entire afternoon off to get together for a "meeting" where they just talk shit about all the students. Casey who's as saccharine as it gets; Baker only talks to girls since hes "feminist as fuck"; and Leon is the fakest of them all. Of course they're all fake, since the entire concept of dbc is just a facade especially after Kaplan bought them and now its a for profit pump and dump factory. dbc used to have standards on who they let in - their application used to be extensive, with multiple questions and you were required to create a video of yourself teaching a skill. now if you'll notice, its just 2 questions - why do you want to go to dbc, whats your weakness and strength. great. they'll let anyone in and thats why instead of meeting cool creative people, you end up meeting a lot of people who are just in it for the superficial reason of money. Like someone else mentioned, do not trust Erin the counselor either. And I agree with other reviewers that engineering empathy was horribly facilitated and a complete waste of time. it just frustrated people.

I did everything right post graduation - i kept up with the weekly updates with the career coach, did cold outreach, endless coffee meets, meetups, etc. Still dont have a job and never will in this field. There is little room for someone who's only been programming for a few weeks. I know people who read this might think I'm just a naturally jaded person - I am not. I am in all honesty trying to save anyone from making the same expensive mistake I did. its more than 13K. Add all the thousands up from the living expenses in the 3 months you're there, plus the thousands during the job search. Try a conservative 20-25K

if youre truly interested, keep your job and do online courses. talk to your company and see if you can make a move to an entry level tech position, keep learning. go to meetups and work on projects independently. a lot of established developers ive talked to learned their skill on the job.

Good experience. I was struggling to learn how to write code on my own for about two years before attending DBC. I definitely learned things at DBC that I never could have figured out on my own. DBC is great in that regard. Also, the instructors are all very knowledgable and helpful. The overall environment is positive and encouraging.

The only complaint I have about DBC is that I believe the average starting salary they advertise is higher than what companies are current willing to pay for a junior developer with no experience. This is based on my own job search (which included two offers) and conversations I had with my classmates. They tell you a junior developer in the Chicago area should make around $55,000 - $60,000. But based on my experience and conversations with classmates, it's lower than that.

Overall, I'm still very happy with my decision to attend DBC. I learned more than I thought I would and the instructors genuinely do want you to be successful. Maybe the economy is just a little sluggish right now.

I graduated 5 months ago and close to no one in my cohort has a fulltime job. This seems to mostly be the norm in NYC. The experience was fine but I only really did it to get employed. I would recommend if you have another job or if you do not have the financial ability to dedicate close to 6 months after the fact to look elsewhere. Close to all of the bootcamps teach ruby on rails and it is no longer the most popular framework. You will just basically be applying to a ton of positions that will exclude you immediately because there are tons and tons of candidates just like you. DBC does not publish their job statistics anymore and for obvious reason. Like I said the experience was fine but I would seriously urge against going here if you do not have an extreme passion. Even if you do, I would recommend applying to a more selective camp (hack reactor, app academy), it will force you to put in the work prior to applying which will give you insight into whether it's something you really enjoy, and will also let you gauge your own skill.I would also reccomend freecodecamp.com, save yourself 13000. The job market in NYC is very stale without experience and is going to only continue to get more bloated.

Overall, I'm really happy that I took the plunge and enrolled in Dev Bootcamp.  I learned an insane amount of material in a short period of time.  It was exhausting but also pretty cool to test the limits of my learning capacity, and I realized that I was capable of a lot more than I realized.  I lucked out and got great teachers during my time (Iuilia, Sam, and Pan), and was also part of a cohort that was more than 50% women.  I felt supported at DBC by my classmates, mentors, and teachers. If I needed help with a coding challenge, I was usually able to get it quickly. 

I think they can improve on a couple of things. 1) Admission: I understand that DBC needs to make money off of tuition, but there were some students in my cohort that were not up to the challenge.  2) Job Placement: I graduated from DBC when there was some turnover in the careers department, so I didn't feel like I got a lot of help in my job search.

I get the sense that the market in NYC is starting to get flooded with Jr. Devs, and it made me feel a little helpless for awhile.  Regardless, I ended up getting a job in a field I love at a dream company I never thought I'd be able to work for. 

TLDR: The time I spent at DBC was challenging and there are things they can improve on, but it was worth it in the end.