DevelopMe_

I took the opportunity to retrain after an ill timed job move meant i was made redundant during the summer. After looking at various different options to me having decided I wanted to learn to code I was quite sure that DevelopMe would offer the best ongoing support and felt that there curriculum was the strongest.

After starting I found that I was quickly vindicated with my decision finding that the teaching and materials were excellent. The course would take place remotely which worked well for me personally from a learning perspective being able to do it in my own home. For the most part there were no issues doing it remotely the occasional longer wait for help could at times be frustrating but i felt this was mitigated knowing that when i did speak to a instructor or teaching assistant that they would take as much time as I needed to help me.   

The pace of the course can be daunting and there is a lot to learn but it is manageable you just have to accept that you wont always get things first time. The instructors are great at reinforcing that its OK to not to get it straight away and the concepts take time to absorb. The support after in my experience has been really good given I got an interview straight away which came through the course.

Overall if you are interested in making a career change DevelopMe is great place to do it.

 DevelopMe are doing a fantastic job raising the next generation of developers. I took the Full-Stack Web Development course and it was excellent! The tech-stack they teach is modern and relevant to the area so you can rest assured you will finish the course with the right skills and technologies to find a job.

I took the course between March and June 2020. Normally the course would take place in the classroom but due to covid-19 we had to do it remotely. Luckily, DevelopMe did an amazing job adapting to the difficult situation and all the teaching material and lectures were still delivered to high quality. The teachers are experts at their fields and the teaching-assistants are very knowledgeable and are always happy to help. Every week you will have a 1 to 1 session with one of the members of staff where they will give you an honest appraisal on how you are doing and will ask you for any feedback on how they can do things better.

Doing a coding bootcamp with DevelopMe has a lot of additional perks like sending parcels to our homes containing snacks of our choosing and stress management lectures to help you emotionally going through this intensive course. After finishing the course DevelopMe will do their best to arrange for you, as many interviews as possible with companies they work with, who they call "Hiring Partners". 2 weeks after finishing the course I was arranged an interview with a hiring partner which ended up employing me! 

I completed the DevelopMe Coding Fellowship in June 2020. I found the course material and instructors to be excellent. The instructors were all experts in their field, and extremely knowledgeable. The instructors and teaching assistants were always available to help and worked hard to facilitate our learning. The course topics were very relevant to what is required in the current job market. 

I took the course during the Covid-19 pandemic and the team at DevelopMe did a fantastic job of making the course work remotely. They even sent snacks to our homes!

Understandably given the environment caused by Covid-19 there seemed to be fewer hiring partners recruiting than normal after the course completion. However, I was very lucky to get a job with a hiring partner after completing the course.

I would recommend DevelopMe to anyone wanting to move to a career in tech.

I highly recommend this course.

I've now been a web developer for 2 years, in the job I got from one of the interviews Develop Me set up for me at the end of the course.

The instructors were very good. The instructors knew what they were doing with code, and also had put thought into how to teach it effectively. 

It helped me figure out what parts of web development I most enjoyed. The 2 weeks we spent solving JavaScript problems really exercised a bit of my brain that I didn't know I had - I loved it.

It really is a very good way to start in web development. 3 months isn't long, and web development requires you to learn a lot. Develop Me did an excellent job of taking our skills and ways of thinking a very long way in the time frame. I appreciated how much we got to try things, putting things into practice and learning practically (with the support and instruction of experienced people). We were trying out things for the first time that felt so new and challenging at times, but to help us we had clear and thorough explanations of the concepts, and plenty of support. This combination of challenge and instruction/support is excellent. 

Alongside all these challenges, there was wide and thorough coverage of use of essential tools, including Git, and the command line.

It gave me a really solid foundation to go into a job as a junior, where you will then learn more, that it would be impossible to teach in 3 months.

The support was great - they always had both the instructor and another web developer on hand to help. I was pretty much a total beginner when I joined the bootcamp, and whenever I felt overwhelmed or unsure, it was so helpful to have a friendly someone on hand to reassure and help or give feedback.

The overall mood of the course was really positive. There is plenty of kindness in the culture they've built up.

Regular pastoral chats and feedback were really helpful.

I also learned how to play table tennis. I'm not sure if they still have the table!

I'm really thankful for this course.

I completed the coding fellowship nearly two and a half years ago, so I hope this review provides the added benefit of some longer term perspective, having successfully transitioned into a rewarding career in tech as a result of completing this course.

The 12 weeks from start to finish were very intense, you will experience high and lows but I have no regrets about embarking on this course. It will provide you with the fundamentals you need to get started across a wide range of languages, at speed.

The best advice I can give to anyone considering enrolling would be to get to a comfortable level with the basics in your own time first (HTML, CSS, JavaScript and anything else that interests you), talk to developers, thoroughly research the industry and have a realistic target with regard to where you want to be by week 12. If you are prepared to put in the work (and the work IS tough) before, during and after the course you will be amazed by the amount of opportunities that will arise which may not have been possible in your previous or current career. Development is tough when starting out, it takes time, hard work and patience, so make sure you know fully know what to expect.

I was able to forge strong working relationships with all of the instructors on my course- they all have bags of experience, know everything there is to know about their specialisms and their support throughout was invaluable. The location and facilitates are good and you will undoubtedly make friends with your fellow students. 
 
On a personal level, I forged a career in the data science route off the back of this course which wasn't directly covered on my cohorts curriculum, but that is what played best to my interests and strengths. That is one of the added benefits of this course; it will enable you to think about the different options available whilst giving you with the skills that employers will be looking for at entry level. 

I would recommend the coding fellowship to anyone who is serious about starting out as a web developer or is perhaps looking to utilise the Dev role as a platform for a wider career in tech. 

I wholeheartedly recommend the DevelopMe coding bootcamp. I did quite a bit of research on various coding bootcamps before committing to DevelopMe and am so glad that I made the right choice. 

I went into the bootcamp with minimal knowledge of coding - changing my career in my 30s after many years in academia (arts). Whilst the work could be intensive at times (there is a lot to learn!), the tutors and support staff are exceptional and the learning environment is relaxed and welcoming. You are encouraged to ask questions throughout the course and, in a weekly progress review, to discuss how you are feeling about the course, your general wellbeing and what could be improved. 

The mentoring programme is a fantastic idea, pairing you with an industry expert with whom you can chat informally about what it is like to work in web development. And DevelopMe continues to support its alumni after graduation - actively helping students through the interview process and updating the resources from the course at regular interviews. 

I am now in my first development job and loving every minute! :) 

I moved to Bristol to attend this course. I did a lot of research before I decided to do as moving is not an easy choice and now I think it was the best choice I've ever made.

One of the great things about DevelopMe is that each different language/topic is taught by the best-specialised tutors. - this was one of the reasons I chose DevelopMe.

All teachers and Teaching Assistants are not only good teachers but great mentors. When I struggled with some concept they were happy to went through it again with me and give extra support. 

I learned a lot and built a good foundation for my career. The course focused on very practical skills. And the course exercises are specifically designed to train you on how developers think and approach the problems which is very important value. When I had interviews, the employers were quite impressed by the way I've trained on the course. 

More importantly, I felt that they really care about their student not only academic wise but emotion wise as well. We had one-to-one every week to check out how we got on and get advice and feedback and get whatever support we needed. 

 

 

 

I did a lot of research before committing to the course, and really believe Develop Me is the best option in the South West. The support on the course was great, and I really think it's worth the money. All of the teachers were fantastic, and it's great to be taught by people who are actually working in the industry. I considered going to university, but that would have been 3 years and cost a lot more ultimately! Instead, in a few months I've gone from working in a call centre to being a web developer! Best decision I made, and it has really changed my life. I did a couple of part time courses first with other providers, which I would recommend, as I believe it helped me to do well on the Develop Me course, and make the most of it. I also did lots of online courses, but I do think you learn more with a teacher, and it's a bit more interesting too. If you identify as a women/non-binary and are aged 18-23, or 18+ and completed studies in the past 2 years, I would highly recommend Code First: Girls. They run free beginners courses in Bristol (and around the country). It's really great prep for Develop Me and won't cost you a thing.

Short review

Course is great, got a job after the course.

 

The long detailed review

My journey started in November 2018. I was working as a web administrator in a cold car body shop. Administering their website, doing thankless tasks and listening to the boss constantly shouting and swearing at the workers. I came across Develop Me through a google search and attended their open evening. They had beer, pizza and we were shown how to make a basic contact form in PHP with some HTML and bootstrap.

 

I have a Computer Science degree and have attempted the self taught route. I can honestly say that I learned more in 12 weeks at Develop Me than I did in my 5 years of my further and higher education. There are some things on the degree program that aren’t taught on the boot camp such as Photoshop (in detail) and Computer and Law theory but I’m sure you’ll learn this as and when. What my degree didn’t teach me was how to be a proficient developer. My typical Web Programming lecture at Uni would consist of an oversized class with one lecturer speaking to you, as if you should know better. If you didn’t know something, you would get a sarcastic answer and get told to go away and look it up.

With Develop Me, there were 9 students, 1 instructor and 1 (sometimes 2) teaching assistants to assist you. There were always some detailed slides to refer too, lots of correct documentation recommended by the instructor and at least 2 knowledgeable people at hand should you need things explained in detail.

 

During the course, you will feel lots of different emotions, frustration, anxiety, uncertainty and some will experience stress. To experience these emotions alone on a self taught route would certainly make you want to give up being a developer. Which was why I failed on the self taught route.  Most of my fellow students were very supportive and we would have a one to one with the founders every Friday to check in and give any constructive feedback. There was a very positive energy on the course with everybody wanting to learn and grow while everybody kept emotionally aware of each other’s frustrations.

Develop Me provides a table tennis table which for me really helped as it allowed me to bond with my fellow cohorts.

There’s also unlimited coffee and a run biscuits every week. I had many great moments talking to fellow cohorts over coffee about my problem and then finding the solution for myself. A term referred to as rubber ducking.

 

The technology taught on the course was very relevant. I won’t list them all as they can change in a flash, so it’s best to visit their website. I came onto the course believing that I knew HTML, CSS and PHP which was one of my biggest mistakes. Going onto a course believing you already know it all.  The first week, the instructor, Ruth Johns blew my tiny little mind of how much there was to HTML and CSS. Lots of things they just don’t teach you on a degree program.

I will openly admit that I struggled half way through the course and didn’t go on to complete the React Native path. But instead, revisited Javascript, Wordpress + PHP again which was suggested by the course leaders. At the time, it was harsh news to hear but the end result really paid off. I’m no working as a Wordpress Developer at a highly established agency working with technologies I really enjoy. Please not that Wordpress is not just editing an existing theme but writing your own theme that requires an understanding of the loop written in PHP.

 

As for the venue, there’s a very creative energy about Paintworks, lots of great companies that pay a premium to be there and lots of potential hiring partners. I was eventually hired by an agency situated just 4 doors away. As for the Friday night beer? There’s a bar just a up some steps that serve great beer and pizza. Parking was free on the road and a bike rack directly outside. Also to add that you’re just a 10 minute walk away from Temple Meads.  These things are all essential to know if you’re going to be there for 12 weeks.

 

As for funding the £8k fee, having rich parents in this situation always helps, but if you’re someone like me who had little savings in the bank, I managed to get a career development loan which, at the time of writing, the program has stopped now but there are other loan companies out there. You’ll need to check for the best interest rates and ensure you have enough funds to survive for 4 months and not 3.

 

After the course finished, the work didn’t stop there. We were given a technical challenge to complete that we would present to potential employers. At first it was a blind panic but breaking down the task, it was challengingly enjoyable. Everything we had learned on the course, we were able to put into practice.

 

So after 12 weeks of intensive learning and 12 grey hairs later, I’m here at my desk in a web development agency developing themes and plugins, working with amazing people and patting the office dog during times of coding frustration.

 

I can confirm that everybody on the course got employed and most of my fellow cohort got offered a junior salary between £21,000 - £23,000. Some companies offering between £16,000 to £20,000 depending on experience. I have been added to the Develop Me Alumini where I’m notified of future upcoming hack nights and events relating to relevant topics.

So there you go, a long detailed review that I hope will confirm the credibility of this course.

A giant thank you to Pete, Oli (co founders) Mark Wales (amazing instructor) Ruth, Jack, George, Chris.

The experience was amazing.

 

I joined the course with around 10 months of prior experience self teaching in my spare time which gave me a great foundation to make the most of this course. At no point did I feel like the content I was studying was a waste of time because I had already got to grips with it, which was an initial concern.

All of the tutors were experts in their speciality and I felt supported and challenged throughout. I also feel the curriculum was suited to the state of the industry at time of writing, and gave me a great understanding of technologies such as React and Redux which I have continued to build on to this day.

I highly recommend preparing as much as you can before you start, otherwise you may find some weeks incredibly challenging, I felt I had a reasonable understanding of Javascript before I started, due to my prior studying but I still found the JS weeks to be incredibly challenging.

I was provided with ample oppertunites upon completion of the course for employment, though it did take me around 2 months to secure employment. However, in this time DevelopMe_ were in contact to make sure the search was going well. 

Highly recommend the course for anyone looking to career transition, and you can leave feeling confident you have a solid grounding in the core technologies required to begin your journey as a web / software developer.

I was part of the Summer 2018 Full Stack Web Dev Bootcamp and really enjoyed the experience. I wasn't sure I'd be able to re-train at this stage in my life (being ancient at the age of 31) but the trainers were very patient and the course really well structured. It was challenging, of course, but I got through it and learnt this entire new skill set in a crazy short amount of time. There was lots of support available throughout the course and probably just as much support now having finished the course months ago. Timing was unfortunate for work placements as there weren't many companies hiring when we graduated but it didn't matter, I was still able to find a job within about 4-5 weeks of completing the course (and the first 2.5 weeks of that I wasn't looking or applying as I was getting strung along by one of the work placement companies lol). Pete was also really good at keeping me up to date with tons of oppurtunities/vacancies around Bristol and Bath. I've now since left my first junior web dev role and am getting ready to start my second, with a better company with better prospects... all within a few months of graduating from my Developme_ Bootcamp. If this is what you want to do with your life and you're thinking about signing up, just do it. I was apprechensive and a little terrified about investing so much money in myself but you only live once and if you're willing to put in just a little work and effort you can litterally change your life in as little as 12 weeks.