Penn Boot Camps

In November of 2021, I decided to take UPenn's FinTech programming bootcamp. As a derivatives trader, I wanted the ability to work with data in a way I couldn't without knowing how to program. Little did I realize that I would get SO much more from this course. The instructor has been one of the most enlightening, energetic, and brilliant individuals I have ever met -- and I learned so much more than just how to write in Python. He broke down concepts like statistics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, creating databases -- into concepts I not only understand, but can program myself. Collaborating and delivering worthwhile projects on time, learning how to approach problems and delegate tasks to team members -- this course was much more than just a how-to in python. In 6 months my friends who are programmers are blown away but what I can do now. 

This is a bootcamp in every sense of the word! It ain't easy! But it was worth every penny. So grateful for the team and all the support. Top flight experience; definitely want to explore taking another one in the future.

There are a of things to say about this bootcamp. Although it's affiliated with Penn University, it's worth mentioning that it is run by Trilogy Education services. Despite this, you can still provide the UPenn name on your resume and Linkedin. The certificate will also be from the University of Pennsylvania.

Time frame: I self taught myself HTML and CSS before applying to the program which isn't necessary at all. They enroll students from diverse backgrounds and experiences. I was enrolled in the part time 24 week (6 month) program mostly because you learn a heavy amount of information and I decided that the immersive 3 month program was too short of a timeframe for me to properly absorb and learn full stack web development. Obviously this is a personal choice, but be prepared to learn a lot at a fast pace.
 
Curriculum: Please note I took the 6 month flex course ONLINE. The curriculum was great. The structure of each class consisted of a 30-60 minute lecture by the instructor (Anthony was mine, he's awesome!) to begin. Then we dove into activities where the teacher would go through an activity then we would be split into groups to do the next activity. Then he would explain the answer and this continued until the end of class. This introduces the idea of paired programming which is essential to know in the real world and each activity really lets you practice the concepts. Each week was a different topic. For example Week 1: HTML, Week 2: CSS,....Week 12: mySQL. And each week we have a homework due on that week's learning. There are 3 group projects due. Each applying more skills the more you learn. For the first two, you are paired up into groups of 3 or 4. For the final project, you have the option to work solo or in a team. Again, these are great opportunities to learn how to work with others, bounce ideas off one another and build a great site. You are given a few weeks to build each project and then present during class time. Usually two representatives from UPenn attend. You'll learn how to present and receive great feedback! Overall the course of the class breaks down full stack web development into sections and it all takes place in Visual Studio Code as well as Slack.

Tutors/Support: There are two TAs in the cohort (at least in the 6 month one). The two I had were amazing, kind, helpful and patient. There are weekly office hours where you can sign up to meet with the instructor or either one of the TAs each class. Take advantage of the office hours. I wish I went more and don't be shy, they will be your crutch the entire time! Also, since Slack is also used, you have access to learning assistance (LAs) almost any time of the day. You slack them any issue you're having and someone will respond and help you come to a solution. For the most part they are helpful, but there were times where I didn't find too much help from them. You're also assigned a tutor. You can switch at anytime if you're not connecting with your current one. You get to meet with them once a week for an hour (3 month program is different). Yes, they are free. Lastly, you will have a student success manager to help you out and keep track of you during the course.  Overall lots of support even from your classmates!

Career Services: You have to option to use career services, but you also have to option to opt out. This depends on where you are in your life. I used them. I needed them. A few times throughout the course, you will have "Milestones" to submit. These usually include submitting a resume and getting feedback. The next milestone may be to submit your revised resume and your personal portfolio and along the way you add more and fix your resume, portfolio, LinkedIn and any other accounts or materials. I thought they were great. Whoever reviews the career materials provided great feedback. Not just "change this." Rather they have a lengthly review explaining what you did right and wrong, following a huge list of checkpoints. Toward the end of the course, you are introduced to the career director. This is who you'll be working with after you graduate (90 days). I graduated the program in Feb 2021, it's been 3 weeks and my career director has been very helpful and she's really nice. They go over the career services site and are there for you every step of the way.

Conclusion: Overall this course is challenging, rewarding, frustrating and amazing in my opinion. You truly get out what you put into this program. After the final project, Penn hosts demo day where you can present your projects to industry professionals. This is an amazing networking opportunity and I highly suggest you do it. Experience is what matters and you really want to start building connections right after graduation. I learned a lot during this course, and at times nothing at all. It is fast, so do your best and understand that you may not walk away with everything you learned, but remember it's only been 6 months. You will build a great understanding and foundation to grow from. When I started I only knew HTML and CSS. Now I can confidently say I know HTML, CSS, a decent amount of Javascript, React.js, Node.js, Git, Version Control, MySQL, MongoDB, Express and more! 

I just completed this certificate program operated by Trilogy Education Services under the aegis of Penn. The instruction team was absolutely superb - knowledgeable, organized, always available to answer questions during office hours (before and after class sessions). The support team - a Student Support Manager (throughout the entire course), the Penn faculty (mostly during project presentation times), and the "Boot camp spot" support service (for off-hours technical help) provided a well-rounded safety net to assist in the learning process. The experienced lecturer with years of industry experience did a great job emphasizing the important aspects of the curriculum and de-emphasizing the less central ones. In addition, there is an entire Career Services team working to help one prepare the materials (resume, LinkedIn profile, portfolio page) and hone the skills necessary to have a successful interview or embark upon a successful freelancing career.

Overall, it's a challenging and trying experience that requires significant time commitment and determination to get through several bumps along the learning curve, but one comes out stronger and better prepared at the other end of the course. Learning full-stack programming skills is nothing to sneeze at - the ability to build an integrated application from frontend to backend puts one on the par with, if not ahead of, many other more experienced but more specialized professionals in the IT field. The best simile to use here is learning another language - because one does, a computer language (Javascript) that opens up a whole new world and culture, just as human languages do. The full-stack program engages the entire brain - the more creative right hemisphere for front-end design and the more logical right hemisphere for the back-end database and server coding.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED as a great entry point to further exploration into more advance topics, such as cybersecurity, fintech, data science and visualization, and so on. 

Learning and developing skills - technical and conceptual - through the University of Pennsylvania and Trilogy Education Services Data Analytics and Visualization curriculum has provided invaluable competencies in the tools being implemented in information systems.  Data storage and retrieval are indispensable in research inquiries and analysis, and fundamental in our everyday interactions with digital technologies.  As a student and professional in Libraries and Information, databases are a large component of it and a career in research methods.  I chose this bootcamp to strengthen and broaden my skills in the communication of information; and I’ve had the opportunity to do that, and so much more.  The educators and support team have been nothing less than extraordinary in creating a positive environment, conducive to learning, growth, and honing our skills as individuals and collaborative teams.  They’ve provided a space where we are encouraged to continue learning outside the classroom and seek out solutions for ourselves, gaining a comprehensive understanding of the material, and comfortable asking questions - confident that they (and we) will be met with positivity by knowledgeable and supportive staff.  

I expected this program to introduce a lot of concepts, programming languages, tools, and techniques but I did not expect the level of detail that would be covered as quickly as it was!  This program is very well planned and structured.  We did learn to jog before we sprinted, but we needed to keep running along to keep up!! 
I’ve learned so much that I ran out of room on LinkedIn!!  This program challenges you to step outside of your comfort zone and to be a part of something and not just watch it being done.  There were failures along the way, which made the successes that much more rewarding.
One of the best parts of this program was learning together as a team!  I never felt alone in any of the classes or within anything I was developing.  It wasn’t just those we were working together with on one of the Projects, but the helpfulness of everyone in class activity breakouts as well as the Homework Help that allowed for some smaller zoom sessions to troubleshoot and learn even more; or simply just the communication through slack itself!  Working through issues, whether my own or someone else’s, was an excellent opportunity to learn.  Debugging offered perspectives and different thought processes into ways of accomplishing something that you don’t get on your own. 
Although I have known that I wanted to develop things using computer technologies since I was 13, the class has helped to reinvigorate my love of development. 

I came into this wanting a change in careers, I was no longer passionate in my current position and I felt I needed a change in my life path. So with very minimal coding experience (small amounts of html from when I was younger), I decided to take the plunge and it was the best decision I have ever made! Quincy was my instructor along with Dan every other Saturday. They, along with the AMAZING TA’s, had made my journey, although challenging, a little bit less frustrating and SO supportive. I will say the program can be exhausting and does move fairly quickly as there is a ton of material to cover in 24 weeks. However, in my opinion in order to be successful and really understand the material, I spent at least 20-25 hours outside of class doing activities, homework, or rewatching the lectures (it helped me so much in reinforcing the material learned in class that week). As long as you are prepared to make the commitment, I strongly suggest taking the plunge, I found my new passion in being creative with code. The support from my classmates along with the instructional staff and Josh would make me want to take this course all over again!

I had zero coding experience before enrolling in this BootCamp. My husband thought I would be good at it and as a teacher (in my former life), I love to learn. Well, it turns out that this course changed my life for the best. Ed and Anthony were my instructors. Ed saw my potential and convinced me to pursue web development as a career. Well, he was right and I ended up getting a job as a developr at a large financial company a month before the program ended. I would not be as successful as I was without the support of my classmates, TAs, resources from Career Services, and, obviously, my instructors. It was an intense 24 weeks where I focused all my free-time in coding activities, homework, articles, exercises, and more, but it was well-worth it. I am beyond happy about this course. I would do it all over again too. 

I was very skeptical about joining the bootcamp but joining Penn LPS coding bootcamp turned out to be a good decision. I am a seasoned Java programmer and this bootcamp gave me the chops to become a full stack developer. The curriculum was well designed keeping the lack of programming experience in students. The program encouraged me to go and explore new technologies and methodologies and better programming standards in the fast changing full stack world. It has given me the chops to coordinate with people from different backgrounds and perspectives. Our Instructor and the TA's are very knowledgeable and are real world working professionals. They did not hesitate to help us out at any time not just during the office hours. I haven't used job assistance program offered but from what I have heard from my fellow cohorts, the professional service people are very thorough in getting the students prepared with their material and prepare them for the real world.

Prior to attending the program, I didn't have much experience with coding. And now, I'm so proud to introduce myself as a Software Engineer to people, thanks to this 24-week program. It was one of the most challenging courses I've ever taken but also the most rewarding experience I've done. With the assistance and dedication of the instructional staff and Bernard (the Student Success Manager), I know a lot of students in my cohort have also landed their dream jobs in Tech. 

You will learn marketable and trending technologies like JS, node, both SQL (MySQL) & NoSQL (MongoDB), and React.js. I would advise you to prepare to put in as much time as you could to work on the homework, but also research and learn more about the materials taught in class from outside resources.

I'm sure there are many good & knowledgable teachers in the program, but if you ask me whose class you should sign up for, I'd say "Ed, Anthony, or Quincy". They are all very knowledgable, dedicated, and caring for their students. You'll be in good hands.