Springboard

I started the Data Science Career Track bootcamp in April 2018, completed Aug 2018. 

BACKGROUND: Graduated with a master's in one of the biosciences, few months prior to bootcamp. Due to my work, already had background in data analysis, stats, and programming in another language besides Python. Some Python tutorials were sufficient for applying to this bootcamp. 

CURRICULUM:  Covers required basics, esp for data science interviews. Mostly based on pre-existing materials online, but Springboard does the legwork of sifting through the overwhelming sea of Internet resources and curating them into a chronological curriculum. Additionally, they’ve got their own resources, including lists of interview questions and networking how-to’s. These were immensely helpful. I also used the interview questions as a study guide, which paid off as several topics appeared in actual interviews. 

STAFF/MENTOR: Lots of support – you can schedule calls with a career coach, do mock interviews, and generally interact with other people in what could otherwise be an isolated journey of self-teaching. Incredibly professional and knowledgeable staff, very responsive customer support. 

I was also very happy with my mentor. The first one I was assigned to was a bit lackluster, but after having to postpone my start date, I ended up with another one. My weekly call with him helped me stay on track, and he was incredibly helpful and encouraging. This included post-bootcamp, when I sought his advice on choosing between jobs.

CAPSTONE PROJECTS: Critical part of my resume, since I didn’t have industry experience or data sci projects where I used machine learning. Starting a project can be intimidating and unfamiliar, so the bootcamp provided me structure. Another Springboard staff member grades your project and provides feedback - I wish their comments/suggestions were more detailed though. 

COST: Steeper than I’d liked, but it paid off. I had the freedom to pursue this full-time, so I did the per-monthly plan hoping I’d complete it within 2-3 months. I ended up taking 4 months, but still avoided the heftier 6-month charge.

JOB HUNT: Again, YMMV – like I suspect w/ many bootcamps out there. It’ll be up to you to do a lot of the networking. I reviewed my Springboard curriculum, plus lots of extra reading outside the curriculum (particularly practice tech & behavioral questions). Also deployed one of my Springboard projects as a Flask web app. I went to events/Meetups, did informational phone calls w/ close and distant contacts, and applied to several jobs (requiring cover letters) each week. 

Overall: Good self-paced curriculum that covers the basics. Pricey, YMMV, but worth it for me ultimately. I found a job 2 months after completing the bootcamp, but a lot of the post-bootcamp work was on me to apply, network, etc. Happy with my mentor and interactions with staff.

My time as a student at Springboard has been nothing but AMAZING. I was paired with an awesome mentor that really pushed me to excel in my studies and building my portfolio. Without my mentor, I wouldn't be in the position I am today, ready with confidence in tackling my UX job interviews with confidence. I now have an awesome portfolio in which he let me know the rights and wrongs in building one. For what I got out of Springboard, it is definitely worth every penny compared to other UX bootcamps. I would highly recommend Springboard for the price and opportunities you get out of the curriculum.

I took Springboard's UX Design course. I have to say that the weekly 1 on 1 mentoring calls is what made Springboard better than any other course out there. Not only you get an accountability partner, which is really critical to complete a course (Most MOOCs students failed to finish a course), but you'll also be getting industry professional insights. 

I was paired up with a mentor that works in a top Silicon Valley company. I can't be happier to learn from her experience and industry knowledge every single week. Thanks Springboard for the top notch online education!

This course really built my confidence in preparing me for a Data Science career through extensive Python training and working through multiple projects. I felt like the program extensively approached the fundamentals while providing support and resources to engage with both the material and employment process. I felt like they truly cared about my development. My only hope for the program was that there would be more practice using Spark and SQL seeing as those are becoming absolute fundamentals in the job market. 

As I was thinking about making a career change to tech, there were so many different paths and fields to take. Springboard was a fantastic help because they have some good, free resources on their site that detailed what these different paths and fields really do! After some more research, I decided to enroll in their UX Design course. Every single bit of it was project based, hands-on experience. They also paired me with an amazing mentor who is a professional in UX Design. We would have weekly Skype meetings and she would give me tons of feedback and advice! I definitely recommend Springboard if you are serious about learning and motivated to gain experience for the career you want!

What I like most about the course is that systematic introduction to every aspect of data science, excellent mentors ( I like my mentor a lot, he's very very knowledgeable and resourceful and taught me a lot), very helpful and encouraging career mentors, and very practical and interesting exercises to help you apply what you've learnt in theory. IT WAS INTENSE. As a full-time Ph.D. student working on transitioning to this field, I've got lots of school work to do. But luckily I had the flexibility to explore this course after school, and I really enjoy it.

I don't particularly like the order of extra learning materials and career materials at the end tho, but again you have the discretion to complete the course in whatever order you like 

Dear Sirs,

  I'm writing an honest review of the UX Design Course at Springboard.   Essentially the course is a bunch of links readily available on the internet. I was surprised when I found out that all resources are online links that I can already find myself. And they are charged at a staggering price of $499 per month! which is nearly $4000 HKD. I can seriously tell you that it is NOT worth the price. Waste of money. I pay $4000 just for resources readily available? It's Now you may say "ok we researched those links for you" but 1) that is not worth the price 2) it feels like someone who isn't experienced in UX just put links with information on every aspect and expect us to digest ourselves- which for $4000 I was thinking you might include some summary/cheat sheet for each chapter but none. So the course, again, I have to repeat myself because of how ridiculous I find this, is just a bunch of links readily available on the internet. 3) I sincerely, utterly REGRET purchasing this course, because there are much better, experienced, well thought-out, DIGESTIBLE, clear and concise, to the point courses out there that charges way lower (not some Lynda courses) 
For instance, this AIUX course that charges $294 with SO much amazing feedback from ACTUAL DESIGNERS from famous corporations Google, InVision, BMW. I regret purchasing from Springboard, I should have bought the AIUX course instead with much lower costs and better content. https://rwd.aiux.co/coupon/allblackeverything2017?__s=k2qfs6sbhsbf3v5kxs3z   Or these $10 (I repeat- $10!!) Udemy courses currently on black Friday sale https://www.udemy.com/ux-web-design-master-course-strategy-design-development/   Mentorship system. You paired me with a mentor whose accent I find difficult to understand and doesn't seem much experienced. These are ALL the notes I have made throughout all the calls- which are common sense and things I can find online.   Therefore, I am requesting a refund. I will post these on forums to keep future students properly informed.    Thank you very much.

I'm a healthcare researcher hoping to pivot to UX design and research. The UX course such a wonderful way to begin the transition. You can develop a solid foundation in UX design concepts and get constant feedback from your designated mentor. It has been such an eye-opening experience. The best way to learn about the job you want is to talk to and learn from the people who hold those positions. This is what Springboard strives to do. It is geared towards opening up pathways for people who are new to a field by connecting them with excellent mentors who go above and beyond what is asked of them. 10/10, would recommend!