Just over three years ago, I enrolled in a little known coding bootcamp in Portland called Epicodus. At the time, coding bootcamps were still a bit of a mystery and would-be employers were skeptical of the formula. I’m proud to say that here at gap intelligence, we are open minded about non-traditional programming backgrounds, including bootcamp grads. If you’re interested in learning code and on the fence about enrolling in a coding bootcamp, don’t hesitate, go for it! My path to becoming a software engineer at gap intelligence would have been much less straightforward had it not been for my time at Epicodus.
Here are 5 reasons you should enroll in a coding bootcamp:
You’ll Learn More Than You Would on Your Own
Coding bootcamps can be expensive and I understand the hesitation given the vast amount of free resources available online. These resources are a great place to start and learn the basics, but it can be tough to sort through which languages and skills you should start learning. Oftentimes, online resources are stand alone and don’t build on skills you have already learned so it’s difficult to create a comprehensive learning plan on your own. Coding bootcamps have holistic curriculums that teach relevant and up-to-date tools and languages and build on each skill you learn so that by the end, you have well-rounded web development skill set.
The Community is Awesome
When you enroll in a coding bootcamp, you’re joining a cohort of peers from diverse backgrounds. They will be your support system as you face the same struggles and victories together through your bootcamp journey. You’ll develop new friendships and relationships with people that could one day be your colleagues, referers, employers, etc. In addition, your coding bootcamp will plug you in to a network of local startups, mentors, meetups, and tech companies to help you along your job hunt when the time comes.
You learn teamwork, communication, and collaboration
For most coding bootcamps, pair programming and group projects are an essential part of the curriculum. Pair programming with your cohort of peers forces you to to develop your ability to communicate your ideas and solutions out loud, as well as the ability to work together and collaborate towards a common goal. The ability to communicate your thought process and work in a team is an essential skill in software development and hiring teams are looking for programmers who can not only code, but can share their thought process to an entire team.
Employers are hiring bootcamp graduates
More and more, employers are hiring bootcamp graduates. According to Stack Overflow’s yearly developer survey, 10% of professional developers participated in a coding bootcamp. A recent Indeed survey reported that 72% of employers felt that bootcamp grads are “just as prepared and likely to be high performers as candidates with computer science degrees”, while and additional 12% of employers felt that they were “more prepared and more likely to be high performers”. Additionally, Course Report findings for bootcamps in 2017 report that 85% of bootcamp graduates find full time employment within 120 days of graduation.
Do it for yourself
If you’ve been thinking about going to code school, it’s likely there’s something motivating you to make this decision. It could be a lifelong passion for coding, a desire to start a new career, or simply to learn a useful skill. Whatever the reason, I encourage you to embrace that call to action. Whatever your end goal is for attending, a coding bootcamp is an adventure in itself, you’ll meet a great group of people, and at the very least, you’ll leave with a very useful set of new skills. Attending Epicodus is easily one of the best decisions I made for myself and opened up opportunities I never even thought to consider.
For more than 15 years, gap intelligence has served manufacturers and sellers by providing world-class services monitoring, reporting, and analyzing the 4Ps: prices, promotions, placements, and products. Email us at info@gapintelligence.com or call us at 619-574-1100 to learn more.
