Chegg Skills Reviews
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Gerard
Awful
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This boot camp was even worst than my community college. They treat you like a bunch of kids. You can be dropped if you are late for 5 days since they mark you as absent. Graders, grade based on their personal preferences and even when several people work on the same project, some pass some fail! You can be working on the same assignment for months since every time a new person grades your assignment, there is a completely different set of problems to deal with. The curriculum material is really vague and if you ask them why, the answer is: we want you to be on your own! Your are also forced to make sure you are logged in their stupid browser based chat system all they long or you will be marked absent. Happy to be dropped, this was a torture! -
Priya
Data Analytics Flex - 03302021
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Thinkful data analytics flex is a wonderful program, for students and people looking to shift careers in data analysis. The course is well structured and rigorous enough to keep you engaged. The ability to meet with a mentor weekly is an amazing perk. My mentor guided me very well through out the boot camp. My mentor also helped me stay motivated and push myself towards completing the boot camp. ASM and other reviewers who grade your work are well versed in the areas they deal with. The course is very flexible and Thinkful provides you with enough time to complete the boot camp. I highly recommend the data analytics boot camp from Thinkful. I am glad, I chose to pursue this boot camp. -
Kevin
Digital Marketing Immersion
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This boot camp intensive equips students at any level to learn some of the industry-standard tools used in digital marketing today. The course is well-paced for a dedicated student committed to success. Treat it like a full-time job, as well as your job search afterwards. Like most things, you get out of it what you put into it. I found the course materials fun to work with, albeit sometimes a bit rudimentary and very basic (I understadn this is an advantage to students new to the field). I enjoyed the team-structure and task-sets we were assigned. I am very pleased with my portfolio and the chance to work with a non-profit, as well! Overall, great course. -
CB
Digital Marketing Flex
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I took part in the digital marketing flex program at Thinkful. The curriculum touches on all of the important subjects in regards to today's digital marketing world and is up-to-date. All of the current platforms and topics are being discussed and taught in a logical order. As a flex student, you don't get to work with instructors or take part in the video/live sessions. You have a mentor though who will help you with your progress. Every chapter handles a different topic and you get to read through it, often filled with case studies, and examples. At the end of every chapter, there is a project for you to work on. This is how you apply the knowledge you have just gained and you can use these projects for your own personal portfolio. Every project is reviewed and you'll receive feedback. At the end of the program, you'll have a comprehensive portfolio that you can use for your career while applying for a job. Overall it's a great program and the career services afterward are extremely helpful. -
Tim T.
Software Engineering Nights and Weekends
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The program overall like most boot-camps boasts lots of material and resources, but I believe that the most important part my experience was with the mentoring and post class career stuff. My mentor and I would talk about material and about other topics as well. While sometimes we didn't have a lot to talk about there were real gems that I appreciated later down the line. For example I learned about a new language(not in the material) on my own because our talks and it helped me get a role. Post graduate stuff was great. I regularly got a ton of resources and links to help in the search. My resume was redone about 3 times, got a couple extra interviews and got into a mock interview pilot program. Very nice for sure.
Lots of paired programming and capstone/portfolio opportunities for sure. Good mix of full extensive and quick start explanations which serve well when you are trying to set up a project from the ground up.
The accountability from the environment is something that I needed for sure but with that said, having a self study attitude is still needed otherwise you get caught behind. There can be a lot of reading but that's to be expected. Much like lots of things , you get out what you put in. Its really up to you to give it an honest try.
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Brian Gainer
Technical Project Management Flex
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I had an incredible experience with THINKFUL's Technical Project Management Flex program:
A very thorough program, in regards to preparing me for all aspects of my new position. The program doesn't just include job specific educational curriculum. They also set you up with LinkedIn, Resume, and Mock Interview modules, which is where they prime all of your marketable areas perfectly for the hiring process. I had a great experience with my THINKFUL mentor Dhyana, who I had scheduled multiple meetings with each week. She has real experience as a Project Manager and that speaks volumes to THINKFUL's mentor selection criteria for their programs. Very pleased and grateful for the experience with THINKFUL, and blessed to have accepted a full time offer and a nice pay bump before graduating! Fantastic ROI. -
kevin garcia
Digital Marketing
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I finished this course in the beginning of this year. During the whole time I was doing these courses I felt confidence in what I wanted to do with my career life. Thinkful helps you stand out in this difficult time of finding a career. They teach you how to represent yourself as professional and unique and you can make it. I'm very thankful for thinkful and all the amazing people that help me through my education journey. -
Elijah
Mr.
Thinkful is for people who are serious about putting forth the effort in building a potential career path.
The instructors are genius and the program supports you even when after you graduate.
I am super grateful for my experience at Thinkful.
I recommend 100%! -
Rene V.
Data Analytics Flex
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Going through Thinkful to learn and hone my data analytical skills was one of the best things I have ever done. The curriculum solidified skills I already had and taught me skills that I never would have thought I would be able to learn such as Python and SQL.
What is different about Thinkful is that not only do they teach you the skills necessary to perform the job, they provide skills on interviewing, culture fit, networking and cover letter/resume writing. They provide the full gamut of landing your next job. They even have a post curriculum career coach that works with you until you land your next job.
Because of Thinkful, I was able to make a career change and land a job as a Data Manager for an amazing company. I will definitely turn to Thinkful for additional learning in Product Management and Data Science. -
Jose Oseguera
Engineering Immersion Experience
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Thinkful is a great boot camp that is both flexible and structured in a way that most university courses would be. The curriculum is rigorous and thorough, but like any course, the student needs to put in the time to practice and do further research outside of class and pair-programming time. If you’re looking for a career change and/or already have a college degree in something other than computer science, then I’d recommend Thinkful. It will provide you with a solid foundation on which to build as you advance in your career. It doesn’t guarantee a job ( and neither does a bachelor’s or master’s in CS) but their career services are awesome and my career coach helped me so much so that I was able to find a great job only a month after graduating. -
Amanda Excell
UX/UI Flex Program is a good experience
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The UX/UI Flex program is a 6 month part-time program. Overall I had a really enjoyable time.
Even from the start of onboarding with admissions, I felt safe and secure with my decision to hand my money over to them. Especially with the tuition guarantee (graduate with good academic standing, and if you don't get a job after 6 months post-graduation you may qualify for a refund).
I appreciated how confident and knowledgeable the admissions staff were.
When it comes to curriculum, I feel like the projects were helpful in me getting experience in coming up with and executing an idea. My mentor (Rachel C.) was a perfect match for me and she was extremely helpful. I felt like my mentor sessions were extremely valuable to me because I was able to directly ask questions to an expert and working with her helped me feel more confident with my design decisions! I looked forward to my weekly meetings. Academic Success gave me the support I needed (especially when my cat was dying.) The entire Thinkful staff is very sweet and they genuinely want you to succeed.
My only complaint would have to be the specialization module. Since there are no assessments in that module it was difficult to understand the material or have any confirmation I was doing it right. If you take this course I recommend you do your specialization in UI design or UX research. I recommend not doing the front-end specialization (like I did). My suggestion to Thinkful staff would be to add more video or temporarily pair us with a mentor who specializes in that module.
Overall the curriculum was good but may need some improvement in some areas. However, I'm happy with all the feedback I received on my assignments. And I'm proud of the portfolio I was able to come up with at the end of my course!
Now I'm on to the job hunting portion of this program and I'm already satisfied with the structure and support they give, so I'm confident I'll find a job within the given time frame.
Thank you Thinkful!
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Lee
Good Value
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I completed the Digital Marketing self-paced program in March 2021. I was able to complete my course 2 weeks early, without having to push too hard to do so, and was in a full load of college courses simultaneously, so if you're wondering if you can do both- it's possible. I found it to be a great intro to digital marketing. I would say if you are new to the field, this is a great entry-level, foot in the door way to get started. The modules are informative and well written, and the module projects were helpful in getting experience doing real-life digital marketing. I do wish there were more projects, but I am an experiential learner. The feedback from the graders was helpful in taking my projects to the next level. My mentor was an absolute gem with a ton of industry experience who really helped me navigate any obstacle that came my way. I am just starting with Career coaching, but I already love my coach and can see that we'll be doing a lot to make sure that I get hired. More than that, I will leave with an understanding of how hiring and recruiting works that I never had access to and that is invaluable. -
Quinn C.
Data Analytics - Flex
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The data analytics flex program is ideal for anyone looking to advance their careers who are working full time. Everything is on you, the individual. You are responsible for your learning from Day 1 until the day you graduate. This is perfect for people looking to study on their own time, being able to choose exactly when and for how long you study for. With that said, the support staff is excellent. I would go far as to say this is the program's strongest attribute. Meeting with a mentor that is in your field is crucial to furthering and reinforcing your understanding. The curriculum was exactly what I was looking for in terms of scope - Excel, SQL, Tableau, Stats, and Python. All are challenging but never dreadful to undertake. The only problem with the curriculum is its depth. A fair amount of topics are glossed over and offer a very brief explanation - even key concepts. As mentioned above, the learning is on you. Be prepared to seek additional information on the internet. It took me a while to understand this about the program - the program will get you off on the right foot for whatever you are learning but in order to really nail down your level of understanding you will most likely need to rely on additional sources and explanations. Furthermore, as with any new concept or field, you will not become a master in 1-2 months (within a tool like Excel, SQL, etc.) and certainly not the field of study you choose in 6 months. The program sets you on path to success and it is there to support you every step of the way. Just be aware you are an independent learner and must take on additional responsibility.
I typically spent roughly 15 hours a week studying (2-3 hours/day) and upwards to 20-25 hours a week when working on a capstone project. -
William
Digital Marketing Flex
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I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Thinkful. They offer good information where you are working on starting your career immediately. It is CLEARLY their focus to get you going. You will learn the different aspects of digital marketing and apply what you learn to your own portfolio by completing projects. Instructors will give you valuable insight to your projects.
I find that the best part about the Thinkful program is the mentorship and the career coaching you get with the program. They will give you amazing resources to use to advance your career. Their goal is to get you going. It has worked for me as I am now working for an agency.
Thank you Thinkful! -
Kyle
Remote Data Analytics
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Overall this was a solid educational experience for the price. The curriculum laid a strong foundation for using excel, python, SQL and Tableau. However in my experience I felt that some of the programming units could be more developed to be used in a professional environment.
I enrolled in the course to upskill and pivot my career. After the course I was ultimately able to find a new job but it required work outside just the given course work.
The one on one mentoring was strong and the mock interviews and presentations were helpful and informative. The career support was outstanding, and probably the single most important part of the program.
I would recommend this course to someone looking to break into the data space but be aware that it will require a fair amount of work. -
Julia
Engineering Immersion Bootcamp
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Thinkful Engineering Immersion program provides a true immersive experience from those who never coded in their lives to those who are trying to break into the software engineering industry. Thinkful provided me the resources and knowledge needed for best industrial practices in order for my skillsets to be competitive in the job market. This program is intense, in which I dedicated more than 12 hours a day learning and practicing code in order to become a web developer. The mentors are amazing and I was lucky to be paired with one that dedicated their nights, weekends, and holidays helping me achieve my deadlines and goals. The career coach was committed and dedicated, along with very supportive in my journey to find a career. -
Sebastian
Wonderful Experience
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Taking the Thinkful Data Science Flex program was one of the best career decisions I've made, second only to going to college. I went in with background in Statistics, and that's it. I knew nothing about Python and had never actually programmed before. The 10 or so months that followed (I extended my learning) were challenging, but ultimately very rewarding. If you're serious about doing this, go all in. Invest the time to learn the ins and outs of your tools (Python / Pandas / SQL, etc.) and you will be rewarded. Stay up-to-date with industry standards. Start networking early. The Thinkful experience was instrumental in getting me to where I am now. I work as a Data Scientist at a tech company. Best of luck. -
Daniel
GIS Analyst/Data Analyst
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I took the Data Analytics Flex program from August 2020 to February 2021 and it was a challenging yet fulfilling experience. Very comprehensive and was a great introduction to the world of Data analytics. Specifically, it teaches you how to use current data analytics tools such as excel, tableau, SQL, and python to perform analysis on many different applications. There is some flexibility in the course to choose which capstone projects you want to work on but for the most part, the curriculum is streamlined to give you a strong base in the world of Data analytics. Thinkful does a great job with providing you with a great support system. You have access to your mentor, an academic counselor, and the ability to connect with other students going through the same course as you through Slack. -
Chase Stoffle
Set up for Success
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From day one everything just felt right. The program works through a lot of material, but everything is directly applicable to the real world. May not seem it at the time, but the real world projects are not that different from what I was doing at Thinkful. Keep in mind this is just to get your learning and growth started. You have to keep working your skills after the boot camp but that should be expected! -
Ivette J
Data Analytics Immersion
I loved my experience at Thinkful! I learned so many skills applicable to my new position. I loved my instructors, my mentor and my peers too! The career mentor I was paired with after graduation was also amazing. So helpful, knowledgeable and encouraging, and I don’t think I would’ve found a job as quickly as I did without her support. -
Aliah J. Bell
The Best Digital Marketing Coding Bootcamp!
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Attending Thinkful was one the BEST ideas that I have had yet! I was able to reach new heights in my career search and enter a realm that I never thought I would be in, I am now a contractor/co-owner of an e-commerce store and have Thinkful’s staff and instructors to thank for helping me get to where I am now 🙂 I hope to one day take another course and maybe see some old colleagues haha anyways Shoutout to Thinkful, see you soon. 🌼 -
Tina Walstad
Good way to learn!
When I began Thinkful,, I primarily had some good Excel skills and a background of finding trends, problems, and proposing solutions. Thinkful boosted my excel, and gave me a solid intro and background in SQL and Python for data wrangling, along with Tableau for data visualisation. -
Yishen
Data Analytics Program Flex
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There is a 6-month program, I have learned Excel, PowerPoint, SQL, Tableau, and python with no additional cost. I do not have a background in Data analytics and computer skills, the materials I have learned quite challenged to me, but it definitely worth helping me to pursue a career change. I have been working as a full-time employee in the daytime, my mentor always can accommodate my schedule to meet up 2 times per week to keep me engaged in learning and solve struggles. -
Brandie Metcalf
Digital Marketing Boot Camp
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Thinkful was an amazing experience and followed through on their promise. As an out of work Event Planner due to the pandemic, my options were limited and job prospects were extremely bleak. The professional help I received in the classroom and after graduation on the job hunt, really propelled me to getting hired in 2021 in a highly competitive job market. Don’t struggle on your own like I did for months. Get involved with a program at Thinkful today and broaden your network within a positive and dedicated team. My heart felt thanks goes out to Thinkful for getting my new career ladder going this year, and carrying me through the hardest financial months of my life last year. Get started on your future success today, Best Regards, Thinkful Graduate 2020, Brandie : ) -
Kristen B.
Inadequate UX Design Program
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Before starting Thinkful’s program, I did extensive research in UX training programs. Based on what turned out to be misrepresentation in advertising, promotional materials of the school, and misrepresentations by representatives of Thinkful, I enrolled in the UX design immersion bootcamp at Thinkful. After three weeks of attendance, the product I received was inadequate and I withdrew for these reasons, in summary:
1. Expectation: a reliable curriculum with dependable syllabus.
What I received: an incomplete curriculum and unreliable syllabus.
Evidence: multiple schedule inaccuracies affecting assignment efficiency, comprehension, and deadlines. Daily, there were conflicting discrepancies between: the reading, assignments, schedule, instruction, and lecture slides. In a survey I conducted, the vast majority of students agreed that the syllabus and dashboard did not align.
2. Expectation: a comprehensive education.
What I received: misappropriation of class hours.
Evidence:
a. School days: homework assignments were completed during 5 of 7 school hours which directly contradicts Thinkful curriculum that states, “Homework, mentor sessions, and independent study are completed outside the scheduled course time.” Performing homework was scheduled during class in lieu of a meaningful curriculum. A mere 1-2 hours were spent in “lecture”- 30% of which was spent watching youtube videos.
b. With assignments: homework expectations were regularly mislabeled, misleading, and unexplained which led to great confusion. In a survey I conducted, the vast majority of students agree that the assignments did not have clear instructions nor expectations. In three weeks, only one assignment (out of thirty) received feedback so there was no gauge for comprehending material.
3. Expectation: support staff available for students.
What I received: our cohort was understaffed and undersupported.
Evidence: I was informed our cohort’s student teacher ratio would be 45:2 and it was 60:1. Due to an obvious lack of cohesion between all departments and program content, when questions were asked the answers often created more confusion because each department, person, or document would have differing and conflicting answers. As a direct result of Thinkful’s disorganization, my education was regularly obstructed because I was not provided the proper tools nor staff support as promised. Multiple Thinkful staff admitted, they were dissatisfied with the program themselves.
Never was Thinkful’s lack of staff, leadership, and knowledge more apparent than when the program director reached out to me, after I withdrew, asking for my insight and feedback. I created a survey to collect data reinforcing the extent of program deficiencies affecting the whole cohort. Interestingly, the day after my survey was released, Thinkful sent out a similar one.
Before withdrawing, I made friends with most of my cohort. Unfortunately, weeks later, their journey in UX education has continued to be impeded by these same issues. Too frequently I receive sad updates from current students overwhelmed by a system that is not set up to promote their success. For the money involved, that is unacceptable to me. If Thinkful had provided an adequate education, or had been willing to listen to feedback, I would still be a student. But they did not.
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Samantha
Data Analytics Flex Review
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I had a great overall experience at Thinkful! I did the 6 months part-time course while I worked full time. Thinkful offers lots of support and the curriculum is curated which I think is very important! Means they have control over the information they put out and it's more relevant. The mentor sessions were helpful to clear any questions I had and also get face to face interaction with someone working in the industry.
The price is definitely worth the course. The only "critique" I have is that they don't do job placement really. But you do get to work with a career coach to help you after you finish the course!
Overall, worth the price! -
Chris M
Thinkful’s Enhineering Immersion
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Thinkful is a great program for anyone who has a passion for Software/ Web Engineering and Development. The prep course is robust and should be used for self reflection/judgement of your own commitment. The mentor system is invaluable and the greater majority of people I’ve met in Thinkful are great teachers and mentors. If you take the program seriously and don’t do yourself the disservice of cheating or working around the course suggestions you will leave with enough skill and knowledge to make a way in the industry. Thinkful is just the first step of your career, but I would say it’s a good first step to take. -
Jennavee Bulinski
Dollar Store Quality Product
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Thinkful offers a dollar store quality product, no offensive intended to the dollar store. As A UX/UI Immersion program student at Thinkful, I have been disappointed each day for the duration of the program. To simplify the issues here is a bulleted list:
- The course curriculum is disorganized and incomplete
- At least twice a week there were inconsistencies in assignment requirements
- Promised support from staff was provided about 10% of the time
- Academic Success Managers were unhelpful and used fear tactics to constantly threaten repercussions for requests to correct program issues
- There is no professional syllabus provided, they do have a google sheet with incorrect due dates
- There is ZERO flexibility is absence requests, even to take an hour to see a therapist each week, which many students were denied.
- When a student alluded to thoughts of suicide on the student communication channel, the message was promptly removed, and the school had no interest in contacting the student through alternative channels until prompted by many concerned students.
Overall you will not be supported in this program. Our class went from 68 to about 35 students. This is a very good way to go into debt with nothing to show for it.
I would not recommend Thinkful to anyone looking to start a career in UX/UI. -
Jason Okano
Data Science Flex
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I started the program during the peak of the pandemic looking for something new to learn after recently graduating from college. I found Thinkful and decided to try out coding in particular their Data Science Flex program. I did not have much coding experience going in but the program guided me through rudimentary coding to higher levels of coding. This program challenged me and helped changed my mindset to think in code. I would highly recommend this course to anyone, as it is informative for those who have coded before as well as, reasonable for those who have not. The support network for assistance was fantastic, whether it be help on an assignment, or information on the course itself, there was someone in the thinkful program that was there to help quickly and effectively. Not only that, but there is a large community of students, faculty, and graduates that are there to help you along your journey. -
Cameron
Data Analytics Flex
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This course was invaluable to my progress towards breaking into the world of Data Analytics. I have learned skills that I would have not learned otherwise. Many of the skills that I learned could be self taught or learned outside of a bootcamp, but I personally benefitted from having a structured environment where I did not need search for the next area of interest. I also hugely benefitted from my bi-weekly mentor check ins. He helped me guide me along the right path if I began to go along a tangent. He played a large part in shaping my views on data and how it can be used to build something beautiful. Without the guidance of a seasoned veteran in the Data Science industry, I would be in a very different place in my journey. I just concluded my course, and am still awaiting to be assigned a careers coach, so I cannot speak to the job assistance yet. However, once I can I will return to amend my review. -
Faras Maroge
Web development bootcamp job hunt
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Having done the full stack web development route and after finishing up my portoflio, the job hunt came in the city of Detroit. This was supposed to be one of the good locations to find work however I did not find any job after more than 8 months of searching. I went to meetups, applied locally, and did all that I can with job boards.
I started targeting companies that are nearby and contacting each one of them. I couldn't find work. Then they started to tell me that I should apply out of state. This was out of the guarantee for their program. I ended up giving up. I lost a year of waiting and applying for jobs. I only had like 2 interviews. The other ones just say oh we have chosen other people with more experience than you.
I understand that finding a job is difficult but if you end up spending so long searching and end up with nothing then I guarantee that you will eventually quit. Look there are so many people going into this field and it is important to distinguish yourself. Begging for people to take you in is not a very good option. So keep this in mind when you apply. You can learn from this program and there are people there to help you however, just keep in mind that rejection is part of the game that you will be playing. When you enter, read their job guarantee carefully before you pay them. They came up with excuses after I asked them for mine.
This program costed me money and time. Time is all you have so use it wisely. -
Carli
Data Analytics Flex
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My overall experience with the Data Analytics Flex program was excellent. The curriculum is challenging but easy to understand if you put in the work. You meet with your mentor 2 times a week. Even if you don’t need help with your work, they will talk to you about their jobs. For example, my mentor showed me how he used SQL and Tableau in his work. The chat function really helped me through Python. I just exited the career search portion with a job and this program 100% helped me get it. Only downside: if you don’t live in one of the bigger cities listed on their site, you won’t qualify for the tuition guarantee. The career coaches want to see you get a job! They are there to answer any questions and review anything. I recommend this program! -
Mike
Great Experience!
Terrific course overall. I especially enjoyed working with a mentor to help with my work and just bounce ideas off of. -
Phylecia T.
Excellent Course!
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My overall experience at Thinkful was terrific. I enrolled in the Digital Marketing self-paced program, which is perfect if you already have some subject knowledge or marketing experience and need a flexible schedule. The curriculum was well written and highly educational. It filled in the gaps for me as I was self-taught before the course. The program's most valuable aspect was having a mentor that I could meet with twice a week to go over my weekly assignments and discuss their experience in the field. I was also looking to make a career change, and the results of my job search were significantly more successful after completing my course at Thinkful. I walked away with a solid foundation and additional skillsets and a robust portfolio, resume, and LinkedIn page, which made me more competitive in my job search. I landed several interviews and secured a full-time job in marketing within a month after graduating. If you're interested in a digital marketing career, I highly recommend this course! -
CC
Great Experience and Coaches
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I completed the Designer Track through Thinkful and I can say my experience at Thinkful undoubtedly landed me my current position. Their mentors and coaches are very helpful both during the course and after graduation. You always feel like you have someone there to help guide you or answer questions whether it's your mentor, one of the assessors, or someone in the Slack channel. The weekly mentor sessions and interview-like assessments are what drew me to Thinkful. It really feels more like an apprenticeship than a bootcamp the way they have it structured, and I really appreciated that. Thinkful is always updating their curriculum to match the needs of the jobs that are out there and adjusting to current standards, which is very helpful on the job search. I graduated just as the pandemic hit, and I cannot speak highly enough of the career coaches after graduation. They and my fellow graduates in the program in our Slack channel helped keep me sane during a rough job search, and I landed a great position after 5 months on the job search thanks to their help! -
Kandice Giselle Gunawan
Data Analytics Flex Review
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After working in healthcare, I was inspired by my patients and was curious to push the boundaries of data and statistics to find solutions to improve the efficiency of healthcare delivery. This sparked my love for data and emphasized on the potential of data-driven decisions to help drive a business. With zero programming experience, I was searching for the best remote course that would challenge me and help me develop job-ready skills as a data analyst but also support me. The Data Analytics Flex program allowed me to continue working full-time while learning technical skills such as Excel, SQL, Tableau and Python part-time. The community at Thinkful including fellow students, alumni, mentors and coaches were extremely nice, supportive and helpful. It is a great environment to be in to better yourself as a data analyst and person. Overall, I highly recommend the Thinkful program and would not be in my current role today as a data analyst without my experience there. -
Jocelyn
Focus on usable skills
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As a recent grad of Thinkful’s DAI program, I am so happy to report positive feedback. I was drawn to this program, because, for me, they guaranteed a job upon graduation, which means they stand by their curriculum and process. I already have a degree, about 10 years of work experience, and prior to Thinkful, I was in the midst of pursuing a second degree. In comparing the two experiences, Thinkful, in my opinion, out-performs the traditional college experience. Thinkful places an emphasis on skillset with practice, current tools, and building a portfolio. While I learned some of the things I did with Thinkful during my degree program, the teaching methods at Thinkful are far more effective and relevant. Additionally, the Thinkful program places students in constant contact with an advisor and a mentor to keep them on track. Staff does not seem overwhelmed and they do not treat you like a number. In college, I’m not sure if my advisor knew my name. Lastly, students are encouraged to interact. I not only found a resource in my peers, but I have made new friends all over the country. I can only speak for the DAI program, but I’m sure if other programs are run like mine, then Thinkful is well worth it. I would highly recommend Thinkful to anyone pursuing further education or additional skills. At the very least contact Thinkful for an info session. You literally have nothing to lose and I think even after that info session, you’ll find that possible outcomes are still in your favor, given the options available to complete Thinkful programs. -
Caleb
Engineering Flex Program
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This program's intended purpose is to enable students to become ready for a job as a full-stack developer in 6 months. It allows you to go your own pace and is all conducted online. Thinkful provides both technical curriculum and information/assignments related to getting prepared to get a job (e.g. building a portfolio, updating resume, crafting your LinkedIn profile, essential networking skills). The personnel they provide for your direct support includes an academic success manager and a coding mentor which you meet with for 45 mins, twice a week.
I do not feel qualified to assess the relevancy of their curriculum - what technologies and concepts to include and what to leave out based on the current needs and demands of the tech industry. From the research I have done, the choices they made seem to align with the general trajectory of web development.
As for the quality of their curriculum. I think much of what they have is solid. There will be times where outside resources will be helpful - YouTube, medium articles, any developer friends you might have. Their curriculum is kept up to date - but is static in nature. It is words and images - not voices and videos. The medium may be a bit old school - but it worked for me.
There were times where you could see gaps in their ability to teach. For example, they had an entire module where they assigned difficult coding challenge related to algorithms and data structures, but did not provide solutions to the problem set. There was no grading or direct feedback in this segment of the curriculum which makes it impossible to know what a more professional, efficient, clean coding solution might look like.
The focus was definitely on the frontend (JavaScript, HTML, CSS, jQuery, React) which left me wanting to know more on the backend. I do not feel prepared to do anything beyond the more rudimentary server-side tasks.
My experience with my coding mentor was lacking. There were more than a few times where they would cancel last minute or just not show. Mine had a focus on Java and backend development which doesn't really align with the focus of the program itself. I am sure they were very competent at what they knew best, but there were quite a large number of times where I would ask questions and receive answers something like "In Java I would do this and that... But I'm not sure how that works in JavaScript". It is possible that your experience would be different - it depends on who you end up being paired with.
Let me speak more broadly now about my experience and recommendations.
Was it easy? No.
Was it worth it? For me, yes.
Would I recommend it to a friend? Probably not... but it depends.
It was hard. It was lonely. It was frustrating. It was dense. I feel exhausted from it all. BUT, I do feel ready to obtain a position as a frontend developer. I am a much more competent developer than before I started the program. And I feel like my job hunting artifacts (resume, portfolio, LinkedIn) are more solid than ever.
I do not think everyone would succeed in this program. I have an engineering degree and am quite capable of thinking deeply and understanding complex concepts. I am able to use available resources online to learn and resolve most blocks I run across without someone holding my hand. I am motivated and probably could have learned these skills without Thinkful. I imagine there are plenty of people who would not be able to handle the work load, pacing, required discipline, and/or lack of hand-holding. To be clear, I don't say this from a place of judgement - everybody has their strengths and weaknesses, and their preferred learning styles. But it is meant as a warning. For many, I would recommend choosing a different route. Maybe in person? Maybe a program with a smaller, more focused curriculum?
My best guess as to why this was effective for me was that I committed when I put my money down to graduating this program and I really knew I wanted to become a developer. Also, having the curriculum was so helpful because it narrowed down the endless possibilities of what I should learn next. There are so many technologies and concepts one could explore in the realm of software development. To have a path laid out for me prevented me from becoming overwhelmed and paralyzed. I imagine this is somewhat like having a personal trainer develop a workout plan for you. All you have to do is what s/he is telling you. You are freed to focus on simply executing instead deciding what to do. This was what Thinkful provided.
I more than likely would take this path again if I were granted a do-over. But there is a chance I could have gotten similar results without Thinkful and saved a lot of money.
Before choosing Thinkful's full-stack flex program, I would recommend you explore your options. If you do decide to go with Thinkful - really commit. Trust their curriculum and process. And don't be afraid to ask for what you need (e.g. a new coding mentor, time off to recover before restarting).
May you find the path that works best for you and your goals. Good luck! -
Michelle
Factory Model Bootcamp
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Thinkful seemed like a great choice after completing the prep course work. The prep coursework was slightly challenging, you had to pass an interview-like assessment of your knowledge, and you have a mentor helping you along the way. Normally, I would assume, the prep course would be a good indication of what to expect through the main curriculum but unfortunately that was not the case with Thinkful. My first disappointment was having to use jQuery in building the first few app projects in the course. After learning and using JavaScript in the prep course, this should have continued through the curriculum.
Pair programming was another disappointment for me. Having to pair with fellow students makes sense in general but it was a chaotic mess when working with people who were not able to do what pair programming was meant to do, solve a problem when the driver hits a bug. I found the majority of people unable to help in this concept and just relied on the one knowledgeable person to do all the work while they pretended to be helpful. It's very similar to a group project where one person does nothing while reaping the benefits of other's work. I found it very frustrating. Pair programming with your mentor would have been a better approach in my opinion instead of pairing with other students.
Thinkful is a factory model of bootcamps which is something I wish I realized before deciding to partake in their course. The factory model is a time-based model, not a comprehension based model. You learn for a fixed amount of time, and then you move on regardless of the level of comprehension. Everyone learns at a different pace so if you don't understand the concepts completely before getting new concepts the next day, you fall behind very quickly. This became more apparent when it came to pairing with other students in the cohort. With this approach, it's very hard to actually know the material and be successful outside of the bootcamp. Yes you are assessed along the way and if you fail to pass the assessment after 2 attempts, you're out of the bootcamp. To truly be successful here, you MUST already know coding and software development before enrolling in this bootcamp or be a super level genius but if you already know software development, why do this bootcamp? Seems pointless to me and a waste of a lot of money.
If you truly want to learn and master the concepts of software development, this bootcamp is not for you. If you have coding experience and want to waste your money with surface level understanding of pretty general you can learn on your own from the internet concepts, then give Thinkful a try. After my brief time with Thinkful, I do not recommend it. -
Evan
Bloc Bootcamp Review - 4.5/5
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I worked in tech for about 2-3 years in the in business, operations, and marketing, but soon realized that I wanted to learn more about UX Design. I was between a few different bootcamps, but Thinkful seemed to be the most affordable based on what they were offering. The tuition refund for early graduation was another reason I chose Thinkful.
All in all I had a pretty great experience. There were some challenging points along the way that I felt could have been drastically improved, but Thinkful is young, and they continued to make great changes throughout even my time in the bootcamp. Some of the material was too basic and some was too complex, but it honestly kind of prepares you for how working in tech usually is. I had an amazing mentor, but some of the support staff were not great (I think they have since changed the support system anyways).
For me, I only had a few issues with the program, that since seem like they have all been fixed or reviewed. If I was enrolling now I would probably have given this a 5/5, but still I think program is awesome. I graduated early and was able to get some tuition back and I was able to find a job before I had even graduated making more than 10 times what I had paid for the course, so I would say this is a great investment if you are willing to put in the work!