Code Fellows
Code Fellows is a technical skills training academy in the Pacific Northwest that offers full- and part-time software development, ops and cybersecurity courses online and in-person from their Seattle, Washington location. Code Fellows guides people from all backgrounds to change their lives through fast-paced, career-focused education. Since their first cohort in 2013, Code Fellows has taught over 1,600 graduates and iterated on their curriculum and format to ensu...
Code Fellows is a technical skills training academy in the Pacific Northwest that offers full- and part-time software development, ops and cybersecurity courses online and in-person from their Seattle, Washington location. Code Fellows guides people from all backgrounds to change their lives through fast-paced, career-focused education. Since their first cohort in 2013, Code Fellows has taught over 1,600 graduates and iterated on their curriculum and format to ensure students receive the most industry-relevant training as effectively and efficiently as possible. Code Fellows shapes passionate learners with immersive training to meet industry needs and improve diversity. Students are immersed in their learning with daily lectures, pair programming, weekly presentations from full-time instructional staff who are seasoned industry professionals, one-week project sprints, and more. Code Fellows graduates work at Amazon, Microsoft, Zillow, Expedia, XBOX, NIKE, Amazon, Starbucks, Nordstrom, and over 800 other companies.
The modular style of the Code Fellows program allows students to test into the course level that is most appropriate for their current skill level. In addition, the modular class structure allows students to choose the schedule and timing that meets their needs.
Code Fellows believes everyone should have the opportunity to succeed. Code Fellows offers scholarships to help individuals who come from underserved and underrepresented backgrounds find rewarding careers in tech. They are committed to breaking down systemic barriers and ensuring all people are treated with respect and dignity. They are united with their staff, students, alumni, and partners in the fight against systemic racism and injustice.
Code Fellows supports both domestic and international licensing partners through its Powered by Code Fellows program. Code Fellows also offers a tutoring program and platform to both students and non-students, technical instructor certification, and corporate training.
223 Code Fellows Reviews
AnonymousGraduate • Code 301: Intermediate Software Development • PortlandJul 26, 2016Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob AssistanceN/AAmazing program
I had an incredible experience taking 201 and 301 beginner and intermediate software development at Code Fellow's Portland campus. Our instructor was extremely helpful, knowledgeable, and cognizant of our level of understanding. Our TAs went above and beyond to stay late with us and explain difficult concepts. And the administrative staff provided incredible support and made themselves available for one on one time whenever we needed it. My fellow students were wonderful as well; I l...
I had an incredible experience taking 201 and 301 beginner and intermediate software development at Code Fellow's Portland campus. Our instructor was extremely helpful, knowledgeable, and cognizant of our level of understanding. Our TAs went above and beyond to stay late with us and explain difficult concepts. And the administrative staff provided incredible support and made themselves available for one on one time whenever we needed it. My fellow students were wonderful as well; I learned so much from each and every one of them and they helped create a great community. I have spent years trying to teach myself programming on my own and now I finally feel like I can get a good job as a developer. I would recommend Code Fellows to anyone looking to enter the field.
- AnonymousSoftware Developer • Graduate • OnlineJun 03, 2016Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Great School, Great Experience
I originally posted this review on yelp since I felt like CF's current yelp score was heavily negative, but yelp's automatic algorithm did not recommend it. So reposting here.
I was a student in the Ruby on Rails Accelerator back when the course was offered (Sept 2014). Since they've made so many changes to their program structure, this review may not be as applicable, but figured I'd leave my two cents.
The application process was what you would exp...I originally posted this review on yelp since I felt like CF's current yelp score was heavily negative, but yelp's automatic algorithm did not recommend it. So reposting here.
I was a student in the Ruby on Rails Accelerator back when the course was offered (Sept 2014). Since they've made so many changes to their program structure, this review may not be as applicable, but figured I'd leave my two cents.
The application process was what you would expect out of an actual interview. I was presented with several assignments that I had to complete within a given amount of time. Afterwards, I went through a phone/skype screening. This heavily mirrors my experiences with job interviews so far.
This actual program was only 8 weeks at the time. The first half was spent discussing the ends and outs of Ruby/Rails, and of those four weeks, each day was divided into lecture and co-working where we'd work on projects/discuss new topics among the other devs. As you can imagine given the time, there's only so much you can learn from lectures. Most of the education is actually done by yourself during co-working time. This makes it feel like you can just go to Khan Academy or any other free service, but Code Fellows provides soft skills like teamwork, public speaking, marketing, resume review and more that you can't learn by following online tutorials.
The last half of the program was spent going over more in-depth data structures and algorithms. Sure, you probably won't be using them at work, but I feel like learning how to implement these gives you a better understanding of how a certain problem can be solved and what is the best way to accomplish a solution through code.
Throughout the last half was job prep, which includes whiteboard challenges, common interview questions, how to follow up an interview, and the like. This is where I feel like Code Fellows really shined. If I went in blind to interviews, I feel like I would have blown a lot more than I would have going to CF. They prepare you with not only how to solve typical Fizzbuzz questions, but how to communicate with your interviewer, talk out your problems, ask for more information, body language, and more. This I found extremely valuable.
But what I found lacking, which isn't necessarily their fault, is how far having Code Fellows on your resume will take you. In my experience, it's normally been just a side conversation piece more than something that truly made my resume stand out. As many have pointed out, Code Fellows is (or was at the time) relatively new and doesn't have the network that other boot camps like The Iron Yard or Hack Reactor may have. I have looked for work outside of Seattle and Portland, and it's been harder than I'd imagine to get responses just based on my education. But as I have more experience since my initial job search years ago, it has been easier to net interviews.
I did manage to land a job within two months of graduating from Code Fellows though. Although technically I didn't receive a salary of $60k, cost of living is much cheaper where I am, so it balances out.
TL;DR, I feel like the soft skills were more valuable than the programming, which could honestly be learned online. But learning how to communicate during an interview and how to work well on a team aren't so easy to learn that way. If you need a place to do that plus more, Code Fellows may be right for you. As long as you're willing to take not only a time investment, but a monetary one.UPDATE: I started a new position making at least $60k, so that's not too bad.
- AnonymousCode 401: Advanced Software Development in iOS • OnlineMay 24, 2016Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Lack of respect
I graduated from Code Fellows' iOS Development Accelerator in September, 2015. I did all coursework and attended all lectures. The way they graded us was a mess, and it was really not clear the "weight balance" between homeworks, projects and whiteboard tests.
I submitted all homeworks and projects, and did not pass the whiteboard exam. Our instructor mentioned to us, that you would get the certificate if you passed the whiteboard exam. Great, so, he gave us a couple of minutes a...
I graduated from Code Fellows' iOS Development Accelerator in September, 2015. I did all coursework and attended all lectures. The way they graded us was a mess, and it was really not clear the "weight balance" between homeworks, projects and whiteboard tests.
I submitted all homeworks and projects, and did not pass the whiteboard exam. Our instructor mentioned to us, that you would get the certificate if you passed the whiteboard exam. Great, so, he gave us a couple of minutes and a quick look on binary trees, linked lists and queues and told us to read Cracking the Coding Interview Book!
OH GREAT, right, so I read cracking the coding interview in one week and I am expected to know everything about data structures. This is ridiculous. I can proove that I am right, because after my complaint to the COO, they clearly created a weight balance for approving you at the end of the course for the next class, which came in October.
I came from overseas, to CF, delivered all homeworks and projects with excelent marks, and because of 5% of the course, the lecturer did not want to issue me the certificate. In every course in the world you have a minimum grade to pass. This was clearly a way to disqualify me off their old "Job-offer guarantee". And also, I spoke to all my classmates and they told me that my test was much harder than their tests.
I was asked to write exact Swift code for my whiteboard test, while they were only told to speak through their solutions and passed. My advice, clearly check if they have a solid way to grade you, and if you know data structures, I have applied for more than a hundred job opportunities after graduation, and have been studying data structures a lot.
I can see that I am nowhere near employable for the companies I applied for, as what we are asked during coding interviews are Computer Science standards. You will be able to code at the end of Code Fellows' course, but you can be nothing more than an intern, if you do not have any previous coding experience. Do a Computer Science degree instead.
- AnonymousUnemployed Code Fellows Graduate • Graduate • OnlineMay 24, 2016Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Don't waste your time or money.
Before you pay any money to attend any of Code Fellow's advanced courses in hopes of getting a programming job, do yourself a favor and have a look at this book first:
http://www.amazon.com/Cracking-Coding-Interview-6th-Programming/dp/0984782850/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464054008&sr=8-1&keywords=cracking+the+coding+interview
Are you able to work through the coding challenges competently already? Great! Then you don't need Code Fellows. Now go and start applyi...
Before you pay any money to attend any of Code Fellow's advanced courses in hopes of getting a programming job, do yourself a favor and have a look at this book first:
http://www.amazon.com/Cracking-Coding-Interview-6th-Programming/dp/0984782850/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1464054008&sr=8-1&keywords=cracking+the+coding+interview
Are you able to work through the coding challenges competently already? Great! Then you don't need Code Fellows. Now go and start applying for jobs.
If you can't already work through the code challenges in this book, don't expect Code Fellows to get you much closer to being able to work through those problems.
Save yourself the trouble. If you're not already an experienced developer, your Code Fellows training isn't going to prepare you for a job. Go and get a CS degree instead. Or go ahead and take the Code Fellows courses and then plan to spend another 1 or 2 years after that not working a job and training yourself for 8 hours a day.
Code schools are bullshit. Sure, you might have a good time and make some friends, but will you get a job when it's all said and done? Based on our experience, not likely.
- Mario NishioGraduate • OnlineSep 06, 2018Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Game Changer
Attended Code Fellows starting from their 201 class, all the way up to 401. I came into the courses with little to no prior experience to coding. However, I didn't find that many difficulties completing through the curriculum, mainly thanks to the wonderful staff. Everyone who works there were nice, open, and very easy to talk to. They all seemed to genuinely care for your success in coding.
The curriculum is good. It's hard to judge how good it is as I have not experienced anything be...Attended Code Fellows starting from their 201 class, all the way up to 401. I came into the courses with little to no prior experience to coding. However, I didn't find that many difficulties completing through the curriculum, mainly thanks to the wonderful staff. Everyone who works there were nice, open, and very easy to talk to. They all seemed to genuinely care for your success in coding.
The curriculum is good. It's hard to judge how good it is as I have not experienced anything besides CF, however, I heard good things from people around me. As for ASP.NET Core, we were working with the newest technology. This is probably the strongest point for CF, as you are learning the new industry standards.
Job Support that CF offered was helpful for someone like me changing careers. Having dedicated time to learn how the tech industry works was nice.For someone like me, who was hesitant to make the shift into tech, Code Fellows was a nice introductory. Plenty of fabulous instructors and staff, that provide good education. The course is intensive but as someone who found passion in doing it, it was a great experience.
- cody greenGraduate • Code 401: Advanced Software Development in Full-Stack JavaScript (Nights + Weekends) • OnlineJul 01, 2018Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
JavaScript track
I started my journey at Code Fellows back in August 2017.
I decided to enroll in the nights and weekends track and see how I liked it, I fell in love!
The environment at Code Fellows is great, everywhere you look you see passionate developers, instructors, TA's. Everyone there has a simple goal to help you become the best developer that you can be.
Now it's not easy, there are times where I felt like I was just not getting things and I would struggle to grasp things and the str...I started my journey at Code Fellows back in August 2017.
I decided to enroll in the nights and weekends track and see how I liked it, I fell in love!
The environment at Code Fellows is great, everywhere you look you see passionate developers, instructors, TA's. Everyone there has a simple goal to help you become the best developer that you can be.
Now it's not easy, there are times where I felt like I was just not getting things and I would struggle to grasp things and the structure of the classes move fast. But if you put in the work and the time you will get it, I was fortunate to go through 201, 301, and 401 with the same core group of classmates people who were integral in my learning as much as the instructors and TA's if it was asking a classmate how they solved a bug or helping another get their testing going its all beneficial. I loved my time at Code Fellows and if anyone had questions about it I would be happy to answer them you can message me here https://www.linkedin.com/in/cody-green/ - Justin MorrisStudent • Code 401: Advanced Software Development in Full-Stack JavaScript • OnlineJul 01, 2018Overall ExperienceInstructorsCurriculumJob Assistance
Code Fellows is Awesome!
Code Fellows is really a great place to begin to launch your tech career. The staff and instructors work to provide you with the most up-to-date technologies and best practices. The course is rigorous but also accesible to anyone from any background. The staff works hard to ensure that you can enter the job market with skill and confidence. Also the instructors are just awesome!
Code Fellows Alumni Outcomes
| Description | Percentage |
| Full Time, In-Field Employee | 81.7% |
| Full-time apprenticeship, internship or contract position | 12.1% |
| Short-term contract, part-time position, freelance | N/A |
| Employed out-of-field | N/A |
Recent Code Fellows News
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Code Fellows cost?
Code Fellows costs around $12,000. On the lower end, some Code Fellows courses like Ops 101: Explore Ethical Hacking & Cybersecurity Careers (Full-Time, Online) cost $99.
What courses does Code Fellows teach?
Code Fellows offers courses like Code 101: Explore Software Development (Full-Time, In-Person), Code 101: Explore Software Development (Full-Time, Online), Code 102: Intro to Software Development (Full-Time, In-Person), Code 102: Intro to Software Development (Full-Time, Online) and 45 more.
Where does Code Fellows have campuses?
Code Fellows has in-person campuses in Seattle. Code Fellows also has a remote classroom so students can learn online.