Codesmith

Going to Codesmith was one of the best decisions I have ever made! As I am writing this I just finished my first day as a software engineer making 3 times more than I have ever made! So I can tell you that Codesmith really does what they say it does.

The tuition alone is worth it for Codesmith's hiring program. They help you hone a resume that you can be proud of! They teach you how to reach out and get interviews even in a horrible job market. And they provide continued support after you graduate. I did not come from a tech back ground either. I mostly worked in the service industry and government. 

The thing that impressed me most about Codesmith was that it wasn't designed to take you from zero to hero. You actually have to work hard to get in. They have a free program called CSX and weekly free trainings that will get you to a junior level skill set. Once you are in the program you hit the ground running and they start developing the skills that will take you to a mid to senior level engineer. You learn the stuff you really can't get from YouTube videos or medium articles. You work with other humans and develop technical and empathic communication skills. As you grow as an engineer the challenges get bigger and bigger. Then to cap it all off, you and a small team of engineers build a production level application that is designed to impress other engineers. I can guarantee that you will look back on your journey and be shocked at who you have become and what you can accomplish! 

It is not an easy program. It is not easy to get into Codesmith. You will work your ass off and you will hit a lot of blocks that you have to work through. But those challenges literally made me a better man and they made it so that I could handle the challenges of the job hunt and now the challenge of onboarding as a Senior Engineer (I don't know how it happened, I wasn't anywhere close to the smartest in my cohort, but I landed a Senior Fullstack Engineer roll - I am still in shock). I was in the part time program and it was a wonderfully fulfilling nine months that I will always cherish. I made life long friends. And honestly, it is the fact that it is not easy that makes Codesmith so valuable. I genuinely feel like this tuition was the best money I have EVER spent!

This is a long review, but I know how intense this process can be for those of you looking at attending a bootcamp. It has now been about a year since I decided to attend a bootcamp to change careers. I looked everywhere online when I settled on going to a bootcamp; I read every review, I watched every video on Youtube, I even messaged alumni of different bootcamps on LinkedIn, and eventually, I found my way to Codesmith. For the last 3 months since the program, I’ve considered myself lucky everyday I made the choice I did.
 
 Codesmith is without question, the best educational environment I’ve had the privilege to learn in. I’ve been lucky enough to go to good schools in the past, but I’m really proud, frankly, to say that this online bootcamp has really left them in the dust in key ways. I’ll make a note here that I was hired as a fellow by the program after my time in the immersive program, so if you need a grain of salt to start, there could be one. 
 
 - Admissions: It is worth making a comment right away that getting into Codesmith is not easy, but it is NOT an unjust process like I experienced in other programs. I speak from experience as someone who applied elsewhere, tried to go through admission processes at other places (everyone should have options), and eventually conducted the literal technical interviews for Codesmith myself, the admissions process is doing its job well. I won’t get too lost in the details, but I will say that if you can pass the Codesmith technical interview, you have what it takes to become a software engineer. They test on every quality and detail that I was tested on in a real technical interview for the job I have now. That all said, don’t rush into this process. It is possible, having seen both sides of admissions, to brute force your way through, with time. Do NOT throw $20k into something before you are ready. If you understand, for example, how to add methods to a prototype so they can be inherited by other objects, you could be ready. If you have no idea what I mean by that, do not stress even a little bit; just take your time to learn is my point (:
 
 - Curriculum: The curriculum is fantastic. You will touch all the technologies you need to get a full-stack developer position: Javascript (you’ll be a pro), React, Node.js, Git/Github, etc. However, what you come to appreciate and feel confident in by the end of the program is that you could see any tech, any framework, even any new language, and given realistic timelines / expectations by your team “in the wild” could learn what is needed to solve a problem in whatever tech stack. This is really because — Codesmith doesn’t create cookie-cutter engineers; Codesmith creates first-class problem solvers who communicate empathetically and technically like senior engineers. If you want to understand why outcomes seem so high for this program compared to others, the answer begins with these 2 qualities above all the rest.
 
 - Portfolio: Not a ton to say here, although a ton could be said. It is worth noting that you will have a better time job hunting when you have real open-source products on the resumé. And Codesmith focuses on making you build real, open-source projects before you leave. You don’t want to pay for a program that is tutorial style really, because why not just spend $2k (at most) in Udemy courses and be done with it? Codesmith makes you build in small teams of engineers (like in the real world), on projects that are technically impressive and that are REALLY challenging. You’ll hear “hard learning” thrown around a lot in and out of the program, and there is no form of better learning than solving a bug you’ve been stuck on for 6 hours with a team; this makes a good portfolio for sure.

- Hiring Support: I have so much love for the hiring support team answering every ridiculous, anxious question I ever hit them with, day or night. Codesmith really points you in a direction at the end of the program and teaches you how to carry yourself in interviews in the tech industry. Tech interviews and getting hired generally as a software engineer is honestly very formulaic. It’s almost entirely behavioral / very ceremonial, which was somewhat surprising to me. Codesmith guides you through all of these processes and really do their best to ensure you have support networks (during and after the program) to guide you through the idiosyncrasies of the tech industry. I would NOT have gotten a job as smoothly as I did if it wasn’t for their mentorship.

- Management/Team: This part could be a never-ending rant. I think what you will find, even will find just by attending the free workshops, is that Codesmith is a community of really passionate people that are putting in the work for the right reasons. I truly believe Codesmith only works because the instructors and the management of the organization are people who are passionate about seeing people change their lives. Will Sentance is the founder and owner, and not only will he give your cohort a lecture at the end, but you will get several chances to hear from him throughout the program; could not be any more apparent this person cares about fostering a space for people to change their lives. Eric Kirsten is a senior board advisor that will lead you through the hiring program. Eric is another huge element of the “secret sauce” of success at Codesmith. Takes a certain level of tailored mentorship to get an engineer to negotiate $15k in base salary after only 8-12 months of studying the industry, and Eric will take a hands-on approach to make sure you get that. Phillip Troutman, he’s the chief academic officer, is another key player you’ll hear from often. Let me tell you, part of the secret of Codesmith is convincing students every day they can do everything and anything so that they actually go out and attempt insane feats of engineering; Phillip is the key to that happening. Every program has different instructors, but in the central remote program — Katrina Villanueva and Jared Lewis are *the* reason students understand the core curriculum so well. Their compassion and attention towards student success is without question what makes the CTRI immersive so effective. For the sake of not making this piece of the review endless, I’ll stop here, but yes, there are that many incredible people in this organization.
 - School / Life Balance: There is very little balance. This is my very real, very difficult con for the program that I would not hide from anyone. You will eat, sleep, and breathe Codesmith, which at times will be a lot to handle. This program is hard. You will watch your cohort go lows and highs of imposter syndrome almost daily. It can even feel a bit cult-like, I suppose, at times. But what can I say — you get a room of intelligent people together every day who want to change careers in a (seemingly) impossible time frame into a field that is really challenging and competitive. It isn't crazy to assume that process will be hard, but if you put the work in you’ll be so glad you did it one day. It took me about 10-11 months, from start to finish, from the day I decided to attend Codesmith, to the day I got a job offer.
 
 There are other great programs out there for sure, but if I was to do this all over again, I’d be right back at Codesmith.

I've been working as an engineer in the industry for over 3 years now. Whenever I needed help/advice with negotiating my salary Eric Kirsten has ALWAYS been there for me. I've been able to negotiate upwards of 15K on my first job acceptance, and 15% pay bumps every year after (thanks to Eric's advice). Not only that, as of my latest job hunt I was able to negotiate over 15K just on the base (not including bonuses and pay bumps)! Eric is an absolute gem of a resource, his advice has already paid Codesmith's tuition 2-3 times over! 

I chose Codesmith because I perceived it to be the most rigorous program out there with regards to curriculum, portfolio, and job support, and it absolutely delivered on these promises. Here's a breakdown of how each manifested:

– Curriculum: the first part of the program is built around hard learning, challenges, and pair programming. Most units are taught over the course of a few days, which start with lectures and then continue with challenges meant to push you to learn and develop as an engineer. You do these challenges with a pair programming partner and also engage in other common practices like code reviews and collaborative coding. Not only are you developing your coding skills, but you are also learning how to interact with other engineers and problem solve through tough technical challenges. You're killing two birds with one stone.
– Portfolio: I believe Codesmith stands out the most from other bootcamps in this area. During my program, I worked on a variety of projects across the full stack (frontend, backend, DevOps, etc.), and this is where you get to put your skills to the test. You learn what it takes to break down complex applications to their component pieces, plan out how to approach the implementation, and then work through bugs and issues. The cornerstone of the program, the Open Source Product, pushes you to solve complicated engineering challenges by finding and solving pain points in the developer community. During this phase, you explore new tech, face challenges you can't just Google away, and gain a deeper understanding of the ambiguous problems professional engineers face.
– Job support: you receive career support from the Codesmith team for life which is a fantastic perk. If you feel like you need more resume help, they'll do as many iterations as you need. If you want more mock interviews, they have that covered too. If you just want to talk about the emotional struggle of job searching, you can talk to the staff or you can lean on your cohortmates or post-grad hiring group. They have all the bases covered and will continue to support you as long as you need or want it.

For anyone wanting to take the leap into the world of software engineering, this is a rigorous program that delivers on its results and is there to support you in your journey.

I got into Codesmith with 2 months of studying while working full-time, pulling 80+ hour 7-day weeks & attending every Hard Parts workshop they had. At one point I stood outside a packed workshop room with my ear against the glass just to catch bits and pieces of what was being taught. I got in. It wasn't an easy full-time immersive experience - a lot of personal mistakes & challenges, but I came out on top. I slept on the couch just to dedicate the 1.5 hour commute time into the city on studying (I wasn't the only one). I graduated with an offer thanks to Codesmith's Hiring Day, started working a different job the week after graduating, then finally landed on a consulting gig for the Google Cloud Platform a month and a half after graduating. I doubled my salary in 6 months.

Fast forward 4 years and I'm now a tech lead at a start-up. So far in my career, I've worked alongside Google engineers, built cutting edge AI multi-platform apps for Point72, co-founded a software development agency where I hired engineers, and have mentored other aspiring engineers into their first roles. 

It hasn't been without its challenges but looking back I know that life happens for me, not to me, and that change is an opportunity to reach higher to become more. I'm grateful.

Pros
- The best 0-to-bootcamp trajectory on the market
- Unique community focused on excellence in an "in it together" culture you won't find at other bootcamps
- Rigorous full-stack JS course focusing on the capacities that make you an engineer, not just a developer
- Multi-disciplinary curriculum spanning design, AI, dev-ops, security, etc.
- Paid post-graduate opportunities
- Post-graduate support is lifelong, consistent & growing
- They see potential in you - sometimes before you see it in yourself. They take a chance on you.

Cons
- Can be cult-like, but the best companies & cultures usually are. 
- Post-graduate support isn't industry-leading yet (emphasis on "yet" - they're the type of people to make it happen)
- Their taking a chance on you can sometimes lead to prematurely entering into a full-time immersive program which can lead to a rough during-Codesmith & post-Codesmith experience. Mental health can take a toll, but last I heard Codesmith offers support throughout. This applies to SOME non-technical aspiring engineers, not all, and is rarely the case with residents with some past technical experience or those who've spent more time studying

Prior to joining Codesmith's LA Immersive Program, I'd had some experience with programming, having taken a few intro computer science courses in college and tinkered around with JavaScript and Python through youtube tutorials. As coding became a passion of mine, I decided to try and apply for a software engineer role, but found it immensely difficult as I found the technical assessments to be out of my range of skill and a lot of companies were hesitant to hire a person without a technical background i.e. I'd recently graduated with a B.A. in linguistics.

Then I decided to join Codesmith's Full-time Immersive Program. Codesmith's curriculum consists of all the basics of JavaScript which sets you up for learning and working with modern web technologies like React, Node, Express, and Redux. Not to mention they also go through data structures and algorithms as well as testing and technologies associated with DevOps, i.e. Docker and AWS. In general, Codesmith technical curriculum emphasizes collaboration, which is crucial for being able to technically communicate in interviews.  

The instructors for the technical lectures were passionate, empathetic, and always willing to offer any guidance. Many of them were great mentors as well; they were instrumental in managing the course of an open source product I eventually worked on. The phase of the immersive where you're asked to create an open source product with your fellow bootcamp attendees plays a very significant role in the technical experience you end up talking about in interviews. This is huge. Prior to Codesmith, the only things I was able to talk about to recruiters were intro computer science classes and amateurish web projects.

In addition to equipping me with the necessary technical skills and experience, Codesmith's Immersive also guided me with how to actually get hired. Their comprehensive hiring program was excellent in making sure that I knew how to conduct myself in phone screens, technical screens, and onsites. It was obvious that the people running the hiring program had industry experience and really knew what they were doing. 

All the instructors and lecturers at Codesmith were not only exceptional at what they do, but also deeply empathetic and a pleasure to work with. And in particular those that really stood out to me were Michael O'Halloran, for his superb teaching ability and technical knowledge, and Eric Kirsten, for his outstanding advice on how to negotiate salary and unrelenting willingness to make sure Codesmith graduates find the jobs of their dreams. 

Two years ago, I went to a very well known bootcamp right before the pandemic hit. The experience was ok as far as learning about coding, but to be honest the way in which they prepared us to actually get a job was extremely lackluster, to put it kindly. I struggled greatly and felt totally rudderless and not sure how I was ever going to crack into the industry.  Fall of 2021, I ran into a friend who had recently finished Codesmith and got an amazing job only a few months after graduating. After telling her I had been struggling for about 1.5 years to get any traction, she was able to sell me on going to Codesmith.

At first I thought I was going to coast, because of my previous experience, but I couldn’t be more wrong. The students that they accept have to pass an entrance exam that frankly not many people from my bootcamp would have been able to pass even after graduating. So people were prepared to hit the ground running. And that is exactly what happened. Codesmith is not for everyone, because they really force you to struggle and embrace not knowing something and using your resources to figure it out. While Codesmith is not for everyone, I really believe that anyone who embraces their methodology can succeed. I believe that because I’ve seen it. Most of my cohort that graduated have jobs and it’s only been 3 months as of this writing. The average base salary offered to those grads is roughly 150k, and only a few - and I really mean a few - had any experience with programming prior to preparing for the exam.

The program is hard. Like, extremely hard. Don’t think you can just show up and coast and get an amazing job in a few months. But if you really want this and are dedicated to working your butt off, it will work. It’s an incredible program and almost unfair that it gets lumped in with other bootcamps, because it really is just far and away the best I’ve experienced and seen. Plus the hiring portion of the program itself is worth the cost alone. 10/10 could not recommend highly enough to those who are serious about this.

2019 I knew I wanted to make a career change. I remember reading this reddit post calling codesmith a scam. It deterred me away but my curiosity had me investigate their free hard parts workshop and finding alumni to get their take. Their CSX platform was excellent, hard parts was fun and mostly importantly majority of the alumni I talked to has great things to say about the program. No one said the program was perfect and had issues with some parts of the program but never the whole program. 
I decided to trust the people I've reached out to and take the dive to sign up for the full time immersive.(RIP my wallet) 

After finished the program 2 weeks ago I already cannot believe I already got one offer from a start up for 100k. The program was tough, some of the program in my opinion needed a tiny bit more hand holding. Overall I had an amazing experience, I walk away with REAL skillsets and knowledge to tackle finding and performing software development jobs. Like any program if you don't take advantage of the community, instructors and resources you might as well of thrown your money in penny stocks or SPY puts. If you're scared that codesmith is a scam, feel free to reach out to me and ask any questions. I do not work for codesmith and don't get any benefits from reviewing them. It's a program that has changed my life and I hope it can change yours too.

I'm a pandemic career-changer in my early 40s and I left a good, stable job to pursue software engineering. This may have been the most significant decision and the most challenging project of my life. Before I was fully committed to this monumental life change I launched a deep research project to determine which boot camp was going to set me up for the greatest success. My research led me to Codesmith.

Every reputable coding boot camp offers some kind of free live workshops and online resources to get you started, get you involved in the community, and help measure and improve your skills. Most offer some kind of "boot camp prep" course. Tuition tends to be pretty similar across the board. So how can you really know which one is "best" or which one is right for you?

My approach was to try them all. In addition to reading reviews and articles and checking out their YouTube channels, I used the free online resources from ten different schools, and I attended the prep courses for three different schools. I figured this would give me the greatest insight into how each school operates and whether I should trust the outcomes I saw published on their own websites as well as in the reports from the Council on Integrity in Results Reporting (CIRR). My experiences led me to Codesmith.

Codesmith's free workshops curriculum is incredibly robust. It includes sessions targeting everyone from Day 1 beginners to employed engineers seeking a deeper understanding of advanced concepts, and many sessions occur more than once per week. When I attended my first "JavaScript: The Hard Parts" session I immediately felt like I was witnessing something of real value. The instructor was a total pro. The approach and the method were thoughtfully constructed. The attendees were engaged and participating. The quality of this experience was in stark contrast to what I had seen from all of the other schools. I was mostly sold on Codesmith.

The thing that sealed the deal for me was the challenge of getting admitted to Codesmith. At one point I had failed two attempts at the Codesmith technical admissions interview, and I had already been accepted to two other top coding boot camps. It would have been easy to throw in the towel and get started with one of the alternatives but my thinking was if I'm going to quit my job and take out a big loan at the same time, run through my meager savings, and risk everything for a chance at a great new career then I want to make sure it's the greatest new career possible. I couldn't be satisfied with a junior-level position that paid about the same as I was making before; I wanted to go into job interviews with the confidence derived from knowing that I had been through, by far, the most challenging software engineering boot camp available. Codesmith sets the highest barrier to entry and teaches the most advanced curriculum. They're able to do that because they have the best approach and retain the best staff. The formula is working.

In a few days, I'll be starting my first job as a software engineer. I'm going to work at a large financial institution in a mid-level position with a team working on an exciting product. I've acquired all the skills I need to succeed in this industry, I've made a bunch of new friends-for-life, and I've built up a formidable professional network. I would recommend Codesmith to friends and family (and I do, frequently) and to anyone who is serious about getting started in the software industry.

Codesmith was an excellent experience and for me it was definitely worth it. I attended the full time immersive and it was a lot of long hours and tough work, but ultimately absolutely worth it and truly rewarding. I had already done some self studying when I enrolled and it really took my engineering skills to the next level. The most valuable parts of the program for me were the community and network you find, the project focus, and the hiring portion. I chose Codesmith because of the CIRR outcomes and the sense of community. I highly recommend checking out one of their free workshops if you want to get a sense of the teaching style. 

I got a job fairly quickly and have been extremely happy with my choice to make a career change. I'm able to do more satisfying work for more pay, and Codesmith really helped me get there. 

Two things make Codesmith stand out: the open source product and the community. 

The OSP grants a critical advantage in the job search that is unattainable through self study alone or by writing CRUD toy apps. Codesmith's curriculum doesn't teach GraphQL, Electron, TypeScript, microservices architectures etc., but depending on the OSP you choose (and the work you put in both during and after Codesmith), you'll come away with the ability to a) talk knowledgeably about a selection of such highly marketable skill-sets at a level of understanding that will make seasoned engineers see you as prospective peers rather than blank slates, and b) acquire genuine narratives about technical/organizational/interpersonal challenges, breakthroughs, milestones, failures, lessons learned that will demonstrate a level of experience clearly beyond that of entry-level candidates who have only worked on course assignments and scratch projects in small groups. Grinding leetcode will only get you so far in prepping for mid-level big tech interviews, because they will also delve deep into your experiences in engineering, collaboration, and leadership. While there's no replacement there for real world work experience, the Codesmith OSP provides a close approximation. 

As for community, Codesmith doesn't kick you out for falling behind. On the contrary, if you fail assessments you get supplementary sessions. I've also personally never heard of anyone dropping out of the program. On the other hand, decisive action is taken against rare cases of egregiously problematic behavior. Time is set aside every week for shoutouts, game nights, and mingling. All this sets the tone for a safe and warm environment where everyone is "in it together," and residents see each other as collaborators and friends rather than competitors or rivals. Codesmith sets a grueling pace and the material is demanding, so it's helpful and motivating beyond words to have a group of highly competent, driven, and caring people with whom to exchange assistance and emotional support and to unwind. This atmosphere of goodwill extends to the alumni community as well, where I've received extraordinary help and advice freely and readily given from so many awesome people already. I'd gone the self-study route for a while and made good progress before joining Codesmith, but I can say with certainty that it would have taken me years to get to the point I am now had I not sought out a community of like-minded people. 

After months on the job search, I've signed on with an exciting early-stage startup for a senior-level base salary far outside the max range shown in the CIRR reports, and favorable compensation compared to a competing big N L4 offer. While I've been particularly fortunate, there is also no shortage of alumni I know who are now working in highly desirable positions and earning above the reported median wage. Some of them had prior academic or professional experience in STEM, but many more, including me, hail from a completely unrelated background. In short, if you're ready to put in the work for a career in tech, you'll be in the best possible company at Codesmith. 

# Curriculum
I loved that the "JS Hard Parts" approach of deep-diving into the fundamentals of any given concept very much carried over into the immersive. Some subjective nitpicks:

- React unit: Fully switch to functional components and hooks and maybe discuss strategies for avoiding unnecessary re-renders. Should better equip residents to tackle common React takehomes/onsites using up-to-date practices. 
- Node unit: More detail on REST API design constraints and conventions, as well as practical differences between Node.js vs. browser environments.
- Database unit: More practice for composing SQL queries (with CTEs, parameterization), drawing out ER diagrams, and especially avoiding common pitfalls when designing relational data models (i.e. general rules-of-thumb for normalization, enforcing referential integrity).
- Pick a responsive CSS framework and use in every module so the code examples can serve as reference material. 

# Instructors
Michael and Caitlin gave clear, tightly-paced, and engaging lectures, and were always able to provide more in-depth context, detail, and direction as necessary. Codesmith's picks for fellowship in my cohort sandwich also made it clear that they choose the best. 

# Job Support
- Somehow spacing out the OSP and hiring portions would be great so that residents aren't completely burnt out for the latter, the pace isn't so hectic, and residents can get some supervised practice in more areas e.g. sending out a Codesmith-style app, optimizing resumes for ATS while still following Codesmith guidelines, countering negotiation tactics employed by recruiters from the very first email/call, understanding perks and equity packages etc.
- Post-grad hiring and negotiation support quite literally pays for the tuition. Shoutout to Eric and Cassandra and the team for being wonderful. 

# Overall: 
Lifechanging experience. 10/10 would do again.