Codesmith

Codesmith teaches its residents how to take on any new software technologies quickly and efficiently - not through memorizing syntax, but understanding the logic and how the code works under the hood. Its curriculum facilitates deep dives into central techs, eloquent communication, empathy, and engineering mature products. Its emphasis on collaborative workflows allows residents to work effectively as teammates, ideate exciting, marketable applications, iterate on features, bridge different engineering approaches, and troubleshoot through code reviews. The staff and support community is superb from teaching to hiring. A life-altering growth experience. 

At the beginning of 2020, I had never written a line of code in my life and could not tell you the difference between Java and Javascript. A little under a year later, I'm at $170k annual base comp for my first software engineering job.

Long story short, I was let go from my non-programming job at the beginning of COVID and started looking into a career pivot into software engineering. From dipping my toes into the space and attempting to self-teach, I quickly realized what a great resource CSX (which introduces you to the "hard learning" philosophy that others have spoken so much about in other reviews; e.g. for most of the problems, they do not spoon-feed you the answers a la FreeCodeCamp) was and was quickly introduced to the broader Codesmith community.

Anyway, I went through CSX and enjoyed it enough to sign up for CSPrep. If I were to be brutally honest, I did not find CSPrep worth it. You'll get just as much value from going through CSX, deeply understanding all the exercises there at a fundamental level, and attending the free Hard Parts lectures. I found nothing new in the CSPrep curriculum. However, it was helpful that the tuition rolled over to the immersive program though, so I can't complain too much.

The immersive itself was a blast to go through. While I would say that the curriculum is again nothing special - you spend a lot of time being taught by fellows (aka former students who literally just graduated from the program) and they can be hit or miss. Unfortunately, there's no way for prospective students to really screen who the fellows will be in their cohort (as half of your fellows will literally be hired a week or two before your cohort's start date); you can at least vet the lead instructors through their Hard Parts lectures (they are overall very solid). It's just that you won't necessarily be any better off at Codesmith vs. if you just rely on the abundance of free or cheaper resources online to learn the core technologies that are taught.

That being said, the real value of the program comes from the project portion and the focused multi-week job hunt strategy curriculum. The smaller projects are mostly your standard CRUD apps that any bootcamp will have you make; you are encouraged and should explore new technologies / libraries with these projects - e.g. GraphQL, OAuth, D3, Typescript etc. The highest profile project you'll create is the production project (which Codesmith itself markets quite heavily). You'll be granted the choice of either iterating on an existing project from a previous cohort or creating a new project from scratch - from my experience, most choose the former. Granted, most projects, especially if you are starting from scratch are of dubious usability / quality but the real value comes from diving deep into a particular technology and tackling tough challenges that comes with building a developer tool to help fellow devs overcome their tough challenges. When on the job hunt, I was able to consistently pass non-coding screens with recruiters or hiring managers by being able to talk shop about my chosen technology's pros, cons / tradeoffs as well as having pointed examples about interesting technical challenges I had faced (I got this question on almost all my interviews), all gained from working on the production project. 

The point is that it'll always be a tougher job market for bootcamp grads, but Codesmith solves for this by providing you the tools to job hunt effectively and craft a cohesive and credible (sounding) narrative around the skills that you have hopefully picked up from attending the program. And that's where most if not all of the value from the almost $20k tuition comes in. Again - the curriculum is nothing special, but you can't really enter the job market at the salaries that Codesmith grads do without a robust portfolio of projects that you have been forced to create, a well-written resume (Codesmith is very strict about how they want grads to craft their resumes and will force a few rounds of edits until students get it right), and the technical communication skills to back all that up. 

Special shoutout to Eric, who is the resident salary negotiation expert. He's a great hypeman but more importantly, provides a solid framework and strategy for students to lean on during negotiations, which are often really damn awkward. He's available on-call post-grad as a resource once you're able to secure an offer. Using his script, I was able to confidently and successfully negotiate a material bump to my total package. 

A little about my background:
- Unfinished BS degree
- I moved to the US and worked in an unrelated field for 5 years
- 0 prior coding experience, I simply watched a YouTube video about bootcamps and decided to give it a shot.

Fast forward to one month after the graduation: Mid-level role at an amazing company, with the salary higher than Codesmith' advertised average. It took exactly one year from my first line of code(to see if I even like it) following some silly tutorial to accepting the offer. (I spent 6 months at Codesmith, stayed as an engineering fellow for 3 months after the program).

Curriculum:
It covers all the topics you need to know to get hired, provides you with a very solid foundation, but also relies on you diving deeper and learning a lot of things by yourself. And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Codesmith doesn't teach you everything. It encourages you to dive into the weeds and figure out things an average "newbie" would never worry about and those cannot be taught.

The "vibe":
I was the first fully remote cohort and oh boy did I consider not going. To those worried about the "spirit" and "fun" and "emotional attachment" to people - its all there! Happy hours, talent shows, casual drinks, late-night study sessions, random chats. You are literally never alone, you're either working in pair or in a group. You become good friends with your teammates and make a lot of great memories!

Hiring portion:
One of the lead instructors at CS said "our hiring program is already worth the price", and I think he is damn right. You will have a group of people whose job is to get you a job, you will have a network of hundreds of grads sharing their experience and practicing algos/interviews. It's still on your shoulders to practice and apply daily, looking for a job is a job after all, but at least you are well supported during this process! (Though I have to admit it was still stressful af)


VERY IMPORTANT thing to remember:
There is no magic. You wont go in and suddenly become an engineer. You wont "do your time" and then end up knowing React/JS/Node. You want 100k+? You will have to work your a** off for it. You will probably have to stay after hours to finish up something and read/research more. Its 1000 hours in 90 days.
A lot of instructors say "Trust the process" when you are feeling like you are falling behind. Dont let that fool you into "I should blindly trust it". Slight modification: "Trust the process, but remember that process involves hard work and dedication".

10/10 would recommend:)

Summary: its most likely going to be the hardest thing you've done in your life. None of it is easy. Getting in to Codesmith is hard, graduating Codesmith is hard (the 75+ hour weeks are no joke). Getting HIRED after Codesmith is going to be even HARDER. Seriously, getting a mid-level engineering role is hard. Don't expect to graduate and easily get hired. That said, I did get hired 10 weeks after graduation with a mid-level engineering role (but that was 10 weeks of 100% effort). If you're serious about moving into engineering, Codesmith should be your top choice. It will be much harder than you're imagining, but it can be done (even in a pandemic..!).   Outcome:  10 weeks after graduation, a base salary very close to Codesmith median + equity.  My Background: Non-technical major from top 50 public college. 'Prestigious', but non-technical work experience before Codesmith, so I just left it off resume. If youre making a switch to engineering, pretty much nothing you did previously really matters. Don't expect it to help you, it may actually hurt you if its on resume. I had written a little code before prepping to interview at Codesmith, but not much. Took 3 months of prep and 2 interviews to get in. Then had 1 month to prep before immersive. So 4 months pre-Codesmith, 3 months at Codesmith, 2 month job hunt, turns me from zero (pretty much) to mid-level engineer in 9 months. Granted thats prop an average of 45-55hr weeks working towards it.

Quick summary: I have no technical background, I studied about 500 hours before being accepted into Codesmith, and 4 months after graduating I landed a full time role with a great company, with a 150% higher salary than my previous job, and high career satisfaction.

Fiscally speaking, investing in Codesmith's immersive engineering program is worthwhile just for the guidance on salary negotiation, but it's a lot more than that.

The immersive program environment reflects the actual workplace for engineers, establishing professional expectations and building teamwork skills and confidence in technical communication. I knew that I wanted to apply to Codesmith after attending a Hard Parts workshop in NYC, where attendees are expected to technically communicate in a group. It gave me instant confidence in what I had been previously studying entirely on my own with minor interest in participating in any kind of bootcamp situation.

I spent at least 90% of my time at Codesmith working collaboratively with others. These team activities included: reporting regularly to stand-ups, preforming code reviews, mentoring newer engineers as well as receiving mentorship, using git collaboratively, preparing tech talks, and pairing - so I felt completely prepared to step into the professional engineering work environment.

Codesmith's curriculum is progressive and up-to-date. If you're like me and have no technical background, you may have to put in a lot of extra effort before, during, and after the program. I don't think I would have landed a job by doing the bare minimum. However, if you're ready to work hard and keep pushing to learn more and more, this is the best program to support you in your journey to professional Software Engineer.

Coming from a non-technical background, I did my fair share of research of what bootcamps were out there before finally selecting Codesmith. I had heard great things about its community and how they really emphasize empathetic engineering as a culture and this couldn't have been more true. I truly felt welcomed and never once did I feel judged if I started to feel like I was falling behind. Another great thing about Codesmith is their hiring program. They don't just teach you the skills and knowledge to become a developer but how to become a developer, aka the hiring process after you graduate. It's really detailed and they even have someone that helps you negotiate your offer when it/they come in. It's definitely an all-encompassing program and I'm so grateful I got to experience it!

I took a while to enroll because I was skeptical about the outcomes. Let me tell you, it’s real. When I had no choice but to change my life, I took the leap and it was the best decision yet. Everything, from the admissions process, curriculum, to the job search has been dissected at every detail to provide the best results. There’s a lot of science behind this, so it’s not magic. It would take forever to explain how, but just trust the process and you will find yourself like a new born. If you keep applying what you’ve learned here at Codesmith, you’ll surely reach high places in all areas of life, not just software engineering. 

 TL;DR - I am glad I went to Codesmith.  When I decided to go to a coding bootcamp, I didn’t know which one to pick from these two: Hack Reactor and Codesmith. They seemed equally good in different ways. HR has been around longer than CS, so I had a good number of engineer friends vouching for HR. (I actually almost went to Hack Reactor, and I’m so glad I did not!) At that time, I simply chose Codesmith because I had a more pleasant interaction with the CS admission team than the HR admission team. I could see why so many people mentioned Codesmith culture on their reviews.  Everybody in your cohort will have different backgrounds and skill levels. You might or might not find the immersive program to be an intense/challenging experience. Either case, I think it’s important to set clear expectations for yourself. What you put in is what you get out - Are you dedicated? And what do you hope to gain from this experience? Codesmith is great, but there is only so much Codesmith can do for you. Having clear expectations will make your Codesmith experience much more enjoyable and meaningful :) Based on my experience, here is what I can guess you will get to experience when you decide to join Codesmith: 

• Dave/Phil will put so much energy into every single lecture you get.
• Eric and Annie will make sure you get the support you need during your job search. 
• You will have awesome cohort mates throughout your journey.
• You will be part of the Codesmith community - full of supportive, empathetic engineers.

 Lastly, what I think Codesmith can do better: More careful and transparent fellows selection process. One’s satisfaction level with Codesmith can vary widely depending on who the fellows are. (Most fellows I interacted with were awesome.)

Probably like you, I did extensive research when reviewing the options for coding programs in LA, including Hack Reactor and GA. I considered a lot of things, and made endless Pros and Cons lists, so the review is separated in sections that might be of interest to you.
Community and SupportThis was my number one reason for attending Codesmith. From attending the weekly lectures open to the public and reaching out to Codesmith alumni, it's easy to see how strong Codesmith keeps its community. From how approachable the instructors are and how helpful and supportive the staff/fellows have been, Codesmith has all other coding programs beat. They make it fully apparent that they are there for you and want you to succeed, which plays a huge role in anyone's journey. The support is there throughout the program and especially during the hiring phase, which is arguably one of the best things about Codesmith. Even though I've graduated, I can honestly say that the people that I've met there will continue to be a part of my journey for years to come.
CurriculumThe curriculum has space for improvement, but nonetheless, it gives potential software engineers the tools they need to get started as a mid-senior level engineer. There are endless things to learn in the technical industry, but what Codesmith does an amazing job at is teaching you how to learn and how to struggle. This becomes especially helpful on the actual job since, like I mentioned, you may be faced with the task of using a new technology. The struggle and unfamiliarity won't be a stranger to you by then!
ProjectsCodesmith enforces its curriculum through the projects. Projects are an important part of landing your first software engineering gig. You'll learn things like git flow, agile methodology, working with others, and facing challenges with tech (ie React, Redux, Node). The experience working with other engineers for a similar goal really helps candidates speak about behavioral challenges in actual interviews. Personally, many of the things that I talked about in my behavioral interviews came from Codesmith which really paid off.
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What could have been improved...To be fair, some lectures could have definitely been shortened. A lot of the learning is done through working with others and the actual units/assessments. More time spent on that would have improved the experience. Additionally, Data Structures and Algorithms in the first week is a lot of content to take in and it's quite a challenge (from an instructor's Point of View) to teach someone. These concepts are difficult and will require you to study them on your own time.