Codesmith

I was skeptical that Codesmith could deliver what it promised—the software engineering job I wanted—after only three months.  And yet two months out from graduation, I received an offer to join the front-end web team at a great company as a software engineer (where I remain happily employed).  I had practiced law for eight years prior to deciding to become a software engineer, and had never coded prior to 2019 - my background was very “non-technical”.  Codesmith distinguishes itself from coding bootcamps by its commitment to its residents—they believe that no matter your background, you can succeed in tech by learning to view the inevitable mental blocks that arise while coding as opportunities for growth and pushing through them—instead of viewing them as indications that you’re “just not a tech person”.  By pushing through those mental blocks, I gained a confidence in my own abilities as an engineer that is as valuable (or more) as the knowledge of various technologies I came away with.  If you love solving problems and are drawn to making a difference in technology, but unsure how to break into the industry, look no further than Codesmith.

If all you're looking to do is learn how to code, Codesmith teaches that for free with their Hard Parts workshop and CSX community. I can attest to that, since I attended the free programs for almost 3 months before entering the immersive program. And in fact, that was all I needed to get the job I have now.

But without going through the program, there's no way I would have even gotten to the interview, let alone ask for the ridiculous salary I'm earning now.

The value prospect of Codesmith's immersive program is tailoring a context for students to showcase their skills and interests. For me, the greatest aspect of the program was ingraining in us a confidence and sense of worth by caring enough to push the pause button every now and again to relax and reflect on what we accomplished. 

(Personal Back Ground Information - if you just want the review, then you can skip this part :D)

To start off, my background was actually in Business and Marketing. However, I was interested in coding when I started my own business during my senior year in college. It was a professor evaluation website. Of course, I made the website by hiring an engineer, but it was a very good opportunity for me even though  I was just giving them directions. I very much wanted to learn about coding at the time, but I didn't have many opportunities or time to learn it because I was already in my senior year of business management.  When I could, I would watch coding tutorials on YouTube or blogs in my spare time, but it was hard to stay consistent due to my schoolwork After I graduated I worked for a fashion company,  and it was difficult to study in the evening because the fashion industry demanded a lot of commitment with a lot of overtime. 

But my engineer friend, who knew that I was interested in coding, told me he would be willing to help me learn about HTML. After I learned the basic elements of HTML and how HTML works on webs, I found it very interesting and fun and I wanted to learn more. Then I studied CSS and decided that I wanted to become a software engineer. The most attractive thing to me about coding is that what I do is visual and produces immediate results. It is the same reason I liked math since I was young. They both produce immediate answers and I'm able to check if the answer is right or not when I put the formula in. Although I've just started learning to code, even if it becomes too difficult or frustrating  I am confident that I can solve those difficult problems and hopefully feel a sense of accomplishment when I solve them.

(CodeSmith Experience)

Overall Experience: 10/10
I think the most important thing is the basics. This class will help you to solidify the foundation of Javascript. You can easily find courses of basic Javascript, but they don't talk about every detail of concepts. Not only it explains concepts and terms more specifically, but also it gives you endless example problems and challenges. If you want, challenges are endless. Also, you can ask a question whenever you want!! This is the best part of CodeSmith. Through CSX or JSB Slack, you can get help from many other students or instructors.

Instructors: 10/10
My Instructor was MICHELLE HERRERA!! First of all, she's full of energy. She makes our class energetic. As you know 6 hours class is not easy, but she makes me feel like 'I can study more than 6 hours!!'. Also, she's always very welcome if we have questions. She helps me until I really understand the concept or question. I can feel like she really loves to teach us and it certainly motivated me to work more hard.

Curriculum: 9/10
I had 2 weeks and a day class. 1st, 2nd Saturday(9 AM/PST-3 PM/PST) and Monday(9 AM/PST: Assessment&6 PM/PST:Group Challenge Presentation). Curriculum wise it's great but I would say I needed more time to solve the challenges or problems. I understand the concepts 100% but it doesn't mean that I can solve the challenge. I hope I could learn how to apply the concepts that I learned in the class in challenges. I really hope CodeSmith have workshops that solve CSX challenges together from an overview of CSX to Chrome Extension!!! or please upload the videos! That would help A LOT!!!

(+ Tip)
If you are accepted into CS Prep, & later into one of our Software Engineering Immersive programs, your JavaScript for Beginners tuition will be applied to the next program you take.

CodeSmith have very good scholarship programs!!

Since I passed the assessment, I receive automatic acceptance into CS Prep.

I'm very satisfied with the JSB experience, and I highly recommend this course if you don't have a computer science background! I'm sure that I would apply for CSPrep and Full-time software engineering immersive!!!

I had been doing a lot of work on my own and felt like I was cutting through frozen butter. I was making progress but every step took a lot of work and I had some bruises on my forehead from my desk. CS Prep gave me a glowing hot knife. I have a much better foundation and toolset for moving forward. It's hard to know what you don't know but CS Prep and my cohort helped shine a light on the foundations. 

The pair-programming we did was also fantastic. I learned the most from these sessions. Whether it was with someone more advanced than myself or someone struggling to understand the concepts, I walked away miles ahead of where I started. The pedagogy of the assignments was also great at creating those lasting "aha!" moments.

I definitely recommend the program, especially if you are aiming to get into a bootcamp (especially Codesmith).

First off, the immersive program at Codesmith is not for beginners - you should already have a strong understanding of JavaScript fundamentals before starting. Codesmith then builds on that foundation with an  intense and extremely rigorous curriculum - you will learn a ton of industry-relevant technologies and skills (Codesmith continually updates its education based on what's most relevant in the field). In particular, Codesmith is selective with its students, so you end up surrounded by smart, driven residents who strive to do well, which helps motivate you to do your best, too.

In particular, I want to highlight the hiring support program at Codesmith. People often say that the hiring support is worth the cost of tuition alone. Codesmith has a dedicated team of individuals to help coach you through your job search process (that you also have lifetime access to). The negotiation lessons and coaching also helped me get an extra $10k on my starting salary. The program is definitely worth the tuition.

Before you decide whether or not to do the Codesmith program, you should ask yourself if you're willing to put in 60+ hours every week in a grueling program - how bad do you want to become a software engineer? If your answer is yes, then Codesmith will definitely deliver on its quality of education and value. 

Going to Codesmith has been the best decision of my entire life. I have only graduated 1 month ago and have already landed a dream job that normally requires 5 years of experience. It gives you all the necessary skills and confidence to completely change your field to software engineering regardless of what your were originally doing in life. The knowledge and overall approaches gained by attending Codesmiths 3 month immersive is, in my opinion, as good as 3 years of of experience in the field. 

Hi.

The simplest way to convey the distance I’ve had to travel to get to where I am now would be to describe my onboarding process. After filling out the highest level of education I’ve completed with “middle school”, I finished it with my new title: Software Engineer III. Now, half a year in, I’m drowning at work under the endless influx of topics to learn and explore, I go to sleep with the last vestiges of code still lingering in my head, and I love every moment of it.

But you’re reading this review to decide if Codesmith is the right choice for you, not to pat me on the back. While that’s impossible for me to ascertain, I can share why it was the best choice for me, and hopefully that will aid your decision one way or another.

Prior to attending Codesmith, I spent two years as a technical recruiter, looking for strong technical talent. As a layman, it was hubris to think I could adequately gauge technical aptitude. So I relied on other companies to do it for me. I started to collate a list of reputable engineering teams in the area, reasoning that if a candidate had survived a year or more on one of those teams, I could expect that they were more than capable of fulfilling the needs of my clients. What I noticed during my search is that there were a fair amount of Codesmith graduates employed at the companies on my list. That told me that Codesmith produced strong results, and those alumni would be people in my network that I could reach out to when I eventually found myself on the job market. Being accepted into the program itself proved to be no small endeavor either, which meant that I would be struggling alongside individuals with a certain caliber of competency and conviction. I also appreciated Codesmith’s emphasis on technical communication, something I frequently witnessed cropping up as an obstacle in my role as a recruiter. Finding a solution shows you know an answer, but articulating the leaps of intuition you make while under pressure in a technical interview, shows that you understand it. I needed every advantage I could get as a high school dropout with no technical experience, so for the reasons listed above, I went with Codesmith.

My time in the program is a distinct chapter that altered the trajectory of my life in more ways than just my career. The staff who run it behind the scenes are amazing people who are constantly looking for ways to iterate and improve the student experience while welcoming any feedback that will inform their efforts. The instructors are so passionate about the topics they teach that it's contagious (perhaps a poor choice of words in the current clime, but maybe it'll age well). As for my peers, following the adage, I usually strive to be the dumbest one in the room, but my cohort made that too easy. Suffice it to say, I had a lot of people to learn from and with, and I couldn’t imagine my time at Codesmith sans a single one of them.

The caveat here is that Codesmith is not a panacea; it can only amplify what you bring to the table. If you lack the drive, disposition, and discipline, well, you're not going to find it there. But if you have those prerequisites, Codesmith is the crucible you're looking for.

As a person who already had a technical background, I was hesitant to join the program in the beginning. However, after finishing everything and going through the curriculum, I never regret my decision! The skills that you learn at Codesmith are what market is actually looking for, which will place you at a position where you are actually getting a lot of interview requests. They also update the curriculum every cohort to follow the fast-changing tech industry standard. What makes the Codesmith stands out from other boot camps, however,  is people. You will have a wonderful time working with excellent instructors, staff, and cohort mates who are energetic, passionate and willing to help each other. I have met so many new people who have the same passion as I do and doing projects with those people is absolutely amazing experience. Having that network and being part of Codesmith Alumni is very valuable. If you are hesitating like I was last year, I highly recommend that you don't and go for it! 

Codesmith is the best coding immersive program available. Third party (CIRR) reports show that Codesmith graduates have the highest median annual base salary compared to all other coding immersive programs. The instructors, staff, and curriculum are all amazing. However, the rich career development program and hiring support are what allows Codesmith to stand out.  Prior to Codesmith, I was in the United States Marine Corps with zero experience in programming. As I was getting ready to transition out of the Marines, I started to learn JavaScript on my own in order to pass a technical interview at a “top tiered bootcamp”. I chose Codesmith because of the outcomes report and the Codesmith teaching style I experienced at the free “Hard Parts” classes they offered.  The first half of the immersive program was difficult. I remember telling my family and friends that asked me how the program was going that I felt like “I was trying to drink water from a fire hose”. Even though it felt like I was drowning and not absorbing a lot of information, the second half (the project phase) of the program is where “the magic happens”. When I started applying the knowledge I learned by building applications and projects, I was shocked at how much knowledge I obtained but also realized all that time “drowning” was actually developing my skills in tacking challenging problems, diving deep in technologies, and learning to become comfortable with the unknown.  I like to joke that there is a third part to Codesmith that isn’t officially part of their program: the “application stage”. Learning never stops and it should definitely not stop after Codesmith. Codesmith taught me many things and I loved my time there but three months is a short time. Even after I finished the program, I spent many hours/days/weeks/months learning on my own and honing my interviewing skills: white boarding and algorithms, take home projects, and fundamental computer science knowledge.  I am thankful to Codesmith not for allowing me to work full time as an engineer getting paid over six figures but because Codesmith is where I found my love for coding, learning, and struggling. 

Currently enrolled in their Part Time Remote Immersive (PTRI) course, so I can give my impressions so far for those interested in this new course.

Overall Experience:
Challenging, rewarding, and fun!  The coursework can be difficult and you will run into blocks (many times), but you get a ton of support when needed, even outside of class hours.  You will be trying to learn a ton of material in a short amount of time, and at times you may feel overwhelmed.  That said, even with personally setting aside an additional 1-2 hours each day for review or doing bonus exercises, it largely hasn't affected my other activities and schedule outside of class hours.  And the class has become its own little online community, where we learn from and support each other.  It's been both a highly rewarding and fun experience so far.

Curriculum:
Exactly what I was looking for to get into full stack development, not just in terms of course material but emphasis on engineering, problem solving, technical communication and pair programming.  You learn a new topic each week and dive deep under the hood with lectures and weekly exercises that can be really challenging.  There are some bonus exercises, hack hours, and hackathons that you will work on outside of class hours, but that has not impacted my other activities so far.  As I'm still only part way through the curriculum, I can't speak to the later sections of the course, including the solo and group projects.  But it seems the weekly learning and exercises is building us up to that point and will likely really test what we've learned and can apply in actual big projects.

The weekly skill builders and unit exercises can be tough to get through, but you also pair up with another student (different each week) to work through them together and this has been a great experience, as you learn from each other and also work on fine-tuning your technical communication.  I find that learning from other students through this process has been just as invaluable as learning the actual course material from the instructors.

Instructors:
Enthusiastic, supportive and friendly!  The PTRI course is setup with a Lead Instructor, a Lead Technical Mentor, and two Fellows.  They have been great to interact with and learn from and are always available to help.  The amount of support you get is great.

Job Assistance: n/a (haven't gotten to this portion of the class yet)

     I’m currently enrolled in the new Part Time Remote Immersive and even though it’s a new program, it delivers. It’s tough to give a full 360 degree picture because I’m still in the first leg of the journey, but so far, it’s exactly what I expected. I chose Codesmith because I didn’t want to be spoon-fed information and spit out the other side of an assembly line as a cookie cutter coder. I wanted to learn about being an engineer. That means working through blocks, learning how to learn, and applying concepts to new and unfamiliar problems. That’s what I do here.

     I almost always feel behind, but I should. Who wouldn’t when you’re on boarding this much information this quickly. I think what constantly surprises me is how much more efficient, knowledgeable, and capable I’m becoming without even realizing it. I constantly have to remind myself that I’m doing things seemingly impossible to me a month ago. And I don’t feel like I’m missing anything doing it all remotely. They make sure you have iPads for virtual whiteboarding, GitHub and Slack are seamlessly integrated for sharing code and resources, and the team is smooth in its virtual classroom execution. I’ve even applied some of Codesmith’s virtual etiquette and teaching techniques to the meetings and trainings I conduct for work while we’re all stuck in quarantine. 

A typical week so far looks something like this:

     Mon - Thurs -  3 hours of remote class which include introductory lectures on the week’s unit mixed with programming challenges that you’ll tackle both alone and with a partner via video conferencing, reinforcing and expanding on the topics presented. You’ll develop real problem solving knowledge in the subject matter with which you’re wrestling. 

     Saturdays - 6 hours of class reviewing the week’s material looking at an expert’s approach and the approaches of your classmates to learn from each other and implement other approaches to the challenges you faced. 

     That’s phase one. There’s a project phase and a hiring phase which I can’t speak to yet, but the order of operations here makes sense. Learn core material -> Exercise core material in real world settings -> Package all that knowledge and experience to get high paying jobs. The outcomes speak for themselves.

     Everyone in my cohort is smart, knowledgeable, hardworking, and friendly, and while it’s easy to look at that and count myself so lucky to be working with such a great group of people, my hunch is that something about Codesmith’s interview process ensures that most cohorts have a similar makeup. And the instructors are the same. As much as they emphasize “work through the blocks” learning, I’ve never felt on my own. If I hit an unscalable wall trying to conquer a problem, the instructors are always right around the virtual corner to ask just the right questions to get me to start climbing on my own. That’s really all I have in terms of a review, this next bit is more personally important to me.

     Because I remember how I felt when I was scraping the internet for reviews and wondering what to believe before hopping on this wild train, here’s my full disclosure statement. I was asked to throw a few words into a review because Codesmith doesn’t do a lot of advertising other than virtual word of mouth. In no way was the content of my review discussed or influenced by anything other than my experience. I wouldn’t have agreed to write it if it had been. So these words are mine and I’m not really someone who can say a thing I don’t believe. With that said, what I’m about to write next should be the biggest takeaway for anybody looking.

     If was having a negative experience (which I’m not), and I did load this review with criticisms, I don’t think there’d be backlash from Codesmith. Even though I’m still in the program, I don’t think they’d reach out in anger or retaliation. I think they’d want to know how they could do better. The team at Codesmith is always looking for ways to better serve their residents even though it seems they already have it pretty much down to a science. That’s true on the curriculum level, the execution level, and the human level. I think that’s why they have the outcomes that they do. It’s a healthy, hardworking environment and, coming out of the program, it’s my bet that people carry that with them into their careers.

I stumbled upon the PTRI program while looking for a bootcamp and almost immediately fell in love with their block-driven approach and supportive community. I considered going to the on-site program in NYC, but like many people was not able to quit my job for months to do that. 

The PTRI program is not easy, but the 3 hours a night are doable even if you work full-time. The instructors and other staff are top-notch - super supportive, responsive, and they make you feel like you belong. 

The community is awesome, and Codesmith has been very successful at creating a tight-knit group, even though we're geographically far away from one another. So kudos to them! 

I haven't gotten to the hiring portion yet, so I can't speak to the efficacy of it personally, but they have great outcomes, so I'm not too worried about my prospects. 

Overall, if you are dedicated and hard working and want a challenge, I definitely recommend this program!