Eleven Fifty Academy

I attended the JavaScript bootcamp as a student and then was hired to part-time teach the next year. I can say these people are extremely devoted to what they're doing and truly know what they're talking about; seriously, they're exactly the type of individuals I want to be learning from and working alongside the rest of my career. I came in knowing more than most people do but I've learned so much and I credit that completely  to the staff and the environment they create for the students (as well as the faculty). You can really flourish here.

I took a course teaching iOS app development using Swift back when Eleven Fifty was just starting (Fall 2014).  I'm sure they have changed and improved a lot in the past six years, but I will speak a bit about my experience.  The philosophy is very much about immersive coding.  The days were long hours of learning and working on code projects, but at the end of the week, I felt my aptitude was at another level.

It's been six years since I've taken that class.  I haven't done much with mobile development, but I was able to apply the learning philosophy to learn Python and C++ effectively and efficiently in the same way that Eleven Fifty taught with swift.  To speak to the power of this learning approach, I start at one of the "Big Four" tech companies next week!  I am very grateful for the opportunities that have opened up with programming, and attribute much of that success to Eleven Fifty and their immersion philosophy.

 The Eleven Fifty program succeeded in taking me where I was at the time (two online CS courses*, a basic understanding of a few programming languages) and getting me to a place where I could confidently apply for jobs. The team project experience came up a lot in interviews. Three months after the program I landed a developer position at a great company, where I’m still using many of the skills I picked up here.
*CS50 and MIT’s Introduction to Computer Science and Programming Using Python, both available for free on Edx.org 

Why a bootcamp?
I was career switching and had debated the traditional route of a masters or going back for another bachelors in computer science/tech  but ultimately I decided on a bootcamp. This was of course after several false starts of trying to teach myself via online tutorials only. Teaching myself proved difficult when managing not knowing what to study and where to start with so many free learning sources out their. A bootcamp was also more time and cost effective. Being a career switcher I needed something that fit into my work schedule and wasn’t going to monopolize my time(over years versus months) and money. After visiting the campus several times and several discussions I decided on the JavaScript 12 week bootcamp.


Why Eleven  Fifty?
So the previous question answers why a bootcamp but why the Eleven Fifty Academy bootcamp? I had done a free coding class at Eleven Fifty years prior to my official application. Eleven Fifty was still in its infancy and I couldn’t get a grasp on how as a beginner I would grow and develop. It wasn’t until years later I revisited their campus and saw how much they grew not only in their learning curriculum and goals but also their student services. They have a team of people dedicated who want to help you land a job. They provide feedback on resumes, mock interviews, provide introductions to companies and people who may be able to help land a job. They want you to succeed. Eleven Fifty is also a non-profit organization and that sat well with me. 

Why it was successful?
It’s one thing to restate all the points the school offers. You can get this and more on their website. The main question people have is, “does it work?” This of course like any desired goal is, what you put in is what you get out. What’s great about Eleven Fifty is that they test that desire by testing your grit. How they do this is teach you a base level of knowledge and then for subsequent assignments they challenge you to use this knowledge and then some. These challenges force you to research, pair program, test and retest ideas outside of the standard following replication steps. I learned more by struggling to get something to work than I did when replicating proven steps. Eleven Fifty provides you the opportunity to challenge yourself. If you’re willing to be uncomfortable and challenge yourself then this program could work for you.

In the end I landed several interviews and was super excited to take a position with a company that was on my radar for sometime. It was an entry level Software Support Engineer but I couldn’t be more happy with my decisions to get here and the Eleven Fifty community. 

One of the best decisions of my life was attending EFA. Went from no coding experience to my first job as a Jr. Software Engineer in less than 6 months making almost double what I made previously. It's a fast paced program and you really need to spend every moment of it that you possibly can learning but it is well worth it. The staff and corses are incredible and easy to follow if you put in the effort. Can't think of a better experience in my life than EFA, and proud to have been a student!

I decided on EFA after comparing them to Hack Reactor and App Academy because I thought they had the most caring people, and thankfully I was right. The instructors were extremely helpful because although they help up a standard, they were flexible as long as you were trying your hardest. I put in as many hours as I could put in and in return I succeeded and got a job 4 weeks before graduating. Career services will tell you exactly what to do and and how to do it in order to get a job. If you are able to do it and follow a plan, I don't think there's a way to mess it up. Also, the curriculum is good(4/5) but for learning .NET they definitely are the top place to be. Many schools only focus on javascript or a language specific to their area, but I liked how they had a well rounded full stack curriculum using a technology from one of the biggest companies on earth. Overall, I thought EFA is a school that is innovative in their teaching methods and that coupled with caring and useful instructors they provide one of the best pathways to success as a software developer. 

I am very happy with my decision to change careers and thank Eleven Fifty for all their help along the way. One of the most important lessons I've learned from them is no matter how long you are doing something the technology will change and you will have to learn a different and hopefully better way of doing whatever it is you do. I've transitioned from .NET to Java to a couple of different content management systems to JavaScript. I continue to use what they taught me every day to continue on my path to becoming a better software developer. Bottom line I took a big chance 3 years ago but things are so much better now and I couldn't be happier.

1150 Academy has changed my life. I owe them my career transition as a factory worker into technology. Some things you must know is: it's not easy, you must come into the academy fully committed, coding is not for everyone, if you do everything that is asked of you to the best of your ability there is no way you can't succeed. Any negative reviews that you see are more than likely prior students who didn't do what was asked or did not give their full effort. The one thing i disliked was that career services didn't help much after graduation. Its entirely up to you to go to meetups and make connections. I put in 50 applications before I got a job. I currently work at Agilify Automation and owe that to 1150 Academy. I was not the best coder but I was definitely one of the most determined. Attending the .NET cohort at 1150 Academy November of 2018 was the best decision I've ever made. It truly changed my life.