ENTITY Academy

My experience at ENTITY Academy shaped my career: thanks to the skills I gained in editorial and SEO, I was able to secure a steady gig as a freelance content manager for a reputable SEO agency directly following my graduation. The writing and editing on WordPress, as well as the collaborative workshopping of digital marketing collateral (think social media, branding, PPC), helped me hone the skills I needed to thrive as a marketing expert. Now, as a Content Marketing Manager for a professional membership community in the tech world, I'm practicing the knowledge I learned at ENTITY every day. Oh, and did I mention I was able to learn about and secure this job through the networking connections I formed at ENTITY? On top of the hard skills I developed, I also built lasting friendships and professional connections that continue to serve me well. 

Thank you, ENTITY Academy, for one of the best summers of my life.

Joining the Writer's Collecitve+ Data Science Team at Entity Academy and using the Google Classroom forum has been the next best thing to being there live and in person. This program is changing my life! There is genuine quality and professionalism felt between the student and the Mentors, but one that never overshadows the inherent undertone of, "I was there." You can almost feel the cradled whispers of care that ring, "Hold fast, strong Woman, I was in your shoes once as well."  

I am forty-two years old, so you could say I have been around the block, maybe twice. This is one of the finest groups of Women one could choose to work under, collaborate with, entrust in and trust for a better future. It would have been a grave mistake to have chosen not to. Thank you. 

I am enjoying this course! Google Classroom is utilized regularly and I see it as part of the course, rather than an extension of the course. There is so much helpful information in the Classroom, apart from the system where the main instruction is. In GC, we (students) interact to prompts and from those we can see how our colleagues are doing, areas they are excelling and also where there is room for opportunity. This helps me see that I am not alone and many times the same questions I have, someone else has as well. This is also where I see not just instruction, but other offerings from ENTITY, and is also where I gain much encouragement. 

Entity Academy is one of the best opportunities for women seeking jobs that are innovative, analytical, and provide financial security. I am a newly single mother with a bachelor's in healthcare administration and Entity not only provides me support academically but as a single mother. There is a community of classmates, mentors, graduates, and people in the field that are supporting you. You are not alone you have a guiding you to meet your goals, understand the material and apply it to work experince. Entity Academy is one of the best online programs anyone can enroll in. 

I highly recommend Entity's Data Science certification. I was scrolling FaceBook and saw an ad for Data Science studies and women were featured in the ad. I clicked on it to learn more and watched some video testimonials. I filled in the form and someone from the Entity admissions staff called me within 30 mins. Wow. I was just looking for a way to re-enter the workforce after being an at home mom for 13 years and as a newly divorced, single mother of 3. Then I found out the classes were starting in a week and a half! I was like whoa I was just fact finding here. But before you know it I was enrolled and taking advantage of the income share option. The option allowed me to go to school now and pay for it once I hold down a job making at least $40,000 per year. Otherwise I would not have been able to study Data Science. The staff believed in me, believed in my life story and granted me the best gift of all -- a chance to thrive. They assigned me a mentor and she was there to meet with me weekly, offer help when I needed it, support when I needed it and that extra push at times. The online curriculum was easy to follow and included codes that I could copy/paste and modify. It kept my interest because there were short videos, text, exercises and quizzes to keep me engaged. Although I was able to go at my own pace generally, assignments were due on Wednesdays and Fridays. I studies humanities in college and it has been 25 years since I graduated. I had never done online learning or studied statistics. Math was my worst subject. At Entity I was able to actually learn basic and advanced statistical analysis. That in itself is a miracle. Furthermore I was able to learn the basics of coding in R, SQL, NoSQL and Python where I executed the statistical testing. The best part of the curriculum is that it walks you through step by step with lots of examples, Vimeo videos and opportunities to practice. If something doesn't resonate there are mentors online almost every day of the year to help you along.  There are extracurricular options as well. For example, fireside chats on Zoom with industry professionals who share real work life experiences as a Data Scientist. Soft skills training such as how to stop negative self talk and how to deal with stress were offered every week. I loved the focus on bringing more women into the field of Information Technology. I also loved the opportunity to have a mentor specifically for my job search. The only things that I could mention as ways for Entity to improve are making the big data curriculum more available to everyone. I was one of many that could not download the required programs to deal with big data. The alternatives offered were not as engaging as the regular lessons would have been. Broken links to supplemental files were also an issue.  Often I would be going through the lesson and not able to access the links. More support for Mac users would be pivotal. The curriculum is geared toward PC users. Sometimes programs needed to be installed and the Mac directions were not clear. There were times it took me quite a while to troubleshoot issues I was having just because I was on a Mac. Besides those things, the experience was golden.

I can’t tell you how many programs I researched before choosing Entity.  A dozen? Paid programs, free ones – I’m smart. I’m motivated. Maybe I could take those and teach myself.  But where to start?  I’ve never enrolled in an online program; is it legitimate? Will it be sufficient to teach me in the absence of in-person learning? How’s their job placement program? Will my investment pay off?  

I had two full careers: as a journalist and a chef. But as I get older, I formed the goal of being able to work remotely, from anywhere. A good salary is a plus, as well.  I’m good with languages, and I had a lightbulb moment that I wish I’d had years earlier: coding is nothing more than writing in another language. I can do both of those things. 

Last summer, I found Entity. I called and the first person I spoke with was Richard Rizzo.  When I tell you I asked him dozens of questions over several phone calls, I’m not exaggerating. He was so patient, and moreover, he had a good answer for every question I asked. He even asked Angelica Pronto, Entity Academy director to call me. And she did!  Who else would do that?  

In the end, I was sold. I believe in their stated goal to get more women into tech.  The support from mentors was key – I met with Devin Moya weekly and every time we spoke, he’d explain concepts from the course, and he’d teach me extra.  Instructor Joseph Raetano is developing leading-edge course content. Technology changes almost daily, and Joseph makes sure the mentors under him continue learning tools and concepts to pass on to students. There’s every skill level of student in the program, from phenoms to entry-level-haven’t-taken-math-since-high-school students.  Mentors assist them all in learning the content.  We learn SQL, Python, R, Tableau using a variety of programs – all of which are golden words to have on a resume! Natural language processing, machine learning, regression, and data visualization – all of these are skills you’ll gain. 

I really can recommend this program; and in fact, have already to some of my friends. A couple women have even reached out on LinkedIn and I’ve gladly answered questions about Entity. From all I’ve seen, they really are trying to give women (and men) a quality education and a good start to entering the tech field. I’m happy to answer any other questions, if you want to reach out on Linked In.  Full disclosure: after graduating, I accepted a position as a mentor with Entity.  I want to be part of what they’re doing! 

 

 

About six months ago, I found a social media ad for ENTITY Academy’s virtual bootcamps. The ad stuck out to me because of the focus on empowering women to succeed in tech fields. More recently, I’ve been looking for a career change, one that uses my mathematical skills. I set up a call with an admissions counselor a few weeks ago and enrolled on the spot! Everyone I’ve talked to has encouraged me and has answered all my questions in a timely manner. In addition, I was paired with a technical mentor who has been incredibly responsive and gives me guidance in my coursework.

What has really stood out to me thus far is the way ENTITY Academy partners with WozU to give us training in both hard and soft skills, offering mentorship from a trained life coach. They are preparing us for a career, not just giving us technical skills. I have been very impressed with my experience thus far.

Before I choose ENTITY Academy, I researched a lot of bootcamps (I started researching in May and started ENTITY in July). I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do Data Science, UX Design, Full Stack Developer or QA but I kept going back to Data Science. All the bootcamps I requested more information from seem like I was just a number or they just wanted me to sign up before giving me any information. ENTITY Academy allowed me to ask questions and gave me time to think about it. 

The courses were not easy plus I haven’t been in school in over 15 years, but there was always someone there to help whether it was a mentors, instructors, and/or classmates to reach out to for help. Also the coaches for ENTITY Academy were very helpful with the soft skills. I've learned a lot in a short period of time. Over all great experience.   

I found Entity Academy through an ad on social media that caught my eye with its mission to create and develop a space for women in a male-dominated field. As a young mother who is trying to figure out what I want to do and accomplish in life, I took the opportunity to enroll and learn as much as I can to help me get started in this career field. Right from the enrollment, I was encouraged and reminded that I can do this and that they were here to help me get to where I wanted to be. They worked with me to make sure I had all I needed by giving recommendations on supplies and working with me to find the best payment plan that wouldn't put me in a vulnerable position. In addition to the learning curriculum, they consistently hold fireside chats with some remarkable people in the industry to help students hear more about the field and make connections with potential networks. There are also coaching sessions that focus on one's professional and personal growth that gives space to learn and connect with other students going through the program. Learning the hard skills on WozU is all self-paced which I definitely struggled with at first and still do to a degree but with the assistance of a mentor at Entity Academy, she helped me manage my time better and gave suggestions and tips to use. I've been able to work on that skill and utilize it in both school and life. There's plenty more work to do but for now, I feel very grateful to have the support and assistance of my mentors. 

If "non-traditional student" could be defined, you'd see my picture right next to it. I started a computer science curriculum over 24 years ago, and didn't finish after entrepreneurial endeavors, pregnancy, another career and life, got in the way. Fast forward to today, I'm a month into ENTITY's eight-month Data Science curriculum. I've included the six most important points why I chose ENTITY:

1 / Woman-centric environment
2 / Affordability
3 / Payment options
4 / Return on investment
5 / Accountability
6 / Receptive to feedback

1 / I really am enjoying being in a learning environment that is woman-centric. I'm sure there's no shortage of these types of programs online these days, but seeing myself reflected in the women who work with ENTITY is powerful, period. I think I'm more in tune to ask for help when I need it. I have peers who are in similar boats with the demands of relationships, family life, kids, parents, pets, etc., and it makes a huge difference in those moments where I start to feel sorry for myself and like I can't do it. You look around you in the curriculum and know you're not alone.

2 / You may be reading this long after I write it, but the cost for the eight months at $15K is a steal. The sheer idea that I am paying $15K over eight months to begin a career with a salary that is eye-to-eye with others paying for a bachelor's over 4 years is a no-brainer to me, especially when I share with you that I paid more than that for my college freshman to attend a private university, in one semester. The only other cost consideration is internet with reliable bandwidth and the proper hardware (PC or Mac) that will run the software you need to participate and the cost of whatever study materials you prefer to use.

3 / ENTITY offered a myriad of payment options, which for me was critical to whether I'd be able to participate at all. One of the really creative options they offer is an income share agreement that is outcome-based. In simple terms: they front the cost of the curriculum and you agree to repay as a fixed percentage of your monthly income after their program ends, but only if you are making a minimum of $45K (again, this may change depending on when you read this). If you're interested in data science as a career, you know that the $45K is easily surpassed.

4 / That brings me to the ROI. Again, a quick search for even entry-level roles in data science reveal that there are not only myriad opportunities, but salaries that hover around the $60 - 65K mark, with impressive room for growth in salary.

5 / The accountability that ENTITY offers is second to none, literally. My college experience from years ago pales in comparison to the mentorship, check-ins, one-on-one meetings, soft skill group coaching sessions, and access to a Slack channel for immediate curriculum questions. Knowing that Google, et al., offers free options for learning a similar curriculum is not enough for me; I need to know that I can turn to a reliable source to stay on track and in progress to complete the goal in a fixed amount of time.

6 / A few days ago, I brought a matter to the attention of one of the heads of ENTITY. No complaint, just feedback on how something could be improved. First, in comparison, I don't imagine being able to reach out to the head of a brick and mortar university and actually receive a response. But in less than 24 hours I received an email from her personally, and detail on what she saw could be done to improve the experience not only for me, but for other students. There's nothing worse than signaling when you're told your opinion matters; my experience in having my voice heard is exactly what they represented it to be and I'm grateful for it.

Given the opportunity to make the decision again, I would choose ENTITY and, I'm currently trying to get a best friend onboard to start; that is with no additional incentives, money or otherwise, to do so.

I was able to take part in Entity Academy’s Writer’s Collective back in 2019. Not only was I lucky enough to travel from the UK to LA to participate, but the skills that I learnt over those four weeks were incremental when it came to me achieving my dream graduate role. 

The most important thing that Entity gifted me was a new found confidence, something I’ve continually fallen back on over these past three years. The Writer’s Collective meant I was surrounded by incredibly talented students, so to be able to hold my own and feel confident in such an environment is a testament to just how empowering the course was. Before attending back in 2019, I was in an emotionally abusive relationship, one that made my world much smaller. It was the confidence that I gained from Entity Academy that gave me the motivation to go home and take control, and inevitably, end that relationship. 

To list each skill that I learnt from the Writer’s Collective would take me too long, however, the experience was so unique because it enabled me to develop and hone in on skills I already possessed, improving my writing by tenfold. In addition to this, it was such a great environment to prepare us for entering a really saturated and competitive job market. Since leaving Entity Academy, I’ve secured my dream role at a two-person national charity, and I wholeheartedly believe that it was the Collective that enabled me to do well in this role, and prove to my employer that I was able to take on such an overwhelming responsibility. 

For anyone contemplating whether to take part in Entity Academy, I would really recommend it. Not only are you learning so many new skills and meeting such inspirational and successful mentors, but you’re challenging yourself to be the best that you can be. Even upon leaving Entity nearly three years ago, the ongoing support that Jennifer and her teams provide is incredible - they truly value each mentee that comes through their door and this has definitely played its part in both my personal and professional growth. 

I had looked at several different bootcamps before starting with Entity and I'm so glad I chose this program to help me get into a different career path. I have never felt more supported in any type of schooling. Between the mentors, instructors and other students every question I could possibly ask gets answered in a timely manner. Beyond the hard skills that are taught (R, Python, SQL & noSQL are what I've learned thus far) they also provide support for soft skills as well. Resume building, time management skills and the option to have zoom calls with staff to help with any type of problem you may be facing personally is a huge bonus. From the very beginning they have helped me make sure I knew exactly what I would need to do to be successful in this program, they lay everything out for you, which I personally love! I am forever grateful that I found Entity. 

ENTITY Academy has exceeded my expectations in every way! I am currently an elementary teacher and had been looking for a new challenge. Although there are many programs available, ENTITY immediately stood out to me as they promote getting more women into a field that is heavily male dominated. From the very beginning I have felt empowered that someone like me can do something like this too. I can be a data scientist! I have participated in online school before but I have never felt so supported as I moved through my courses. We have access to extra content and videos on a Google classroom platform, a 1-on-1 mentor that is very hands-on and involved, many other mentors and course instructors who are ready and willing to help even during late hours in the evening, and a life skills coach to support in a whole different capacity. My own personal mentors Melissa G. and Marcy M. have been nothing short of encouraging, uplifting, helpful and amazing. I am constantly building a portfolio that I know will stand out as an interviewee with skills such as data wrangling, data analysis, and visualization to name a few. I am becoming equipped in programs such as R, Python, SQL, NoSQL, VS Code, and more with extensive knowledge, hands-on activities, and projects. All the while, I get to be a part of fireside chats that host successful men and women already in the data science field, with the opportunity to connect with them afterwards. I cannot wait to see what else my ENTITY journey has in store, and I am even more excited to see what is to come once my schooling concludes. I know the upcoming job skills training, resume training, interview training and more will make me more than ready to land my dream job! I highly recommend this program to anyone interested. Thank you ENTITY!

After doing a lot of research about coding bootcamps, I decided to go with ENTITY. I'm so glad that I did. The bootcamp is fast paced and full of information and job skills to help you get a job in this industry. There are also mentors and instructors looking out for you, that help push you and help you with anything you need as you progress through the program. I honestly hadn't thought I would be able to become a data scientist, but I'm confident in my ability to become one now. What I like about this program is how thorough the coursework is and how many different avenues to learning you're given. There are a multitude of different links available for extra learning as well as videos to help you along with your hands on material. Mentors are available to guide you through a lesson or module and are very flexible with their hours to help suit your schedule. 

The onboarding process was easy and fairly quick. Each person involved explained everything to me with precise language and encouraged me to reach out if I needed them for anything. If I had to recommend any bootcamp to a woman and person of color, it would definitely be ENTITY.

I am so happy I did this program.  The last time I was in school was back in 2005.  I have been working at a school as a Teacher Aide for the  past few years. At first I was nervous about doing this program.  The process was very easy and the tuition options were accommodating.  During my 33 weeks of training I met with Mentors.  Nolan Hardeman was my initial mentor and he was great.  He help me set up my computer step by step; he also encouraged me during my lessons. Nolan was very knowledgeable and explained terms and codes that I could not understand.  Outside of Nolan I  had help from the Woz-U community. Melissa was my second mentor. Slack was a great place to find help during my lessons and it was the main frame to use when students of Entity needed help.  I used Slack a lot and any mentors that were available helped.  I would do most of my classes after work, so mainly in the evening and there was always someone on to help, if not the next morning.  I loved that the lessons had mini quizzes and Hands-On lessons to get a real feel of what the lesson was teaching. 
During my 33 weeks of training I came to learn to use Python, R-Studio, Machine Learning, SQL, No SQL, and Tableau.  They gave step by step instructions to download Mongo, Jupyter Notebook, AWS, R, Github and Julia.  I came to use Git Hub and I love it!  I now have a new love for coding.  I enjoyed my time as a student and came to really have fun making new algorithms and making predictions. 
When working on my final project I decided to do a group project. Having Matt Geradino and Joeseph Raetano as an Instructor was also exciting.  Both gave great feedback and enjoyed the presentation. I found great women to partner with.  We became very good friends and worked in harmony.  This was the first time using my knowledge of what I learned on my own.  I had confident on my understanding of everything I had done in my training.
Working with the career coach Mark Gasche has been a pleasure. He has given me very good pointers and such an encouraging person.  Working on my resume, cover letter and interviewing now.  I am in the process of applying for jobs and am very confident on my decision on moving on to Data Science.

Entity Academy is an amazing Bootcamp for Data Science, they have the curriculum all laid out for you with examples to follow along, quizzes to test your knowledge, and hands-on lessons. They have live and recorded workshops for each module so you can go back and watch the videos as many times as you want. Mentors are easy to reach out to via Slack if you have any questions on installing the required software, reviewing a lesson together, and feedback.

ENTITY is proving me wrong. I started college as an astrophysics major at CU Boulder. I was the only Latina in my entire academic department. I remember going to class and feeling so isolated. None of my classes had more than a handful of other girls, and there were definitely no other Hispanics. My studies themselves were a huge challenge and although I wanted to pursue my degree, Imposter Syndrome, working to support myself, and the overall rigor of my major led me to drop out. I’ve looked back on that for years with so much regret because I had grown up wanting nothing more than to be a scientist.

When I came upon  ENTITY scrolling through Facebook, I immediately signed up for more information and before I knew it I was talking to the enrollment team. They told me about what ENTITY stands for and what they do for their students and I just fell in love. Having a support team like this is what I lacked at CU. I thought to myself, “This is going to get you in the door. You can still go into the sciences.”  I was approved for an Income Share Agreement and I dove right into the Data Science Program. Enrolled and bam! I started learning how to code. ME. CODING. I couldn’t believe it. The instructors at WOZ-U break the material down into tiny baby steps. Exactly what I need. I always thought of myself as someone who sucks at computers. But the instruction provided by WOZ-U and the resources and support of ENTITY have turned me into a whiz. I can’t wait to see where this road will take me. 

I have to provide a shoutout to ENTITY’s enrollment officer Andraya.  Before I enrolled she was a huge support and friend leading me through the application and enrollment process. Even now that I’ve been enrolled a few months, she still takes time to check up on me. She and everyone at ENTITY are game-changers. Thank you so much. If it wasn’t for ENTITY I would have lived my whole life thinking I wasn’t smart enough to succeed in STEM. And here I am a Data Science student studying one of the most obscure hard science fields out there and loving every second of it.

I've had a positive experience with ENTITY's Data Science program and would recommend it to anyone just beginning their career in DS. Before ENTITY, I had prior experience in some programming languages, such as R, SQL, as well as academic training in basic statistics. The DS program helped refine and build upon these pre-existing skills as well as ease me in to brand new concepts and software, like object oriented programming, Mongo DB, Jupyter Lab, and Tableau. The lessons are easily digestible and there are plenty of additional resources available if you want to go deeper on a particular topic. There are also instructors regularly available via Slack that can help answer any questions that arise. If you're interested in exploring the world of DS, ENTITY is a great place to start.

Sign up and getting financing is so simple and quick. Everything is done online and is easy to go though step by step. Everything is on your time. Work is due twice a week by midnight so there are no surprises. I enrolled in the data science program and worked with Julia my mentor. She was easy to reach and completely understanding. I had to have emergency surgery during the weeks of classes and it was a lot to deal with but the school worked with me and I was able to recover and still graduate without being kicked out because I was missing my log ins. After graduation mark in career services has been a complete dream easy to talk to and helps with resumes, CVS, cover letter, interviews and job searches. This program is great and if you’re thinking about just research and see if you want to take on these courses because it does take time and dedication 

I was so hesitant to do this bootcamp, but I am SO glad I did! Not only do you get the excellent curriculum from Woz-U, but you also get a lot of professional/soft skills development and coaching from the Entity side. The Fireside chats have been incredible for learning more from people who are actually out in the working world. I have done other online courses before, this one is the most well-rounded and valuable that I have taken. I can feel that I have grown so much. It’s so much more than just learning data science. And if you are curious about there being real job opportunities at the end of the program to apply for - don’t stress, it’s real and they are there!

I had enrolled at another bootcamp prior to joining ENTITY Academy and the difference was starkly. This is definitely not your average coding bootcamp.
I applied for the Data Science program and struggled in the beginning because I had been out of a learning environment for a minute but my mentor was super patient with me, the student career coaches encouraged and counselled, the instructors were fun, all the learning materials were thorough - the quizzes, the hands-on practice, the projects;  every topic was relevant and by the time I graduated, I felt very READY. 
ENTITY Academy has to be my best pandemic decision!!! I would forever be grateful to my mentor, my team mates and the management at Entity Academy for making this career transition relatively easy especially also for WOMEN!

I am a career changer and participating Entity Academy's Data Science Program was the best decision I could have made. The program is thorough and I learned so much while going through the modules, taking quizzes and exams, and performing hands-on projects. My mentor has been so patient and full of knowledge and I trust his content and career knowledge. My experience has been extremely fulfilling and I cannot wait to start my new career.