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Epicodus is closed
This school is now closed. Although Epicodus is no longer accepting students or running its program, you can still see historical information and Epicodus alumni reviews on the school page.
Epicodus is a coding bootcamp offering part- and full-time courses online and in Portland, Oregon. Students learn everything they need to know to get a job as a web developer by learning JavaScript, C#, .NET, and React. More important than any particular skill, cohorts are taught how to think like a programmer, write good code, and pick up new languages and technologies in this fast-changing industry. Epicodus focuses on collaboration and inclusivity. Students work together in pairs and teams almost every day, and a diversity, equity, and inclusion approach is a core part of the program design.
Epicodus's courses also include job search preparation for students. Career advisors meet one-on-one with every student to review resumes and cover letters, practice interviewing, and even go over job applications in class. After completing the coursework, students are placed in hand-selected internships with tech companies at no extra cost, allowing them to begin their job search with coding experience already on their resumes.
This review is for the Seattle campus where I was enrolled. I hear Portland is very different and a bit more established, but I can’t speak to that. I was enrolled in the C#/JavaScript/React track.
If I could, I would probably give Epicodus a 3.5 star rating. Generally positive, but with a few sore spots. I’ll round up to 4 stars. A little about me, I had absolutely ZERO coding experience and exposure before starting the course. Of cours...
This review is for the Seattle campus where I was enrolled. I hear Portland is very different and a bit more established, but I can’t speak to that. I was enrolled in the C#/JavaScript/React track.
If I could, I would probably give Epicodus a 3.5 star rating. Generally positive, but with a few sore spots. I’ll round up to 4 stars. A little about me, I had absolutely ZERO coding experience and exposure before starting the course. Of course, having some coding background could have helped me, but the course does truly assume no knowledge from the beginning. I think all coding bootcamps are probably tough, and Epicodus is no exception. While the first 5 week unit (Intro to Programming) is no walk in the park, it only gets harder from there. The C# and JavaScript units move at a really fast pace, and pretty much everyone in my cohort, and the cohorts above and below me had their fair share of struggles. Some of those struggles are based on the difficulties of learning new technologies from scratch. Others, were because of problems with Epicodus’ curriculum. I’ll try to review the entire experience as best as I can.
The good:
Structure. If you’re like me, you need a structured learning environment to keep you motivated and accountable. While many people may have been able to teach themselves how to become developers through books and online tutorials, that doesn’t work for everyone. Epicodus provides teachers who offer assistance when you get stuck, as well as a whole class of peers who can help you troubleshoot problems. The curriculum, while lacking (more on that later), does generally build throughout each week before you are given an independent project to complete on Friday. The mix of teachers, course work, and independent projects does provide a structured learning environment that makes it easier to learn compared to if you tried to learn from scratch on your own.
Internships. I think this is where Epicodus stands out. The fact that an internship, albeit short(5 weeks), is built into the program, means you get some on the job experience as well as some familiarity with going through the job interview process.
Support. I imagine every new wave of students is different, but my cohort developed into a really close and supportive group of people. Having them go through the exact same struggles as me helped build a sense of camaraderie and made the tough times a little bit better.
Price. I don’t think there’s a much better deal out there for an in-person, full-time bootcamp. $6,900 (if you pay up front) is generally about half of what other schools charge.
The bad:
Curriculum. It’s not necessarily that the coursework is always bad. It’s that some of it is wrong or out of date and Epicodus is slow to fix problems. There were weeks during the C# unit where the course work would flat out not build properly based on the lessons. The cohort ahead of me experienced it, our cohort experienced it, the cohort below me experienced it. An instructor was in the process of rewriting some of the C# material, though, so maybe it will improve for later cohorts. In the JavaScript section, the lessons teach you to build projects with old versions of certain technologies because they know those versions don’t conflict with each other. That would be fine, except many of those versions are no longer supported and have glaring security issues. It would not be OK to build with these versions in the real world, so I’m not sure why Epicodus does not update their lessons to include newer versions that are not deprecated.
Professionalism. I don’t say this lightly, but Epicodus has an issue with how it handles itself internally. I was at the school during a time of particularly high turnover, but it seems like the instructors are in a constant state of flux. My cohort’s first teacher had just graduated from Epicodus about 6 months prior. While this teacher was competent, I do think people should know that you’re not necessarily going to be getting a seasoned developer as an instructor at Epicodus. We were meant to get a more established teacher for the last ten weeks of the class, but that teacher was suddenly pulled away to work on rewriting some of the outdated lessons. Epicodus then hired one of the students who had been in the cohort just ahead of us to be our instructor, and this person literally only had 10 more weeks of experience with coding than our cohort. When my class finished, all three of the Seattle instructors i just mentioned left for other jobs, so I have no clue what the future of the program looks like now. Just know, your teacher is likely to themselves be a recent Epicodus graduate.
Data Structures and Algorithms. The course does not really go into these crucial aspects of becoming a developer. This is mostly because there just isn’t enough time, and it’s not really on Epicodus to teach these. However, In order to get a job, you will need to learn some basic computer science concepts because they are pretty much all you will get asked in an interview. I suggest buying a copy of Cracking the Coding Interview, and either buying a Udemy data structures course or taking the Harvard CS50 course on edX to supplement the Epicodus curriculum.
Conclusion:
Coding is hard. Even in the perfect environment, there would have been huge hurdles for me to jump over in order to learn this stuff. There is going to be frustration. There is going to be imposter syndrome. You will get mentally and physically exhausted. But, if you’re eager to learn, this is a good place. Just know, you will likely run into issues with the curriculum at times, and your teachers might be limited in how much expertise they can offer. That all being said, I would rate my experience as generally positive. I learned a ton, and hope to continue that learning process now that I’m done with the class.
Before joining Epicodus, I made a market research about coding bootcamps in Seattle area, and Epicodus was one of the best options on the market with affordable pricing for 27-week intensive program, curriculum including front-end and back-end technologies as well as the opportunity to have internship experience after the course.
In Epicodus, I went from basic knowledge in programming to being able to write code in such widely used languages as C# and JavaScript. And by the end o...
Before joining Epicodus, I made a market research about coding bootcamps in Seattle area, and Epicodus was one of the best options on the market with affordable pricing for 27-week intensive program, curriculum including front-end and back-end technologies as well as the opportunity to have internship experience after the course.
In Epicodus, I went from basic knowledge in programming to being able to write code in such widely used languages as C# and JavaScript. And by the end of the course I learned how to build complex web applications from the ground up using different programming tools. But most important, having 5 weeks of real world work experiences was worth the value of the course.
I would say that Epicodus is great start for prospective developers and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants a career in tech industry.
I started Epicodus with a goal of learning enough about coding to create opportunities to change my career. Naturally, changing a career means that I need to know enough to get a job doing this. I can say upfront that Epicodus helped me accomplish that goal. I graduated from Epicodus in June of 2019 after having completed an internship and the company with which I did the internship offered me a position within the next few months.
I was brand new to coding when I started at Epic...
I started Epicodus with a goal of learning enough about coding to create opportunities to change my career. Naturally, changing a career means that I need to know enough to get a job doing this. I can say upfront that Epicodus helped me accomplish that goal. I graduated from Epicodus in June of 2019 after having completed an internship and the company with which I did the internship offered me a position within the next few months.
I was brand new to coding when I started at Epicodus. I had never worked in the IT industry. The majority of my career I spent in the medical industry. Like other students with no coding experience, I found the subject of programming to be extremely challenging with plenty of days full of confusion. In fact, I had thoughts at multiple points that I wasn’t going to be able to do this. However, I am proof that having the right educational opportunity and support system as Epicodus provided makes it possible.
I really enjoyed the learning environment and especially that it was onsite. It’s very helpful to have the support of others around you who are going through the same learning curve and the same challenges. Epicodus structured our program by having us work directly with others in a project-based learning environment and this naturally encouraged the formation of relationships that were important for me to make it through this program. The pair programming was often very helpful because there are people with varying degrees of experience and this enabled those of us with less experience to learn from them. Additionally, I thought it was helpful learning to work in real-life scenarios where we as people sometimes agree and sometimes don’t. It definitely helped me learn how to get the work done regardless of the difference in perspectives and to deliver on time. I also really enjoyed the support of the instructors. They were very friendly and encouraging at all times. This goes a long way when you are having a rough day learning to code. They had enough experience to help get me on the right track when I got lost.
Throughout the week there were other real-world skills that we were learning including how to work with source control (Git), how to conduct a scrum stand-up and practice solving algorithms on a whiteboard. I needed to know something about all of these aspects in the various interviews I had. There are times when I would have liked a little more one-on-one coaching but there was a silver lining to that. I was increasingly getting used to the idea of relying on myself to find the answers. Each day as I go to work now, I find that the ability to seek out and find the answers yourself is a crucial skill to do this for a living.
After I graduated, I had no shortage of interview opportunities around the Seattle area. I applied to just about everything even when I wasn’t sure I was qualified for it. Epicodus helped me polish my resume and my LinkedIn as part of their career support. This was especially helpful since I was new to IT.
All said and done, Epicodus was a great value especially for the price and I would recommend this school to others who are looking to get their foot in the door. Key things that you need to know before you start this is that determination and grit are the most important things. There will be days when you are sure that this is too hard for you. It will be much easier to quit. The important thing to understand is that you only need to survive. You will learn enough to open doors if you don’t quit. If you’ve never done coding before, expect it will likely be the most challenging educational curriculum of your life. When you get your first job, it will feel worth it. And I want to say it’s very nice to make the most money I’ve ever made while having a career that allows me to be creative on a daily basis. I really appreciate the opportunity that Epicodus created for me.
Employed in-field | 58.8% |
Full-time employee | 44.1% |
Full-time apprenticeship, internship or contract position | 8.8% |
Short-term contract, part-time, or freelance | 5.9% |
Started a new company or venture after graduation | 0.0% |
Not seeking in-field employment | 2.9% |
Employed out-of-field | 0.0% |
Continuing to higher education | 2.9% |
Not seeking a job for health, family, or personal reasons | 0.0% |
Still seeking job in-field | 17.6% |
Could not contact | 20.6% |
How much does Epicodus cost?
Epicodus costs around $8,700. On the lower end, some Epicodus courses like Intro to Programming (Part-Time) cost $100.
What courses does Epicodus teach?
Epicodus offers courses like C# and React, C# and React (Part-Time), Intro to Programming (Part-Time).
Where does Epicodus have campuses?
Epicodus has in-person campuses in Portland and Seattle. Epicodus also has a remote classroom so students can learn online.
Is Epicodus worth it?
The data says yes! In 2019, Epicodus reported a 72% graduation rate, a median salary of $75,000, and 59% of Epicodus alumni are employed. Epicodus hasn't shared alumni outcomes yet, but one way to determine if a bootcamp is worth it is by reading alumni reviews. 181 Epicodus alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Epicodus on Course Report - you should start there!
Is Epicodus legit?
We let alumni answer that question. 181 Epicodus alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Epicodus and rate their overall experience a 4.68 out of 5.
Does Epicodus offer scholarships or accept the GI Bill?
Right now, it doesn't look like Epicodus offers scholarships or accepts the GI Bill. We're always adding to the list of schools that do offer Exclusive Course Report Scholarships and a list of the bootcamps that accept the GI Bill.
Can I read Epicodus reviews?
You can read 181 reviews of Epicodus on Course Report! Epicodus alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Epicodus and rate their overall experience a 4.68 out of 5.
Is Epicodus accredited?
Epicodus is licensed by the Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission and Washington Workforce Board.
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