Protect your data
We use cookies to provide our services, improve the user experience, for analysis and marketing purposes. By giving your consent, you also agree that your data may be transferred to the USA by the use of cookies. You can revoke your consent at any time. You can find further information in our privacy policy and cookie policy.
Flatiron School offers immersive on-campus and online programs in software engineering, data science, cybersecurity, and product design (UX/UI design). Flatiron School’s immersive courses aim to launch students into fulfilling careers by providing a robust career services framework and dedicated one-on-one coaching post graduation that is included as an added value with the tuition.
The application process asks prospective students to share a bit about themselves and what is driving them to start a career. The process includes speaking with an Admissions representative in a non-technical interview to allow for the opportunity to get to know each other better in a friendly conversation. Applicants will also need to complete a 15-minute critical thinking and problem-solving assessment afterwards. Applicants will receive an acceptance decision from Admissions within 4 business days of completing the assessment.
Flatiron School’s Career Services team provides weekly 1:1 career coaching sessions, mock interviews, and access to an extensive employer network to help students launch fulfilling careers in tech after graduation.
Flatiron School powers the Access Scholarship which invested $1.5 million into the futures of more than 500 students across all of Flatiron School’s campuses and online courses in 2020. The Access Scholarship opens doors for aspiring innovators who may have experienced barriers to education. To build a more diverse and inclusive tech community, Flatiron School has awarded over $10 million in scholarships for women, minorities, veterans, and other underrepresented groups in tech.
Flatiron School was one of the first bootcamps in the industry and a pioneer in providing 3rd party examined job placement reports. Read their full independently-examined jobs reports at: https://flatironschool.com/jobs-reports/
tl;dr: I attended The Flatiron School's online program, Learn Verified, from January to April, 2016. I worked freelance/contracting gigs for a bit, then finally landed a full-time job as a web developer in September 2016.
The Long Story
I have been writing code forever, but I've had relatively little formal education in it. As 2015 drew to a close, I was in a bad spot and I needed a dramatic change. My job sucked. I had no money and no p...
tl;dr: I attended The Flatiron School's online program, Learn Verified, from January to April, 2016. I worked freelance/contracting gigs for a bit, then finally landed a full-time job as a web developer in September 2016.
The Long Story
I have been writing code forever, but I've had relatively little formal education in it. As 2015 drew to a close, I was in a bad spot and I needed a dramatic change. My job sucked. I had no money and no prospects for getting any. I didn't have any self-confidence, really, or maybe I just didn't feel like I had a place in the world. Things now are incredible. But I'm already getting ahead of myself.
For the past year or 18 months, I'd been teaching myself to code, but it was a really unfocused effort. I did a million tutorials. I took a few edX courses. But I didn't really feel like I was making a lot of forward progress. I started researching bootcamps. I live in the Austin, TX area and there are actually quite a few in-person bootcamps, but they've all got a hefty price tag - well north of $10k. I quickly ruled that out. I started reading about online bootcamps, and to be perfectly honest, they seemed like a little too good to be true. Looking back, I think it was the combination of desperation and motivation which made me even consider it in the first place. I liked that Flatiron offered a 'monthly subscription' payment model, which would further encourage me to crank through the coursework. I'd recently received my tax return and had some meager savings, so I needed to plow through the material and get a job ASAP. I quit my job and enrolled. A 'sink or swim' or 'do or die' type of situation might not appeal to you, but it was what I needed.
I think this past programming knowlege was the fulcrum, with Flatiron the lever which allowed me to succeed. I couldn't have done it with only one half of that equation. Over the course of months, I witnessed many, many students just failing to comprehend a lot of the concepts in the course. I think it might be disengenuous to imply that in only 12 weeks, a person can go from only a casual experience in writing code to a person who is hireable; even as a 'junior developer.' If you have very little or no software development experience and you're considering a coding bootcamp, I'd encourage you to spend a good amount of time doing independent study beforehand. Remember, Flatiron advertises some pretty impressive job placement rates, but that definitely is predicated upon you actually finishing the course. I would estimate that the washout rate is quite high. Additionally, take a close look at the terms of service: Your work is far, FAR from done once you graduate.
After completing the coursework, I hustled a little and got a couple part-time/contract gigs, one of which *REALLY* saved me from putting in an application at Best Buy or The Home Depot. I owe a *lot* to that employer; it wasn't the best arrangement, by far, but it allowed me to keep my head above water. If you're considering quitting your job to do a coding bootcamp, make absolutely sure you can foot the bill: I'd try to plan to have 3-6 months of expenses *after* you complete the program. Engaging in a full-scale job hunt while at the same time working a lousy retail job doesn't sound like my cup of tea, and that doesn't take into account writing blog posts, working on side projects to get your github profile looking attractive, etc. It's really hard. If you can do it, I would suggest you see if you can keep your current job or work reduced hours while you work through the course.
The Curriculum
The curriculum isn't the best, but it's not the worst, either. A lot of the stuff at the beginning is really good, but that's because it's been combed through by a lot more people, but that shouldn't really count for anything, because there are a million and one entry-level tutorials out there. The more advanced topics (Javascript/Angular) were really, really, REALLY lacking. Also, because much of the material was still being produced as I was completing the program (I think the online program launched about 3 months before I enrolled), none of the tutors really had any experience with the material. They could answer questions about Tic-Tac-Toe all day long without breaking a sweat, but when you've got questions about Angular's directives vs components, well... good luck.
I think that the main benefit of the curriculum, at least for me, was that it provided me a good roadmap for the knowledge I needed to follow. First procedural Ruby, then SQL (I think), then OOP with Ruby, then Rails, then jQuery with Rails, etc. I really felt carried along in my learning. That is, like I said, until the later part of the course. I swear, I'm done with Angular 1.x, like, for life.
Student Support
I started the program pretty early on. Avi, the school's dean, was pretty available most of the time (that dude is a machine; I wonder if he sleeps). The tutors were hit or miss, lots of times they were previous graduates of the in-person program, and when I was going through, the curriculum had grown significantly since they had finished. There wasn't a lot of help. Additionally, since they valued a 'community' of self-support (hard to get when you're at the leading edge of the program like I was, with only three or four students ahead of me), they resisted putting together any kind of 'knowledge base' which you could reference. This reliance on 'asking if you need help' is a two-edged sword, because a lot of the students never got in the habit of researching the answers for themselves. After all, you can just hit the 'ask a question' button and someone will help you out! Not a good way to breed self-reliance in a developer. Nowadays, I probably spend an hour or two a day just Googling stuff. I can ask my mentor, but he's got his own work to do, know what I mean?
I do wish there were more opportunities for code review. I had three or four, I believe, and only one of them was really in-depth. Maybe it was because I was clearly 'getting it' and didn't need advice, but I know that my code style was pretty naive and I could've used more direction in that regard. Plus, as you get further into the program, a lot of issues are not really suited for an 'ask a question' sort of venue. If you're having difficulty understanding asynchronous javascript, what you really need is for someone to sit down with you for 20 minutes and work it all out with you. The tutors are all answering a handful of questions at once, jumping back and forth from you to any number of other students. It can make what would be a simple exchange a pretty drawn-out process.
Job Search
Looking for a job as a fresh bootcamp graduate was one of the most humbling and difficult things I've ever done in my life. Face it, bootcamps don't have a great reputation for churning out well-qualified coders. My city has a decent 4-year school with a good CS program, PLUS three or four in-person bootcamps. The market is pretty close to saturated. You've got to be a real self-starter, super positive (but not like, "crazy" positive) person. You've got to be the kind of person that people want to work with every day. I'm a little older (39 this summer), so I've had plenty of experience working, and a good amount of experience on the 'other' side of hiring and interviewing. That experience has given me a good perspective into the nature of work, what makes a good hire, how to conduct yourself in an interview, etc. I think that if you are lacking in technical ability (and let's be honest here, if you complete a coding bootcamp, you are really only barely hireable, skills-wise), you've got to be a 'right fit' kind of hire - good attitude, ready for a challenge, eager to learn, etc. You've also got to be lucky enough to find a firm who is willing to invest a *LOT* of time and money in growing you as a developer. I'm about 5 months in now, and every day is still a challenge. I'm *really* slow still, but I get there in the end.
Wrapping Up
In some ways, I feel a little bad about not giving Flatiron a 5-star review. After all, I achieved my goal. I'm living the dream. I have a well-paying job with great coworkers, plenty of opportunity for learning and growth. My job gave me a new Macbook Pro :) I get to write code all day long. I wake up every day excited to go to work, and I dream about code every night. But the reality is that *I* did it. I made a decision to change my life, and I used the tools I could find. Was Flatiron the perfect tool for that job? Probably not, but honestly I'm not sure what it would've looked like. I value that experience and knowledge that Flatiron gave me. I'd probably do the same thing if I had the chance to do it over (but, like high school, who would really want to do that?). I can't tell you if a coding bootcamp, or the Flatiron School in particular are right for you. I *can* tell you that it'll be pretty tough. It'll test your self-esteem and your dedication. It'll make you push yourself. Maybe that's what you need. It's what I needed. Good luck.
Description | Percentage |
Full Time, In-Field Employee | 72.6% |
Full-time apprenticeship, internship or contract position | 13.5% |
Short-term contract, part-time position, freelance | N/A |
Employed out-of-field | N/A |
How much does Flatiron School cost?
Flatiron School costs around $17,900. On the lower end, some Flatiron School courses like Data Science cost $16,900.
What courses does Flatiron School teach?
Flatiron School offers courses like Cybersecurity Engineering , Data Science , Product Design (UX/UI Design), Software Engineering .
Where does Flatiron School have campuses?
Flatiron School has in-person campuses in Denver and New York City. Flatiron School also has a remote classroom so students can learn online.
Is Flatiron School worth it?
The data says yes! In 2022, Flatiron School reported a 70% graduation rate, a median salary of $72,000, and 90% of Flatiron School alumni are employed.
Is Flatiron School legit?
We let alumni answer that question. 577 Flatiron School alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Flatiron School and rate their overall experience a 4.46 out of 5.
Does Flatiron School offer scholarships or accept the GI Bill?
Right now, it doesn't look like Flatiron School 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 Flatiron School reviews?
You can read 577 reviews of Flatiron School on Course Report! Flatiron School alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed Flatiron School and rate their overall experience a 4.46 out of 5.
Is Flatiron School accredited?
We are licensed (or otherwise authorized) in various jurisdictions for all Immersive courses. See flatironschool.com for more details.
Just tell us who you are and what you’re searching for, we’ll handle the rest.