LeWagon Batch #86 - Lisbon Summer 2017

I’m an ex-strategy consultant and executive in the telecom industry on a sabbatical break from work. In my work experience I have regularly dabbled with different kinds of coding and with each experience it validated the hypothesis that coding can be a multiplier in one’s productivity. My goals for the course were to reinforce what I already knew (first few weeks) and add on with new skills to create an MVP end-to-end (rest of the course). 

First, the course runners “Drivers” in Lisbon are very good. Shannon is a superstar. With a lot of positive energy, she gave LeWagon a real sense of community. From the first conf. call to the final goodbyes, Shannon brought a certain thoughtfulness, competency and passion to the LeWagon Lisbon experience. Head instructor Carlos is an expert in some areas but also a true all rounder, he knows all the key areas to a sufficient level to teach any class in this syllabus. Further, he isn't afraid to say "I don't know" if he doesn't know the answer and roll up his sleeves along with us in searching for the answer. A very strong quality. Carlos was invaluable, especially in the final weeks. He showed a real dedication to the cohort projects’ success.

Second, the course is well structured and the material is excellent. LeWagon must balance between being accessible to people with no coding knowledge and also people with CS backgrounds that want to get into web development. Not easy. They manage this brilliantly by gearing the course toward the former and handle the latter scenario with many advanced, challenging optional exercises. The teachers are always monitoring your progress throughout the day through their student dashboard and are ready to direct you further if you complete the optionals. 

Going into it I wasn't sure what to expect. After all is said and done I am really glad I did the program. It reinforced what I already new, taught me countless new things and allowed me and the team we formed to develop something that was technically challenging for us and something that we are now proud of (briefcases.io). I think I underestimated what could be done in 9 days before the course. Very happy with the course on the whole. I would recommend LeWagon Lisbon wholeheartedly and unconditionally.

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Le Wagon was an oustanding experience; I basically went from being a bartender to being a full-stack developper.

The way they teach is incredibly efficient. I was surprised at how quickly one can learn something when the explaining is done right !

I wrote a blog article explaining my background : https://medium.com/@HersantPierre/one-year-of-web-development-after-a-bootcamp-c872b62d0faa

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Having spent 8 years in international education, I felt I was ready for a change. All I knew is that I wanted to either be self employed or work for a start up. So learning to code seemed like a good way to go.

I chose to do Le Wagon’s bootcamp in London, and exactly as their marketing suggests - It changed my life. Before starting this course I had not written a single line of code. Since finishing, I have built applications and websites for a number of clients and now decided to take on a full time position as a Back End Engineer at a very promising and well funded start up.

The curriculum is broad, and takes you from learning the basics of Ruby all the way through to shipping your own MVP. The field of web development is vast and ever changing, and the most important thing Le Wagon’s course structure gives you is the ability to efficiently and effectively continue learning.

Along with all of this, there is a very special culture at Le Wagon and it creates an exceptional and unique learning environment.

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  After some struggle with my studies and a one year trip in Australia, I wanted to start my own business in the digital industry but didn’t know where to start. I had an idea but not the skills to fulfill it, and I’ve realized that developers are very expansive and very hard to communicate with when you are not in the game. Then I’ve discovered Le Wagon. In 2 months i’ve learned  how to build  websites: OOP programming, Ruby, Ruby on Rails, HTML, CSS, JavaScript and much more. Le Wagon gave me a better understanding of the digital industry. The teaching methods are amazing, we have access to a web app that provide all the courses and exercises so we can work 24/7 if we want to. Working days are divided in three parts: theory course in the morning with great teachers, exercises in the afternoon and a good cold beer all together at the end. Finally the most important thing that Le Wagon taught me is learning how to learn.  I am now teaching myself Swift, a programming language for IOS app, in order to build my own product.

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Change your life: learn to code.
Le Wagon brings technical skills to creative people.

My name is Albert Montolio, spaniard, 30 years old, passionate of sports. That was an easy introduction. Actually I’d like to present myself as a person who likes to wake up early. Of course! There are so many beautiful things to do during the day. Now after LeWagon, even more.

A very short story about me: I studied mechanical engineering in Barcelona and I wound up working in Munich for a big automotive company. I liked a lot my job, it was in a research department, with cutting-edge technology. A dream-job. But after some years, the initial magic was fading away. Too easy, always the same, not challenging, who knows.

I was in a point in my life, where I was spending a lot of time talking about new technologies, apps, personal projects etc. The most common phrases at that time were: “ I have this idea, but I can not code”, “I don’t know any programmer”, “ I have an idea that I would love to do but I don’t have the time”, “I’ve tried to learn PHP on my own, but i’m getting stack and frustrated”, “it would be awesome to…”, etc. etc. etc. sounds familiar?

After talking, talking and talking, one day I decided to do what I really love. I was tired of not doing something. I decided to get into action. I decided to give me the skill of coding. Why? Because I want to create. I want to help people. I want to improve the world. I don’t care how and I don’t care if I succeed. I just want to do it.

At the beginning, coding was just a game of rules, given by the LeWagon teachers. If you write “redirect_to” and you pass the appropriate instance, the controller will send you to the appropriate view of your MVC. Ok. Got it. But following the rules was not the point of the game of coding. Behind these apparently insignificantly boring rules, the power of creating something marvelous was hidden. These lines of code, put it together in a harmonic way, could turn out into a real product that can help other people. That was amazing.

After the course, I am coding for my company web-based software, automating processes and making the day easier and nicer to a lot of employees. 10 fingers, 1 brain, a lot of passion and a lot of imagination. But that’s not even the best. 

Side-projects allow you to build what you’ve been dreaming your whole life. There are no excuses anymore. If you think it, if you want it. You code it. Just type and let it flow.

Last but not least, I can not end this personal summary without some words for the students and the teachers. Students with a lot of ideas, highly motivated. You go for a lunch with them, you come back to classes, and you are a wiser man. Regarding the teachers, they are not only very well prepared. The human level is out of charts. 

Everything that I wrote, are just words. Maybe exaggerated. Maybe distorted. Who cares, now we are coders, and we don’t need to talk about what we did or what we want to do. 

We code it. Period.

Albert

Follow me in www.github.com/albertmontolio

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When I heard about Le Wagon Lyon I had been coding for a few months on basic iOS apps. Coding was almost a random choice at first. I needed to learn something new and a friend of mine offered me to teach how to code. At some point I got really bored with my former job and more and more interested in coding. I decided to quit. But I wasn’t ready to apply for a job as a developer and that’s when Le Wagon started the bootcamp in Lyon.

I was looking for a quick and intense training that would hopefully allow me to find a job in a start-up as a developer. I have been immediately attracted to Le Wagon bootcamp when I read about it on the website. As soon as I got on the phone with Etienne, one of the drivers in Lyon, I knew this was a perfect fit for me. I couldn’t wait to begin.

It’s been 9 weeks really motivating to say the least. Every day I was excited about getting to work on the exercises, and it was sometime hard to get off the computer to get a lunch. In the last two weeks, we developed ‘We Dress Fair’ a platform to find in one click clothes that fit your ethic. It was really stimulating to learn how to work with a team of developers and how to stay organized to get the best project possible out of us.

A few weeks after Le Wagon, I found a job in Optimiz.me as a Full-Stack Web Developer surrounded by a great team. I am learning NodeJS. It has been hard at the beginning but the bootcamp gave me the knowledge and the mindset necessaries to get started quickly. I am learning new things and I get better everyday. I finally wake up every morning happy to go to work.

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After years studying marketing and e-commerce, I did one last internship. It made me notice the gap that too often exists between marketing and IT departments, even if they're inter-dependent. This professional experience decided me to learn how to code. At first, I just wanted to understand how it worked. But it motivated me to the point of joining Le Wagon batch #52 in Lyon, not without some pressure as I was total novice!

Best decision ever. I loved the 9-intensive weeks at Le Wagon, I learnt more there than in my entire Bachelor thanks to lovely and competent teachers Nicolas, Cecile, and obviously Kevin, and the drivers Mathieu and Etienne. Coding is a philosophy with principles and advantages: honesty, productivity, team spirit. Coding's also an eternal headache, but it keeps you excited and always more motivated to build great products!

Spending 9 weeks with the 13 incredible people of my batch was amazing, and I found a job thanks to one of our guest teacher in the month following the bootcamp! I work now at Meal Canteen as a fullstack web developer in Ruby on Rails, along with Baptiste Perrin (also from batch #52).

Meal Canteen is a great startup based in Saint-Etienne fighting against food waste where we're both lucky enough to work with seniors developers there and learn new things everyday. I would never been here without my experience at Le Wagon in Lyon!

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After short studies (level A in sales and marketing), I worked for a couple of years in call centers (health insurances, Pôle Emploi…) and as an operator-receptionist. But that was not for me. I gave up everything and started thinking about a new life. It's never too late to change your carrier, proof is I just turned 36!

I wanted to become a web developer. Well, I had this in mind for some time but I didn't dare to really do it, and I didn't know how to start… I first took online courses on HTML and CSS, I also tried another bootcamp but I wasn't satisfied and didn't feel strong enough afterwards.

As someone who never gives up and keep trying until I succeed, I applied to Le Wagon and joined the batch #52 in Lyon in January 2017. I got convinced by alumni reviews and already had a glimpse of their great teaching skills with Sébastien and Boris videos on Youtube.

I now believe it was one of the best decisions I made in my life, and it was worth all the sacrifices during the 9 weeks. Kevin (the lead teacher), Etienne & Mathieu (the drivers) and everyone was wonderful, the courses & materiel were very qualitative. Everything was just better than I expected!

During batch #52, our drivers organised us some interesting talks with recruitment agencies, developers, entrepreneurs every week. It was very helpful for my job hunting!

Every batch ends up with 3 weeks dedicated to projets. We work in teams on one Airbnb-like project for a week and on OUR own final projects for two weeks. My mates and I have built 'Easy Trip', a platform to help backpackers create trips together. We had a great experience together thanks to the great good mindset of each team member! And when the batch ended, we all gathered at my place for a week to keep on pushing the project further and learn new skills!

And the intensive work during and after the bootcamp has now paid! I'm about to start my very first job (and permanent contract) as a Ruby on Rails fullstack web-developer at Keycoopt, a startup promoting cooptation as the best way to quickly find the right candidate for a job! I can say truly Le Wagon changed my life, I finally feel confident and would recommend it to anyone.

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Before joining Le Wagon, I have been working as a mechanical engineer for more than 5 years and have accumulated abundant experience in the industry. However, I have always harbored great zest for programing and software engineering. So for me, the hardest part about learning to code from scratch is whether I’m willing to give up everything I’ve built up for myself in my previous field to embrace something completely new and challenging.

It wasn’t an easy decision to make. To start with, I was uncertain about my potential performance in coding due to my limited understanding of IT industry. And consulting the internet and reading online answers only made it more confusing for me, as those are all other people’s experience and opinions and each person varies in terms of ability. Age was my other concern since compared to other students I’m considered a late beginner. Extra effort is a must in order to bridge the gap between me and those who started in college. But in the end, I followed my heart to pursue what I’m really interested in- coding, and everything else matters less.

I didn’t hesitate at all to choose Le Wagon because based on my research, it is probably the best coding bootcamp available in China. My later satisfying experience in every aspect proved me right. Mentors here are experts with rich industrial experience, but except for the professional knowledge they delivered, the skill that we gained in learning new things is even more precious. I enjoyed very much the company and help of other fellow students as well. Every day was quite fulfilling when we immerse ourselves in numerous practices for better application of the theoretical knowledge.

We formed a team of 4 during the final 2 weeks to work on projects and I was in charge of the back-end development. Our team delivered an awesome social app in form of mini program since mobile app attracts more traffic nowadays compared to traditional websites. It was a great challenge but being able to overcome difficulties as a team and build up our own app is a fantastic feeling!

I didn't start job searching immediately after the camp but instead continued to strengthen all the skills I learned with the help from our mentors. Most of the camp graduates would choose to learn something new but for me reviewing has greater significance since it enables me to form a more comprehensive and productive knowledge framework. I feel very lucky to have received an offer from ALO7 to become a junior Ruby engineer 3 weeks after leaving Le Wagon. Despite many challenges ahead, It’s a great start!

Looking back at the 2 months spent at Le Wagon, coding apart, the strong bonding I harvested with mentors and students is to cherish for a lifetime. Hope Le Wagon will continue to do a great job in leading more people into the wonderland of coding!

参加Le Wagon之前我是一个有着多年工作经验的机械工程师，我在我工作的领域已经有了较丰富的经验。但是我一直对编程和软件工程怀有很大的兴趣，所以对于我来说学习编程最大的困难在于你是否可以放弃以前其它领域的相关经验，来学习一个完全新的事情。

做出这个决定对我来说其实并没有那么容易. 首先由于对这个领域并不是很了解，我不确定自己是否能够在这一领域做的很出色。 有的时候光看网络上的相关提问反尔会使自己越来越迷惑，因为那些都是别人的想法，而每个人的能力都是不一样的。 其次我最担心的是我的年龄， 因为相较于其它的学习者，我显然已经晚起步了好多年，大部分的编程人员从大学时期就已经开始学习编程， 而我显然需要付出更多的努力来缩小这些差距。 但是最后我选择听从我内心的想法， 做自己感兴趣的东西，其它的都是次要的。

选择Le Wagon对我来说其实并没有那么困难，因为这或许是在中国能选择的最好的编程训练营了。而事实也证明了它并没有辜负我的选择，每一个环节做的都很棒。首先导师们都是有着丰富的行业经验的专家， 这一点很重要，他们不光能教授专业的知识，更重要的是教授如何学习新东西的能力及技巧。 同时我们的每一个学员都很棒，大家都非常擅于学习并且互相帮助。 我们每天都会做大量的练习来帮助我们掌握当天教授的知识，这让我们很容易沉浸其中， 每一天都过得非常的充实。

最后的两周是我们完成最终作品的时间， 我们是一个四人的小组，而我主要负责后端的工作。我们选择制作一个社交应用，并且是以微信小程序的形式来呈现， 这让我们感觉很酷， 因为相比较传统的网站， 如今手机端的应用显然更加的受欢迎， 而我们通过两个月的学习可以亲手制作一个自己的手机应用， 这种成就感真的是太棒了。 虽然制做应用的过程充満了挑战， 但大家都异常的努力，一起克服着每一个困难， 我为我们每一个都感到骄傲！

训练营结束后， 我并没有立即去寻找合适的工作， 而是在导师的指导下继续强化之前所学到的东西。 大部分的人在训练营结束后可能会选择学习一些新的知识，  但对于我来说回过头去复习之前所学到的知识却是非常重要的，这一过程帮助我梳理了之前不太明白的知识， 也强化了整个编程的基础知识， 可以说对于之前的所学有了一个全新的理解。 幸运的是，在训练营结束后的第三周， 我得到爱乐奇(ALO7)的工作offer， 成为了一名初级的Ruby工程师。 虽然还有很多的挑战等待着我， 但这却也是一个不错的开始！

回首我们这两个月的训练营时光， 除了收获到的知识以外， 更重要的是收获到了学员和导师之间的友情， 这对我来说是弥足珍贵的， 希望这份友谊可以永远的保持下去。 真心希望Le Wagon可以越办越好， 可以让更多的人进入编程的世界， 并从中受益！

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My name is Arbi Velaj, I am an economics graduate and I did my masters at Bocconi University, in Milan. During my academic path I slowly started to realize that what I was doing was not fitting my intellectual needs, so I began to look for something different.

At first, I was considering the idea of doing a bachelor in computer science, but then I heard about Le Wagon in Barcelona. I worked to save enough for the course fee and then applied for the batch, and I managed to get through the selection process. I had very high expectations, and I am very glad to say that what I got exceeded those expectations. 

In two full-immersion months you can learn not only to code, but also to think as a developer. Le Wagon gives you all the tools and skills necessary to begin learning independently everything related to programming, and its approach prepares you for the challenges of learning in a very dynamic environment.

Eventually, one of the aspects that unexpectedly surprised me the most was the final project: during the last two weeks of the bootcamp you start a group project with which you will make your idea become reality. It is incredible that in two months you become able to create something valuable and to experience the start up environment and journey from the very beginning!

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Le Wagon's 9-Week Web Development Bootcamp was the most fun I've ever had learning anything ever. After 9 weeks, I can call myself a fullstack developer with knowledge of Ruby on Rails, HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, jQuery, SQL, ActiveRecord, GitHub, Heroku etc etc. If you don't know what any of these words mean, neither did I when I first started the course! And certainly during the first two weeks, it seemed like I wouldn't ever know what they meant but through super capable teachers and teaching assistants, through trusting the constantly improving syllabus and the exercises and most importantly, through believing in yourself, there will come a day during this course when it all starts to make sense!

And that's when the fun will start! For me, after that point, I couldn't wait for the lectures to finish so I could actually start coding (#nerdalert). I couldn't wait to raise more tickets (equivalent of raising your hand) to just absorb as much as I could from the teachers/TAs. When we got to project week, our group was just chill party vibes and we maked dis - www.frida.studio.

The best part about this whole thing is that even after the bootcamp is over, after you've become fullstack and after you've made permanent friendships, you will have the support of the Le Wagon global community (consisting of teachers and alumni) willing to help you with any issues you run into. I'd say that's a good investment!

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Le Wagon, Paris

I already had basic programming skills but wanted to go a step further and learn product-oriented and startup-pragmatic coding !

A few months after my bootcamp's end, I have built my product MVP and am confident in my skills to further develop the product with the junior dev team we are hiring.

I thank Le Wagon for that. Not only for the quality of the academic training but for everything that is around it and really makes the difference:
- The project / startup oriented mindset
- The dedicated and fun team
- The meetups
- The online resources (available even after the bootcamp and very useful)

In addition to that, the community is awesome and supportive. For instance, when I'm struggling on some technical choices, a message on the slack "help channel" always receives expert and constructive answers.

Le Wagon is clearly among the best training experiences I had. I totally recommend this training:
- for entrepreneurs who want to learn to understand and talk to their dev team
- or for freelancers / entrepreneurs who want to develop strong full-stack skills

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After almost 3,5 years as a partner in a fast-growing startup, it was time for me to challenge myself again and to start a new entrepreneurial project. 
To make the transition, I wanted to take time to learn new things and code has been an evidence. I choose LeWagon, 9 intense weeks to transform you in a full stack developer, and on my side open my mind to a totally new subject I really took pleasure to learn. 
Online courses are clear and the Parisian staff is just amazing. 
I totally recommend this training for entrepreneurs who want to learn how to understand and talk to their dev team!

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I have a strong interest in entrepreneurship and innovation. After 4 years in a business school, I took a gap year and left for NYC, where I interned for a startup, and then for a business angel. But this year couldn't have ended better than with Le Wagon.

The program is really intense; I spent 9 weeks thinking and dreaming of code… and I can say that I am not the only one. Days are well structured, as we start with the lesson of the day, and then we work in pairs (different every day) on exercises related to the lesson.  At the end of the day, we come back to class to do a recap. 
We learnt a few different languages. If you have difficulties to understand something, teachers are here to help. If you are faster than others, this is the same. The program adapts to you, and not the other way around. 

The people I've met have different interests and come from different industries. However, we all share this passion for innovation and desire to build amazing things, which makes Le Wagon's community awesome. 

I would recommend Le Wagon to anybody passionate about entrepreneurship and… willing to work hard and play hard!

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I have been part of TheWagon Batch#70. Before that, I was a growth hacker in a parisian accelerator and I wanted to be able to work on side projects on my own. After two months that seemed two days, I am now launching a startup with a friend I met there.

One may judge the quality of this bootcamp as per the complete set of skills the alumni show afterwards. However, there is no words fair enough to qualify the benevolence of the team, the excellence of the platform and the talent of the people you are likely to meet there.

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I was a student in batch #48 at Le Wagon in Paris. Before Le Wagon, I had studied finance, international relations and Islamic studies (quite a mix, I know) and worked as a political researcher, and as a news producer in a international news channel.

I joined Le Wagon because I wanted to set up my own news-related website. I attended the bootcamp while studying towards a master's degree on the side, which I don't recommend, because Le Wagon will need your full attention, and missing even one day in an intensive coding bootcamp can set you back quite much (I ended missing a few days, because of family circumstances, because I got sick, and also because I had to study for my exams).

There, in the last three weeks, three of my classmates and I built a service that helps people in need to find soup kitchens and free meals near them using simple text messaging. After the bootcamp, we are still working on the website and have transformed it into an non-profit association.

Le Wagon was an intense experience, one of the best in my life. And it wasn't easy: frustrating at first, but rewarding at the end. And the key is not to give up. Besides learning how to code, I made some really good friends, and I also had the pleasure to meet some great people amongst the teachers, teachers' assistants and staff.

I highly recommend Le Wagon to anyone who wants to learn code.

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My name is Mendy and I was part of Le Wagon's batch#67 in Bordeaux which ended in June 2017. For a long time, I have searched what I wanted to do with my life. I did some learning at university in psychology and dramatic arts, but college was not for me. Then one day, I found Le Wagon Bootcamp. 
Being comfortables with computers ever since I was a child and being already proficient in HTML/CSS languages. I tempted my fate after many searches about it.

And I fall in love with coding, Ruby, Rails, Javascript, all ! Now, I know what I want to do with my life, Web Developper. Wagon's pedagogy played a big part in my experience. The staff and my batch were incredible too, humanly rewarding. It was 10h/day during two months and I didn't see it pass. Each lesson was exciting and it's the guy who doesn't like school who write that. That was an amazing oportunity and I'm glad I took it.

Two months later, I've new skills, more than I thought and although I still have a lot to learn, I can create a website, from scratch.

An unforgettable experience.  

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I discovered the Wagon early 2016. They were hosting a hackathon at their headquarters and I remember the first impression I had. It can be difficult to find the balance between professionalism and fun in an office but the Wagon managed to do find it and to have this friendly vibe going on.
I come from a background in journalism and the media, with a focus on writing, reporting and digital screenwriting. To go further in that specialisation, I decided to learn how to code, to be able to create myself prototypes of the interactive experiences I offered. It was like the missing piece for my professional profile to be complete.
I had been used, with public bachelors and private education, to a very specific and old school kind of learning and teaching. Furthermore, like most students in the world I had been used to being assessed with grades, which is in my personal opinion a very outdated pedagogical system.
The Wagon is the total opposite. It allows you to develop your autonomy, your critical thinking and to learn in ways never seen before. In many ways, the Wagon is the Montessori of the web.
A typical day at the Wagon goes as follows: 1h30/2h of classes, a few minutes to share your thoughts, some exercises specific to the topic tackled that day until 5.30pm and to conclude, 1h30 of "live coding" to teach you how to solve a problem and to demonstrate your strategy. These days were supervised by the Wagon's staff and made easier thanks to the interactive platform we all worked on. You can see your improvements, watch videos of former and future classes and to practice what you learned thanks to "flash cards", a game that help you memorise new learned theories.
One of the major assets of the Wagon is its collaborative aspect. I was especially impressed by the patience, kindness and empathy of the people I shared these two months with. Indeed, I was quite worried before starting the course: I am not a very logic person, I'm really bad with maths and I hadn't understood the few lines of code during the prep-work, so I feared to be lost. But that's where the name Wagon makes suddenly a lot of sense: we're all in the same boat, the same coach (or wagon!). Despite the different levels of the students, we all moved forward together, feeling supported. Whenever you feel lost in front of the code, it never lasts long, someone will always give you a hand and make sure you really understood before moving to the next step.
Two other major positive points of the Wagon are the T.A. (teacher assistants) and the buddies.
For my batch#67 (my training session), all the teacher assistants were former students, often from only a few months ago. They're available all day to answer your questions and help you with whatever you need. It is very motivating and helps you stay into it and never feel lost or overwhelmed by these long lines of code.
The buddies, another great initiative, is a system of partnership with other alumnis. An algorithm on the online interface matches you with an alumni to team up with for the day. Changing teammates every day is a very enriching experience because it makes you deal with different levels, skills, personalities and perspectives. It makes you improve faster.
Sure, you could learn by yourself online. I thought of doing it to. But the money you'll save will never replace what you'll learn at the Wagon. As a proof, Sylvain the referring professor in Bordeaux has learned in many years what we learn in 2 months, and with a better support, a better understanding and better tools.
I can't recommend the Wagon more. You don't need to be familiar with coding, to be super logical or have a 160 IQ. You only need to be friendly and open-minded!
Attending the Wagon's course was one of the best experiences of my life and without a doubt the best learning one. I didn't only learn new skills but also a new way of thinking, autonomy and I have gained more confidence and patience. The staff is outstanding and the experience life-changing. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in digital jobs.

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We all know about the fever of entrepreneurship that’s taking the world by storm.

As a multidisciplinary designer and strategic thinker, I have become an opportunist. I saw in every problem that surround me, an idea for a service, a *platform*, an app or whatever can be made and turned into a money making machine.

In today’s world everything is becoming digital driven. Learning to code is a must for everyone. Even kids are learning to code with legos!

Lacking coding skills, and finding that online courses weren’t sufficent I decided to join le Wagon Paris.

And it was the best decision of my life!

Everyday I learned a tons of things, everyday I got more and more comfortable with code. Everyday I was learning to communicate, build and collaborate with other developers. To sum it up, I acquired avant-garde skills that are on high demand in every sectors.

I can testify that in a two-month period at le Wagon, I learned much more than I did during my two-year master. The program is so well designed from its morning lectures, its all day coding practices with a buddy, its livecoding sessions and finally to its end-of-program projects, that in the end, all the pieces fall together making you are capable of coding your own website right away!

The teachers were amazing, very patient and super friendly! They have an amazing system to help you when you’re stuck with the code that will allow you to learn and reflect on your mistakes and Surprise! A lot of good cold beer to chill out your brain at the end of the day!

In the end, not only it was an amazing experience, but the adventure continues. You will become part of an alumni network where you can find ressources, ask questions or even find work.

If you want to become a developer, a piece of advice, join le Wagon, work hard play hard, build a family with your classmates and enjoy the experience!

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Having spent the last 17 years as a qualified management accountant I wanted to do something more creative and interesting towards the end of 2016. I had heard about how software development was experiencing a boom and there weren't enough applicants to fill vacancies. 

I tried Codecademy and loved it and decided to go to a bootcamp to immerse myself in the field. But there are lots of them out there: which one to choose? After doing a bit of research online Le Wagon was the one as it was regularly rated as one of the best, not just in the country but the world. After being accepted on the course I did the prep work and the course started in April. 

I didn't know what to expect and was a bit apprehensive but the staff members soon put me at ease. They really are a great support. Very knowledgeable and approachable I found they will go out of their way to help you. They make a huge difference to what I achieved. There were some great people in the class with me. A lot of them were in the same boat as me, never having coded before and we got along really well and I've made some friends for life. 

The course itself is very challenging and it needs complete dedication. But it is so rewarding. At first I wondered if I was going to be able to keep up but you get used to the pace. It soon started making sense. The best bit was doing a personal project in the last 2 weeks in a team. I was in a team of 3 people and thoroughly enjoyed creating an MVP from scratch. This was real world experience that was so valuable. 

It culminated with me giving a presentation at the Google campus (I've never given a presentation in-front of so people in my life) on our product and that was so much fun. The decision to switch to software development was quite easily one of the best in my life and I couldn't have chosen a better partner than Le Wagon to help me get started. Accounting is definitely in the rear view mirror!

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Having been working in a French start-up for 4 years in Canada, wearing different hats (Project/Product Manager), I wanted to fill technical gaps by learning more about coding. 
Comparing different schools in North America and Europe, I was convinced Le Wagon would offer me the best option. The learning curve seemed amazing, and they focused a lot in creating an efficient and international tech community which I wanted to be part of.
Based on the reviews, I had high expectations about the FullStack program and all of them were exceeded. 

During my time at Le Wagon, we were completely immersed in the tech environment. Since day one, you understand that this is a boosting environment and that you need to make the best of it. The tech world changes fast, and they teach you how to adapt to it. I can now fully understand how coding affects performance and where to get the information I need to keep learning.

Looking back at the 9-week-program now, I realise how much we have learned and accomplished. We were able to get a taste and use a lot of different technologies and languages, we've also got to play with APIs and build projects with other students.
People at Le Wagon share a genuine interest in entrepreneurship, and it drives you to learn more every day. You will be mentored by teachers who are always happy to help or offer advice, and get the chance to attend diverse conferences about entrepreneurship.

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Before I started at Le Wagon I had been running a travel blog for several years. During that time, I became frustrated with my inability to add new features to the blog without relying on a developer. I also have plenty of ideas for new projects within the travel industry, but again, without the technical knowhow or serious investment, they were very difficult to get off the ground. 

I stumbled onto Le Wagon coding school earlier this year and decided if I was ever going to take my ideas further I was going to need to learn to code. It happened to be one of the best training decisions I ever made. The course is intense, there is a lot of information to take in within a short space of time, but they took me from no knowledge of coding to being able to build a website in 9 weeks. 

Each morning starts with a new lecture, after which you spend the rest of the day practicing those skills in well-designed exercises. The teachers and assistants were all first class. Knowledgeable, patient, and eager to help every student understand every element of the course.  The course is well structured and by the time you reach the final project in the last two weeks, each student has the ability to work on both the front and back end. Our team of four created a web application that simulated a recipe app. 

This included a tinder-style swiper which learnt the ingredients you did and didn't like and offered recipes based on your tastes. Since finishing the course, I'm now working on my new project, a travel company which creates short food tours led by chefs. I'm currently writing this from Bangkok where we've created the first tour and I'm working on building the website. I really couldn't recommend this course highly enough to anyone who wants a change of career or anyone who wants to model their own ideas.

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The "change your life, learn to code" headline might sound like an overstatement, but it's not. Le Wagon is allowing me to change my life and to get closer to my goals.

Programming was never a strange thing to me. I attended Engineering School, where I learned some C and Assembly. Working on financial markets for the last 11 years got me some VBA skills.

But web programming was way ahead of my understanding.

Before Le Wagon I tried to read some books, to follow some tutorials, to watch some videos. The information was so diffused that it took months to get me from zero to almost nothing. Alone and not having too much time on my hands, it was very hard to know what to read and where to focus.

When I learned about Le Wagon, I felt that it was for me.

It doesn't matter if you know some programming or if you have never seen a single line of code at all. If you feel that you would be closer to your goals if you had the ability to code a web app, you have the fit to attend Le Wagon.

The last 2 weeks of the course, when you join a team to build a real application (my team built the mvp of a headhunter marketplace), have the power to show you what you can do in real life.

The curriculum is results driven and will get you from 0 to 1 in an unbelievable short time. The teaching platform is amazing. After the 9 weeks, you'll have all the essentials to follow ahead by your own feet.

Now, after Le Wagon, I'm co-founding a energy trading company. Despite this being a more 'traditional' company (by not being part of the startup world), Le Wagon is allowing us to leverage the potential of our new company: I'm building a back office web platform - something that's not common for this kind of business.

Don't get intimidated if you don't have familiarity with coding. If you love tech and have the urge to build stuff, Le Wagon can help you.

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I came across Le Wagon in a somewhat random, unintentional way. I once had a long layover and I joined a digital entrepreneurship meet up organised by Le Wagon. When I met the team and the batch students, I immediately fell in love with their vibe. Since that moment on, the idea of signing up for Le Wagon was seeded in my mind.

I am a psychologist by training, and I have mostly worked in human resources as a consultant. Nevertheless, I have always been a technology enthusiast. I wanted to steer my career towards the tech field, either as an entrepreneur or as a consultant. In order to be effective when working with developers, I thought doing a coding bootcamp would give me the right foundation. I decided to join Le Wagon in Barcelona, and it was the perfect match for me - While the course gives you a rock-solid background in coding, the focus on agility and acquiring the skills to launch your own projects as fast as possible is always present throughout the curriculum.

What I did not expect is that Le Wagon would also spark a passion for coding. I had zero background in coding prior to the bootcamp, and I was amazed at what I was able to build in a team after only 9 weeks. The positive atmosphere, the constant challenge in combination with the attentive support of the teaching staff equipped me to become self-driven as a junior developer by the end of the process.

After finishing, I can say that Le Wagon is way more than a coding course. You will interact with a variety of highly skilled professors, you will join a community of talented people from all sorts of backgrounds, and you will have an incredible alumni network to tap into whether you are looking for a developer job, freelance opportunities or kicking off your own venture. When I look at how much I’ve learned, and the opportunities that I now have in front of me, I can only say that going through Le Wagon has been the best career-changing decision I could have taken.
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