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LEARN Academy is a 16-week, live-remote web development bootcamp available to students across the United States. LEARN Academy is committed to creating opportunities for individuals to thrive in the tech industry. The bootcamp is held Monday through Friday from 9AM-5PM PT. The comprehensive full stack curriculum covers JavaScript, HTML, CSS, React, Git, GitHub, pair programming, and more. Students will also complete a 160-hour, live-remote Learnship, where they can dive into real-world projects, while building their skills of working within a technical team.
LEARN Academy accepts students from diverse backgrounds, and no prior coding experience is necessary to enroll. For coding beginners, LEARN Academy offers a web developer bootcamp prep course (Jumpstart) and additional resources to ensure all students are ready for the bootcamp.
LEARN Academy understands that career development is essential for success in the tech industry. In addition to coding, LEARN Academy also teaches students how to find a job. Students will learn how to write resumes, develop their portfolio, negotiate a good salary, prepare for interviews, network, set up a LinkedIn profile, and more.
LEARN Academy is committed to supporting each student's career development even after they land their first job through ongoing support, alumni events, and additional training. The goal is to help students build a fulfilling and successful career in tech.
I attended this bootcamp on a scholarship in which the entire tuition was waived. So first I wanted to express my gratitude for the people at LEARN for providing me that amazing opportunity. I probably would have not attended had it not been for this scholarship. I just wanted to preface my review with that so you understand the context of it since it might not contain the same kind of cost/benefit complaints that many other reviews contain.
I ...
I attended this bootcamp on a scholarship in which the entire tuition was waived. So first I wanted to express my gratitude for the people at LEARN for providing me that amazing opportunity. I probably would have not attended had it not been for this scholarship. I just wanted to preface my review with that so you understand the context of it since it might not contain the same kind of cost/benefit complaints that many other reviews contain.
I think the great thing about this bootcamp is that it's run by a husband/wife team and that the wife is actually the CEO. I think that is quite inspiring for many women coming into this industry filled with sexism. She advocates for inclusion and has given talks on such topics in the community which I think is something different than other bootcamps. This place feels like a safe environment.
My cohort was small and we all managed to bond very well with each other. This bootcamp was very adamant about not studying any new material once we left after 5pm. Though I definitely think that reviewing some material for a while when you go home by yourself is great to solidify the concepts.
This bootcamp labels itself as a Javascript/Rails focused bootcamp but that may be misleading. Of course when building web apps Javascript is going to be dabbled in much of the time so it never really goes away. But we don't necessarily focus on it too much. We spend about 2 weeks doing Javascript and we actually learn programming concepts through this language. I think this the time period during the course that I actually felt my mind being stretched. After this period, we move into Ruby but I felt like we should have spent more time in it. The curriculum didn't feel as challenging during the Ruby portion which was about a week. When we moved into Rails I lost that 'stretchy' feeling and I didn't really feel like I was doing any 'programming' but merely managing this vast library that is Rails which is fine, but I felt like concepts were beginning to slip away from my mind.
Now this kind of segues into why I titled my title the way I did. During the course we pair program everyday. We would have a standup sessoin in the morning where we talk about what we 'Mad, Sad, Glad, or scared' about and check-in. then we would have a presentation on a topic, and after that we would pair up and practice what we just learned.
In certain respects, pair programming is great because if you get stuck, your partner is there to provide an alternate perspective and you are able to keep moving fairly quickly. The thing in my mind that I felt like could have been improved and this is might be a more a personal issue, is that you inevitably come to a point where your stuck and your partner may find a way to get unstuck for you but you might not understand how they came up with the solution they did. Asking questions and requesting them over and over to explain something to you sometimes isn't effective and isn't in the best interest of time. Some people work very fast, and some things click for them more readily whereas others learn differently. People going into bootcamps come from VASTLY different backgrounds, some may have had exposure to programming, some have math degrees, some have no exposure whatsoever. I found myself taking a backseat a lot and letting the other person drive because I just didn't think I was grasping things as quickly as they were. In this short time period, your going to have vastly different outcomes depending on the student.
This is where the time-based nature of the course comes to the forefront and I think is the biggest obstacle to truly learning concepts for some people. Keep in your mind that this is a BOOTCAMP, with all the implicatoins that that entails. You will be exposed to concepts and then PUSHED through the curriculum whether or not you understand them fully. There were times where I felt like I was just going through the motions and was completely lost but didn't feel like reaching out realy helped me out either. The TA's couldn't really provide the personal attention needed to truly help, they always seemed to be pre-occupied with other things, or perhaps they are just introverted. This is the problem with time-based education, or the factory model which bootcamps emulate from the traditional school system. You need to realy dig into these concepts that your learning and your going to need repetition, and when your only their for a few months, your inevitably going to feel pressure.
What I wish was that they had more instructors who had experience in the industry. We had one head instructor who was very knowledgable but I don't think he knew how to relate to people too well despite having a degree in counseling. I perceived him as being impatient, elitist and authoritarian. He would frequently 'hush' or interrupt what they were saying to people when they would try to explain their disagreements, or get quite short with them when they weren't getting something as quickly as he wanted. This kind of behaviour doesn't encourage students to want to ask questions if they feel they are going to be attacked subtly by doing so. I'm not the only one who felt this. The TA's were helpful at times and not so much at other times, as they were also grads of the same bootcamp.
This bootcamp is also unique in that they provide a one month internship with a local company. These companies rotate every cohort. Some were looking to hire someone, some weren't. Some are paid, some are not. Some companies came and gave presentations and we would rank them. After the rankings the LEARN team then setup interviews based on wht we ranked, though not everyone gets what they want. Then after the interviews we would rank them again, and the companies would rank the the interviewees, and again LEARN would try to find the best fit.
The companies are vastly different in size, ranging from startups without office space with 5 employees, to established companies. But I think on the whole the internship is valuable to providing real world experience that you can use on a resume'. There is also a group project during the last two weeks where we built out a complete web app from scratch utilizing the Agile process with daily scrum sessions. At the end of the two weeks we had a demo night to the local community. This experience was very valuable as well, as now we have an app that we can use in our portfolio.
The bootcamp industry needs a lot of work and I don't know how much longer it's going to be around, but despite my criticisms, I am grateful for the exposure I received to a new field. I feel the large part of the value of being in a bootcamp is being dropped into the middle of a pre-existing network of people who are in the industry and who can help you navigate the waters of moving into a new industry. You can go to meetups with people from your cohort, find out about jobs through your network of peers, and for that the experience is valuable.
Thanks to a presentation that the CEO Chelsea gave about finding your motivations. I was able to really clarify what motivated me to be in the tech industry. This clarification was something that definitely boosted my confidence and helped me figure out a way to present myself to people that I felt was true to what I am passionate about. I think that was one of the most helpful things during the course because there were times where I was questioning myself asking 'What am I doing here? '. I discovered and connected my passion for open source, with sustainable agriculture, social justice and worker co-ops. Now I have a clearer picture of where I want to go in the future.
Overall I am very grateful for my experience and I feel confident in the direction I need to go now in my learning.
I attended LEARN Academy in 2018 or their Alpha cohort from January to May. Two days before starting LEARN I had my last shift at the deli I worked at the time. Four months later I was signing an offer letter with the words 'Software Engineer' in the opening paragraph. LEARN can absolutely change your life, but only if you jump in the deep end.
MY STORY
I started LEARN with about 50-60 hours of self study, much of it directed by the prep work for the course. I knew that I had t...
I attended LEARN Academy in 2018 or their Alpha cohort from January to May. Two days before starting LEARN I had my last shift at the deli I worked at the time. Four months later I was signing an offer letter with the words 'Software Engineer' in the opening paragraph. LEARN can absolutely change your life, but only if you jump in the deep end.
MY STORY
I started LEARN with about 50-60 hours of self study, much of it directed by the prep work for the course. I knew that I had to dedicate as much time as possible to the endeavor much because it felt like my last chance to really change my life for the better. I said goodbye to most of my friends and told them I'd see them when I had accomplished my goal. I saw my family once a week, and did yoga twice a week, and those were my anchors. Everything else that I had to give went towards class. It didn't happen overnight, but every week I put more and more time in.
By week 4 I was going to events 2 to 3 nights a week. By week 7 some classmates and I attended a 12 hour hackacthon on a Saturday, and placed. We won 'Most Innovative'. Nearly every Saturday thereafter a group of use went to study at LEARN for 4-5 hours.
When it came time for internship placement I gravitated towards an internship at Kitu Systems, a green energy company looking for a intern to do primarily functional testing in Cypress. On the fourth week of my internship they offered me a position. I'm now officially a Software Engineer (at least that's what it says in my job description).
I'm writing this review two weeks into my new job, and frankly I walk around my office with a big goofy smile half the time because I'm so grateful to have 'made it', but the truth is that I'm not done, no in this field ever is. You will always be learning and improving on your craft (I spend an entire workday last week just reading AngularJS technical documentation).
Not everyone will get a job right out of the gate. Many of my classmates are still looking, and from the few dozen alumni I've spoken to I can tell you that some people more naturally gifted that I might have as much as a two month job search before they find their first position. This is not meant to be discouraging, it's just a fact of the industry that job hunting can take time.
DO THE WORK
LEARN Academy provides you all the tools necessary for a sucessful career as a Software Engineer, but they will not force you to use them.
- There is about 40 to 60 hours worth of prep work to do before the class starts, but they won't turn you away if you don't do any of it.
- The actual class day at learn goes for 9am to 5pm, and there are no grades and no penalties for being late. If you show up early you can read the days lessosn before hand, and if you stay late you can review it.
- There are night-time learning and networking events in the LEARN space nearly every week, and in the general downtown area nearly every night, but you are not required to go.
- There are myriad opportunity to take on extra projects, or continue class projects after school and into the weekend, but you are not required to do so.
- If you ask the instructors for code reviews of personal projects you do on your own time, they will find a way to get you one, but they won't just offer them left and right.
CONCLUSION
LEARN Academy will give you the opportunity to start a career in an ever growing, lucrative, and fascinating industry. It is hard, tiring work, and requires a lot of time, far more than just the 40 hours a week on in-class time. If you can give it %100 of everything you have to give, it will change your life.
If you're looking for a challenge and you want your career to be a creative outlet, this bootcamp is a good jumpstart into the inventive world of computer programming. LEARN will introduce you to the popular technologies used by many companies (Git, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, Bootstrap, SQL, RSpec, Ruby, and Rails) and give you the space to create webpages and web applications with motivated peers. A big plus with LEARN is that they're we...
If you're looking for a challenge and you want your career to be a creative outlet, this bootcamp is a good jumpstart into the inventive world of computer programming. LEARN will introduce you to the popular technologies used by many companies (Git, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, Bootstrap, SQL, RSpec, Ruby, and Rails) and give you the space to create webpages and web applications with motivated peers. A big plus with LEARN is that they're well connected in the programming industry so you're exposed to meeting a lot of developers from around the world. Also, you're given real world coding experience by being placing into an internship at the end of the program.
I was apart of LEARN's third cohort. As many of my classmates and instructors would say, we looked forward to (almost) every day :)
Here’s how it happened: With 2 BA’s in the humanities and some tinkering with computers every so often, I really had no knowledge of what computer programming was. But I’d just been through 10 years of sales to try something more ‘creative,’ and then 7 years working for myself, and now I needed a new career, again.
I’d looked at LEARN Academy once before, and balked. Fast forward 2 years, and I made the decision to pay th...
Here’s how it happened: With 2 BA’s in the humanities and some tinkering with computers every so often, I really had no knowledge of what computer programming was. But I’d just been through 10 years of sales to try something more ‘creative,’ and then 7 years working for myself, and now I needed a new career, again.
I’d looked at LEARN Academy once before, and balked. Fast forward 2 years, and I made the decision to pay the tuition and get through the 16-week JavaScript Web Developer Coding Bootcamp at LEARN, and see what’s what. Why? Because I knew that it was something that I wanted to do before I left this Earth. I’m not (too) old, and I’m not sick, but if not now then when? When I’m 70? Sure, maybe, but stars had aligned and it was time. So I pay, and I go, and I graduate and now it’s late on a Sunday night and I’m typing into my laptop when I should be doing a million other things, but I wanted to write this review so others could know…..that I loved it, and though I am still on my journey to become a software developer, I know in my brain and in my heart that it was the right decision for me.
And now I’m going to speed this up:
Pro’s:
Cons:
I honestly can’t really think of any. In a effort to be as transparent as possible, I know one of the owners and he is a friend, but what I write here doesn’t affect him nor LEARN one way or the other. I feel like I made some good friends while I was there, but I don’t see these people socially and I’m truthfully not trying to curry favor with anyone.
Whether you’re considering LEARN or any other coding bootcamp, here are some things I’d make sure my past-self knew before staring:
I would say I had a fantastic time so far. Learned much more about Rails and of course utilizing common shortcuts such as utilizing devise and omniauth. The Ruby, Postgres, and JavaScript sections were pretty good. I kind of wish the their was a bit more beef on the rails section. Nonetheless there is a vast amount of reaources out there and having another programmer look over your code realtime is amazing.
A year ago, I was a wedding planner. Today, I am a software engineer at a Fortune 50 company.
People laugh when I tell them that…like they think it must be a joke. Let’s be real: it does sound like a joke. But it’s 100% true, and that is in large part due to my experience at LEARN.
I had a background in math and computer science, but life took me in a different direction, and a few years after college I found myself running my own wedding planning business. Fast forward...
A year ago, I was a wedding planner. Today, I am a software engineer at a Fortune 50 company.
People laugh when I tell them that…like they think it must be a joke. Let’s be real: it does sound like a joke. But it’s 100% true, and that is in large part due to my experience at LEARN.
I had a background in math and computer science, but life took me in a different direction, and a few years after college I found myself running my own wedding planning business. Fast forward almost a decade, and I had come to a crossroads. It was time to switch things up, and that meant either pursuing event planning in a different avenue, or returning to my roots. I chose the latter.
Obviously, my college education was outdated and, in the world of tech, pretty much obsolete. I needed some help to get back in the game. So I started to look into boot camps. I researched my options, and was pretty set on the fact that I was going to have to leave San Diego for several months in order to pursue this dream. Then I found LEARN.
From the moment I met Rob, Chelsea, Lisa, and the other staff, I knew these were my kind of people. When your interview feels more like catching up with an old friend you just never happened to have met yet, you know you’re in the right spot. Which is not to say that they don’t take this seriously. It’s called a boot camp for a reason; you will be challenged, at times your brain will be fried, and you will wonder, “what on earth have I gotten myself into?” But you will also find yourself surrounded by a community of people who are interested in not only seeing you succeed in the course, but who are committed to your overall well-being long after you’ve graduated.
Full disclosure: Everything about my experience wasn’t just peaches and cream. There were difficult personalities to work with. My internship experience was not the perfect fit, and I didn’t get a job from it like I had hoped. It took me 15 minutes to figure out how to turn on the computer on my first day, and I was sure that I’d just made a huge mistake by signing up for this thing…
But it turned out to be the best decision I’ve ever made. LEARN gave me a foundation in web development, and more importantly, taught me how to learn web development. After all, that is what a career in development is all about: constant learning.
Three months after graduating, I interviewed for a software engineering position at a Fortune 50 company. It was a full-day interview with multiple coding challenges and technical interviews with various senior engineers. Because of LEARN, I was confident in my technical skills, and made it through each challenge happy with my performance. I got the job offer that night. Scratch that. I got a job offer that night which was far beyond what I had let myself hope for.
I’m now six months in to my job, and loving every second of it. I can’t believe I get to do something so fun as a job, and that I get so well paid for it. Going to LEARN catapulted me into this new career, and I will be forever grateful. Not to mention, I made some incredible friendships with the other students and staff which go far deeper than just working together in tech.
Go to LEARN. Gain an education. Leave with a family.
Attending LEARN Academy was one of the best, most satisfying decisions I've ever made for the growth of my career. I spent a few months researching the coding bootcamp I wanted to attend. I remember scouring the internet for reviews on every possible bootcamp. Some seemed too focused on just shoving people through the curriculum or not being worth the money in one way or another. Online bootcamps seemed way too shady and disconnected from the student when this is something where a st...
Attending LEARN Academy was one of the best, most satisfying decisions I've ever made for the growth of my career. I spent a few months researching the coding bootcamp I wanted to attend. I remember scouring the internet for reviews on every possible bootcamp. Some seemed too focused on just shoving people through the curriculum or not being worth the money in one way or another. Online bootcamps seemed way too shady and disconnected from the student when this is something where a student NEEDS a mentor to help them get unstuck. Learning on your own can be done, but can take two years when a person could attend a good bootcamp and get it done in 3 months and pay it off before those 'would of been two years' are over, and now you have a job and experience already before you would of gotten your first job.
Every day I attended LEARN I was completely satisfied with my experience. The instructors and owners care about the success that you want to get out of it and will do their best to help you reach your short term and long term goals. If you request additional help, the instructors will without hesitation help you during lunch or after class. They truly care about the student - especially the student who takes their choice to attend seriously. It's hard to help someone who doesn't pay attention in the first place, or who doesn't put any effort in.
There is a lot of hard working successful students that come out of LEARN that land in awesome jobs that wouldn't be possible if they hadn't attended LEARN. If a person does the suggested pre-course work, attends LEARN, works hard to understand the material everyday, asks questions about what they don't understand, there's no doubt that they will land an awesome job and career. A person should go into the school humble, willing to constantly learn (because that's what a developers life will be), and to take it serious. You will get out of it what you put into it. I would gladly answer any questions about my experience and recommend it to anyone who wants to be a developer. A coding bootcamp won't hold your hand as they magically transfer skills into your brain. But they give you the network of people you need, the environment you need, the mentors you need, the internship you need to get some experience, the encouragement you need, and the right direction you need to be successful.
Attending Learn Bootcamp was one of the best things I could have done for myself. The adminstrators, teachers and fellow students were great to work with. I was able to learn a tremendous amount in a short period of time from people who are knowledgeable and passionate about coding. Learn not only provided the education, but also the motivation and support to get us all through this type of intense learning. They are very open to feedback and work very hard on our behalf to get us placed i...
Attending Learn Bootcamp was one of the best things I could have done for myself. The adminstrators, teachers and fellow students were great to work with. I was able to learn a tremendous amount in a short period of time from people who are knowledgeable and passionate about coding. Learn not only provided the education, but also the motivation and support to get us all through this type of intense learning. They are very open to feedback and work very hard on our behalf to get us placed in the most ideal internships. I will always look back on my time at Learn fondly. I plan to stay in touch and continue to be a part of the Learn community.
I'm also glad that they got rid of the instructor because he wasn't the right person to be teaching coding to total beginners. He was impatient and demeaning to those that needed support that most. Isn't the point of attending bootcamp in person is to have hands-on experience and get support when needed?
Overall, I had a good experience at LEARN and learnt some but it would be a mistake to assume to you'll come out prepared to be a developer from day one. Once you start your firs...
I'm also glad that they got rid of the instructor because he wasn't the right person to be teaching coding to total beginners. He was impatient and demeaning to those that needed support that most. Isn't the point of attending bootcamp in person is to have hands-on experience and get support when needed?
Overall, I had a good experience at LEARN and learnt some but it would be a mistake to assume to you'll come out prepared to be a developer from day one. Once you start your first job as a developer, you'll realize there's a huge of gap between what you need to know and what you learnt in short 12 (actually 8 weeks because of "1 week of professional development and 3 weeks of final project").
Bootcamps are not intended or the faint of heart. I went to Learn because I know some of the Ruby developpers in San Diego and I really like the inclusive and friendly ethos (MINASWAN!). Learn offers soiid full-stack immersion and it will surely kick your ass to cover material this fast but the team is flexible and fully involved in getting you through. The instructors and administrators really care about the individual students in the class and how where they are going after the end ...
Bootcamps are not intended or the faint of heart. I went to Learn because I know some of the Ruby developpers in San Diego and I really like the inclusive and friendly ethos (MINASWAN!). Learn offers soiid full-stack immersion and it will surely kick your ass to cover material this fast but the team is flexible and fully involved in getting you through. The instructors and administrators really care about the individual students in the class and how where they are going after the end of the course.
I attended LEARN! Academy from July 2016 to November 2016. I looked into the various bootcamps here in San Diego and the internship that is part of the curriculum set LEARN apart from other bootcamps. I can't say enough about how awesome my experience was. It was very challenging, but at the same time it was manageable.
The people at LEARN truly care about the students and the school. LEARN isn't trying to push as many students as possible through the pipeline just to make a quic...
I attended LEARN! Academy from July 2016 to November 2016. I looked into the various bootcamps here in San Diego and the internship that is part of the curriculum set LEARN apart from other bootcamps. I can't say enough about how awesome my experience was. It was very challenging, but at the same time it was manageable.
The people at LEARN truly care about the students and the school. LEARN isn't trying to push as many students as possible through the pipeline just to make a quick buck. They work hard with each student not only through the classroom time but also throughout the internship and through the hiring process.
The curriculum for my cohort was Ruby. It was fast-paced and challenging, but the instructors were fantastic. There is lecture time each day but the bulk of the experience is coding challenges. The instructors give you just enough guidance to help you in the right direction. They encourage you to solve problems and meet the challenges on your own, (which is more like the real-world working environment).
The daily routine at LEARN mimics a real-world work environment, so the transition to full-time developer for me was seemless. I was placed at a great company for my internship and was hired as a full time developer at the end of the 4 weeks.
Another note on the internships, the companies that take interns are all great. I would have been happy at any of them. The LEARN staff took great care in placing students in the right internship environment. It worked out great for me as I was hired by my internship company.
Going the LEARN was the best decision! I highly recommend LEARN if you want to go somewhere where you will be more than just a number. You will be a part of a great community!
Course Report readers can receive an Exclusive Scholarship to LEARN Academy!
How much does LEARN Academy cost?
LEARN Academy costs around $18,500. On the lower end, some LEARN Academy courses like Jumpstart Weekend Bootcamp cost $249.
What courses does LEARN Academy teach?
LEARN Academy offers courses like Full Time Web Developer Bootcamp, Jumpstart Weekend Bootcamp.
Where does LEARN Academy have campuses?
LEARN Academy has in-person campuses in San Diego. LEARN Academy also has a remote classroom so students can learn online.
Is LEARN Academy worth it?
LEARN Academy hasn't shared alumni outcomes yet, but one way to determine if a bootcamp is worth it is by reading alumni reviews. 38 LEARN Academy alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed LEARN Academy on Course Report - you should start there!
Is LEARN Academy legit?
We let alumni answer that question. 38 LEARN Academy alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed LEARN Academy and rate their overall experience a 4.37 out of 5.
Does LEARN Academy offer scholarships or accept the GI Bill?
Yes, Course Report is excited to offer an exclusive LEARN Academy scholarship for $500 off tuition!
Can I read LEARN Academy reviews?
You can read 38 reviews of LEARN Academy on Course Report! LEARN Academy alumni, students, and applicants have reviewed LEARN Academy and rate their overall experience a 4.37 out of 5.
Is LEARN Academy accredited?
https://search-bppe.dca.ca.gov/institutionDetail?schoolCode=92601755
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