Makers Academy

The coaches are skilled, caring and supportive. They get to know you and really care about your success and wellbeing. 

The course is very comprehensive and at times intense but not as intense as I was expecting. It was manageable and I learned so much in such a short space of time. I wouldn’t say I felt totally prepared for that first role as a software developer but that’s more because of many companies’ unrealistic expectations on Junior Developers (and maybe a little bit of a self-confidence issue, too - I was a teacher with zero coding experience before making the switch). 

If you put in the work, you can make that career switch with Makers. They came highly recommended to me and I saw why. 

One of the best parts of the Makers experience which is not highlight enough is the continued support once you have completed the bootcamp. As an alumni, I have received consistent career support from the Makers team, in the form of job offers and apprenticeships they have received as well as CV reviews and interview prep. As an Alumni I also feel like part of a community with my fellow alumni.

An important note is that it may not be the best experience for everyone, the curriculum follows as strict pace, although anything you want to work on can be done in your own time, that being said some of my fellow cohort struggled to keep up and this can be very demoralising for some people. Being part of a cohort does mean that you do have peers to aid you, as was my experience.

Overall the experience was well worth it, between what I learned to the community I became part of. 

This bootcamp provides a great experience for those with no prior tech experience (such as myself!) and you are taught the basics of what is required to flourish in the tech industry. You are taught in-demand languages, frameworks and technologies whilst also learning how to efficiently learn/teach yourself new technologies. You learn industry ways of working in teams such as agile metholodies, TDD (Test-Driven Development), pair-programming and how to conduct stand-ups. By the end of the bootcamp you can effectively build full-stack projects in agile teams and are given the tools for success.

However, the mission is not finished when you graduate from Makers as you still need to build up your tech skills, behavioural skills and projects to get interviews for jobs. The support from Makers is lacking for job-hunting, but I hear they are improving it for alumni which is promising news.

I would advise prospective students to always keep learning new things and building upon their skills as this will benefit their portfolio and skills bank and therefore improve their chances of being employed.

I was in the March 2023 cohort and just started my first tech job last week so it is possible, but you need to perservere and not give up!

Makers coaches are pretty good and the curriculum is good and with the good support that is provided during the course I am sure you will be able to achieve your dreams!

My experience at Makers was very positive. I chose them because they seemed like a supportive and inclusive place to learn and it definitely delivered on that. 
My cohort was between curriculum changes, so we learned Python and Javascript and only had the option to complete the software development track, and I believe was slightly shorter than the current iteration. During the course we worked on 3 group projects of varying complexity, using technologies such as Flask, Express and React.
Coach support was generally very good, although at times you would have to wait a while for your turn for support during coaching hours if they were helping someone else out for a long time. There were a couple of weeks where the coaches seemed a little disorganised and no one was sure who was supposed to be leading, but I believe this was due to sickness or absence of a few coaches at one time. In the end there was always someone on hand to introduce us to the next module and provide support during coaching hours. 
There were a few workshops on emotional intelligence and wellbeing that were a nice touch and they didn't take much time away from technical learning. There was also daily morning meditation and weekly yoga classes which I enjoyed.
Job support after the course was quite good, but limited by the market conditions. There is a partnerships team that makes relationships with companies to recruit directly from the pool of graduates, but there were very few opportunities in the 8 months that I was job hunting. Support in terms of interview preparation and CV advice was excellent though (thank you Sandy!).
Overall I would recommend the bootcamp, however I would warn that the market is really difficult at the moment and no matter what bootcamp you attend it will probably be difficult to find a job. It's taken me 8 months to get any offers and there are plenty of people who have been looking for longer and still haven't managed to secure any roles.

I attended Makers starting in September 2023 and started my first Software Engineer Role in May 2024. The experience at Makers was extremely valuable, mainly being exposed to a tailored curriculum of core concepts that any Software Engineer will need to understand. Having the support of coaches when necessary was extremely valuable to help build confidence in understanding of these concepts. I think it is great that the course now starts with Python as opposed to Ruby and that you can select a track to pursue your interest. I chose the Software Development track where I learned JS, React, Node and MongoDB. The group projects were really the main highlight as it's where you can feel your skills improving most and you make real progress in a very short time. I'd say the main difficulty for Makers and any bootcamp right now is the difficulty of the hiring market as ultimately you will be pitching yourself as an efficient learner with a good base to companies rather than a finished package, this can be a tricky sell but it's not impossible, as long as you work hard to remain productive after the course. My role will be using C# and .NET of which I have no experience (yet) so there are companies out there willing to take on those with great skills from their past career and a commitment to learning. I would recommend Makers, it's not easy, nor is getting a job afterwards but it is worth it and I'm very glad I made the choice to change career with Makers. 

I was able to really understand what I wanted to do with the tech industry by seeing how a domain could be constructed, accessed and consequentally be exploited by visitors!  I was put in a cohort with like minded people who wanted to change carreers as well as challenge themselves to do better and become something greater.  The teachers have a varied experience that they draw on to help the students effectively and the curriculum has helped in structuring this fast paced programme. Without Makers I wouldn't be where I am today!

I loved my bootcamp experience. I was pushed to work hard, but found the work engaging for the most part and loved the group dynamic. The pace of learning takes a big adjustment but once you get used to it, you find yourself surpassing what you thought you could do very quickly. 

You get out what you put in. Not everyone on the course is going to put the work in, which makes teamwork hard sometimes. But that's true of any course or job and you have to roll with it. As there's no formal assessment at Makers, it makes it easy for people to coast, and noone really checks up on how much work you've done or not done.

The real issues start after you leave Makers. The current job market is really tough, and Makers don't offer much support to help you. Out of my cohort of 18 people, I know that 3 of us are now employed in tech 6 months after finishing the course. A large part of that is the difficult market, but I do think another factor is the lack of support from Makers to help their graduates navigate the market. They don't really have many special opportunities (which used to be their big selling point), so you're left to your own devices. 

Overall it allowed me to career change which was the goal, and I enjoyed the course and the tutors were great, but I'm not sure I could recommend it without reservations.

The learning structure of the bootcamp was good, there wasn't a week when it felt wasted. The emphasis is definitely more so on producing projects and completing challenges rather than getting a thorough understanding of the topic, which is understandable given the time constraints. However, as topics got more challenging towards the latter end of the bootcamp, this lack of depth proved to be more detrimental. So see the learning as a foundation to give you the gist of what to learn in your own time during or after the bootcamp. 

I think the real value of Makers comes from the large alumni network you are able to tap into and take advantage of at any point of your career. Additionally, being able to learn, pair-program and do team projects with other fellow learners  is invaluable and is not easily replicated. Due to Makers reputation and selection process you are going to be in cohort with many amazing people that you will learn so much from and could help you down the line. There's also a big push on mental wellbeing and emotional intelligence, which is not necessary of a bootcamp, but just goes to show that Makers goes above and beyond for its students.

I found the course to be a great way to learn the foundations of Software Engineering. I think it's important to note that a lot of success depends on your own motivation and ability to seek help from peers/coaches if you need it, as a lot of the learning is hands off. Coaches are available to help with the course materials and run a few workshops/webinars. 

The structure for most of the course of 'solo work' in the mornings and then 'pairing' in the afternoons works well. You get assigned a pair that will either be behind you or ahead of you, and you work on the materials of whoever is behind. This way if you fall behind a bit, you can get guidance from someone that's further ahead of you, and if you steam ahead, you are somewhat forced to reinforce what you've already learned by helping others.

Careers support is pretty good, but again it's somewhat hands off. Lots of workshops to help with CV and cover letter writing, application tips, etc, and then ad hoc support when you need it. E.g. if you need a pep talk or technical advice before an interview you can schedule a call with a coach. Also students are allowed to book a (theoretically) unlimited number of 'code reviews' these are like mock technical interviews where you get really detailed feedback on your coding process and where you can make improvements, as well as a full recording of your review. These are done with an external partner so there's no bias. These are really useful so, if you do Makers, be sure to take advantage of these.

It's hard to give a fully thorough assessment of the careers support however, as the job market is really in a bad place right now, so the 'getting a job' bit is quite tough at the moment. The careers partnerships team seems, however, to have started bringing in a few nice hiring partners who agree to interview Makers grads, but for a while there was a real drought of any partnerships coming in so there's a bit of a backlog of job hunters in the alumni. General chatter is that the market is picking up again after the bloodbath of layoffs in the sector have started to stabilise, but it could still be a while.

Overall, I'm really glad I did Makers and I found a job 2 months after graduating, however some people have been less lucky and are still hunting quite a few months on. With that in mind just be aware of the fact that - given the current market - the job hunt requires a LOT of work to keep coding and keep your motivation up applying to jobs, and also requires a fair bit of luck too.. But if you have the logical mind for coding and the motivation to power through it I'm sure you'll be great.

Pros:

Learn javascript + ruby very well and indepth in 12 weeks
Learn frameworks and supporting technologies that are high in demand and relevant in todays workplace.
Fantastic support in learning via coaches and mentors. They will answer each and every question.
Experience working through projects in real-life, work applicable methodologies such as AGILE.
Be part of a cohort with like minded individuals who push each other to succeed.
Immense job support after the course through 1 to 1 tailored coaching, group sessions and interview advice.
Access to an exclusive network of Alumni Makers, many in senior and lead positions today.
A rubber duck as a souvenir.

Cons:

Will require effort. It's a full time endeavour, very intense and will require your full attention and effort.

Overall, I had a fantastic experience at Makers. Regardless of the extremely tough job market toward the end of 2022 and beginning of 2023, I managed to secure a very desirable entry level job with one of my favourite languages that I was taught at Makers. There are concepts that I had no idea existed in web development that were taught at Makers and my success singlehandedly goes out to them. If I could do it all again I would 100%.

When I was looking at the bootcamps I could apply to, I saw many bootcamps that promise "belonging to a community", but Makers truly provides that. Receiving training in my current company just isn't the same...I actually wish I was still at Makers for this principle of togetherness! Their approach to learning is so welcoming and unique, I've never experienced anything like this in my life (and I don't think I will again). 

The holistic way of teaching whilst making space to ensure wellbeing and wellness is so effective. I think "EQ" (emotional quotient) training really goes hand in hand with tech. Aside from reaching out to coaches or your cohort, they even have joy officer whom you can talk to if you have any blockers.

The coaches were amazing, always great in spirits and couldn't do more to help. There's a clearly a very stringent vetting process for anyone that works for Makers, because everyone was a "people person" whilst also being very knowledgeable on the technical side. Don't get me wrong, the course is very hard and demanding but every employee at Makers is there to help and they are very good at nurturing your development. 

After I left Makers to find a job, their aftercare was unbelievably good. There's bespoke support you'll receive for interview training, CV's and cover letters. They also have many plans in place to ease your transition and they are really hands on, right until you get employed...even then, I am still using their offices, so even though I'm employed, they're still supporting me!

I'd hate to sound hackneyed, but after graduation you realise being a Maker is a way of thinking and a lifestyle! 

I would sincerely recommend enrolling at Makers Academy if you have any intention of switching careers or interested in becoming a software developer. 

The course has a great focus on independent learning mixed in with pair programming, so you get to learn a lot while working closely with other people in a similar position to you, which can really help make the learning process a lot more fun. 

You also get a lot of hands on experience working with Ruby, JavaScript and React.js making a wide range of projects, ranging from small programs, to full social media websites, to whatever you want your final project to be. 

One thing I would say however is you need to be aware that the coaches are fairly hands off, so if you're struggling, you need to make them aware directly, but also try and use other resources like YouTube videos and forums to help get you unstuck; just be kind to yourself! It's insanely rewarding once you make it through to the end.

After a lot of research and speaking with individuals who had completed different bootcamps, I chose Makers due to their emphasis on diversity and holistic approach to education, with wellbeing and emotional intelligence being treated as equally important to the course material. This paid off dividends and allowed me to set a strong foundation for my career and furthered my understanding of the importance of work-life balance. During the course, I met some exceptional individuals who were humble, kind and eager to learn. Being surrounded by like minded folk and working closely with them on group projects taught me a lot and was far more beneficial to me than self-learning online. It is an intense experience, but if you are prepared to test your resilience, it is worth it. Coming from a background in Marketing, the transition was daunting, but I am grateful for having made the decision to enrol. The emphasis on self-led learning prepared me for the realities of software engineering. The coaches and curriculum were outstanding. Just remember that it takes time to solidify knowledge and not to feel overwhelmed, just keep moving forward and don't be afraid to ask for help :).

I have just finished Makers' 12 weeks full-time immersive coding bootcamp and I really enjoyed it.

My aim was to change career and become a software developer. I already had some coding experience before the course, but a few people on the course also didn't have any experience. 

The best thing about the Makers course was the community of students with whom you go through the course together. You work in pairs or teams most days to solve coding problems and work through a very well designed curriculum. The focus of the learning is on understanding bigger coding concepts like Object Oriented Programming, Test-Driving and writing high quality code. And a huge focus is on becoming an independent learner and getting good at solving problems independently by looking things up or finding different ways of approaching a problem. All students start learning the language Ruby to understand basic concepts and become fluent in a language. Later, you switch to JavaScript and from then on I started really getting how to learn new languages quickly. 

Towards the end of the course you create two big engineering projects in teams of 3-6 students, which is very intensive but very fun and helps you put everything learned into practice or use your learning skills to pick up a new coding language and develop an app with that. You learn how to learn effectively as a team - just like in a coding job, to plan together, support each other, divide up work and merge it later. There is a number of great workshops during the course where coaches give you live examples of how a concept works, you can ask questions and see how an experienced coder approaches a problem. The coaches are all very friendly. If you are stuck - especially in the first weeks - there is always plenty of time to ask a coach for help. The coaches then often guide you towards how you could test your code to find the problem and look up a solution independently - this is really great, because you learn how to become independent.

I completed the course as part of a remote cohort - that means I interacted with all the other students and the coaches mostly via zoom and the fantastic chat platform Slack. This worked really well and I don't think I would have learned more if I had been doing the course in person in the office in London. However, there was the opportunity on most days for people from the remote cohort also to go into the office an work from there, which I didn't use, as I don't live in London. Being in connection with the students and the coaches online everyday helped hold me accountable for my learning, so I coded about 7-10 hours every day and made really quick progress.
Now, at the end of the course I feel I really understand how to write high-quality code and can call myself a software developer, although I haven't got a job yet.

After the bootcamp is finished there is a dedicated careers team that will support you with the job hunt, help you learn how to write applications, CVs covering letters and prepare you for interviews with regular workshops. It seems they support you until you find a job - but I have only just graduated, so I can't say this from my own experience. Most other alumni I spoke to seem to have found a job as a junior developer within the first 3-4 months after graduating.

Within 6 months, I have gone from very novice coder to getting my first job as a developer and that is thanks to Makers. And although an intense learning experience, it has also been a refreshing and revitalising break from the world of work where my learning has been the priority. 

The course is 16 weeks long and starts with 4 weeks of pre-course material to do as self-study. This helps provide a good intro and basics needed for the main course. I like that the course starts with Ruby and then you learn JavaScript and get to build web apps in both. I think this leads you to feel more language agnostic and not daunted when looking at jobs that might use different tech as you know you can apply the principles and knowledge you already have to learn new languages. There is a big focus on pairing and also working on group projects, which is great for helping to prepare for life in a tech team as well as aiding your learning. There is no spoon-feeding, you get out what you put in, but you also gain the tools to continue to learn and grow your knowledge as you head on into your career. And to get there, there is good support once you finish the bootcamp and start out jobhunting, with a team of coaches rooting for you to get a job and then celebrating with you when you do. :)

I did the Makers Apprenticeship in 2019 and after more than 3 years I can honestly say that it changed my life.

The bootcamp is demanding, and you will find that there is no easy answer to any problem. What you learn at Makers on top of basic coding skills is how to approach these problems, break them down and deal with them as best as you can.
Don't expect to be taught how to do everything but rather you'll learn how to pick up new skills quickly and put them to use. 
The coaches were super helpful, they are knowledgeable and they support you to find answers yourself.

After working in the industry for over 3 years, I find that I still use the tools I was given at Makers to learn about new tech in my day to day job. 

After the 3 months bootcamp I started working as a software engineer as part of the apprenticeship program and completed my level 4 software developer certification within a year with the support of my placement coach.

This bootcamp and preparing the assignments for the level 4 certification while working was probably one of the most challenging things in my life but it was 100% worth it. 

It's a good idea if you want to change careers and don't know where to start. At makers, you learn fundamental programming concepts with Ruby, and in the second half of the course, you learn Javascript. You learn how to become a good developer and good practices within programming. Works in groups and pairs. And most importantly, always maintain your mental health with daily meditation. There you learn not only to program but also to develop your soft skills. All coaches are attentive and willing to help you until you understand a concept.

Attending Makers has literally changed my life. 

It is quite an intense Bootcamp, as long as you put in the work and effort, amazing things will come.
The structure of the course is great, you start with Ruby and then learn JavaScript. Makers use a lot of pair programming, which I found to be a really great way to learn. 

I managed to complete the Bootcamp and get two job offers in 4 weeks, one of them was an offer at my dream company which I accepted.
Overall, I couldn't be happier 

I finished the Makers course with what I needed; a start into the tech industry, good foundations, others to work with and a plan of what I need to do next to keep growing. 

I feel much more confident because I have a clear idea of my strengths and what I need to work on, this is down to the support provided by Makers coaches and the job hunting team (particularly in the weeks following the course).

I wanted a career change and I wanted to do it now! 

I spend some time learning bits and bobs about coding and the web. ( if you find this stuff interesting and enjoyable, stop reading this review and apply to Makers Academy ) 

I was very worried I didn't know enough about coding before applying, once you've touched base with Makers they'll put that anxiety to bed! They advise you on the kind of learnings you should focus on in the build up to starting the course. 

For me, the biggest challenge was building up the courage to apply. So my advice would be to APPLY NOW haha. 

The course is amazing, theres so much for you to learn it can be overwhelming but like I said if you enjoy it, you're going to love the endless amounts of resources. The was absolutely no pressure to finish anything, the main goal is to understand, what doing and what you've done. 

This was a huge concern for some people, understandably thinking, they want to complete everything so they can be the best dev possible. Just by doing your best and taking your time to absorb as much as possible you're going to become a dev employers want.  

Pros:
- Emphasis on pair-programming which gets you ready for the real world.
- The support for job hunting after graduating was really good. Job search workshops to find relevant jobs. TDD process reviews to make sure your ready for tech tests. Interview prep with a coach to make sure you're ready what what might be asked in the interview. All of these make it easier to feel confident in the interview processes.

Cons:
- The course is self-taught for the most part.  This actually is also a pro as it helps you in the long run. After graduating, you'll be pleased you learnt how to teach yourself as this is a key skill as a developer.
- There perhaps could have been more support offered on certain topics such as APIs and deployment of apps.

Overall - I would recommend Makers Academy if you enjoy working with others and are serious about changing careers. It is an intense learning experience that is challenging and takes you out of your comfort zone. Coding with like-minded individuals gets you ready for the world of work.

I had a great time at Makers. I was a bit scared of pair programming with someone different every day, and didn't think this was a good idea, but it ended up being one of my favourite things about the course. Makers gave me a very solid foundation to develop my engineering skills on, including concepts like TDD, OOP, and solid principles. The community is great, a very positive environment, and people really get out of their way to help. The career support team after the course is also amazing, and I still can't believe I got a job in less than three months after the course.

It is challenging and intense, but so rewarding to reflect on how much you have learned within 12 weeks. I was really impressed at the efforst Makers puts into mental wellbeing and peer support - with EQ workshops, peer group sessions, meditation etc. Most importantly, what has really struck me after reaching the end of my Makers bootcamp is the opportunity to meet a whole new community of incredibly talented and interesting people - a rare opportunity as an adult. You share an intense 12 week learning experience together, you learn together, work together, share intense challenges together. Not only have you come out of Makers with an entirely new technical skillset, but you have come out with a new professional network of incredibly talented people who are going to be working in the same industry as you. The alumni community is also brilliant. Would recommend it!

My experience at Makers Academy has been nothing short of awesome. Sure, I could have taught myself how to loosely code, but I wouldn't have made the connections, friendships, or solid coding practices without them. They provide you with fantastic resources, coaching help, practices that you can take into your career. The after Makers support has been better than any of the other courses I've taken. The mentorship program has been an added touch that has helped me keep from getting overwhelmed. If you're unsure, just do it or talk to a past Maker! There isn't a person I've met, who has said they should have waited or not taken the course! 

Pros

Makers has a very supportive, progressive atmosphere and culture. I started last year and had to defer because I got ill, and the coaches were really helpful. I started again later in the year and completed the course last week. 

The coaches are fab. You do have to reach out to them if you need something but once you do, they are very supportive. If you have any health issue or you’re finding the course stressful – speak to a coach!

 I have some health issues and they were really helpful, kind and proactive in their support. 

I got a job immediately the end of the course through a personal contact, so I cannot speak for the careers side from personal experience, but from what I can tell from the cohort I started with last year, everyone seems to have good jobs that they enjoy. The careers service seems very comprehensive too, and I had CV support as soon as I asked for it. 

The pairing and team work that you do at Makers is a real strength of the bootcamp and this cannot be replicated by trying to teach yourself coding. I feel much more relaxed and confident working with other people because of all the pairing and groupwork. I’ve met some amazing people through Makers and I hope I end up working with some of them sometime during my career. We had a lot of laughs as well as bonded over seemingly impossible problems (which all got solved in the end).

Cons
Some of the materials need proof-reading and can be a bit difficult to understand when they don’t need to be. I can imagine this might be an additional challenge if English is not your native language.

Sometimes it can feel a bit like you’re on your own, working through self-led learning materials. There isn’t a great deal of teaching (a couple of coach-led workshops most weeks) which can sometimes be frustrating. The idea is that you learn to figure things out for yourself, but I think Makers should hire some more coaches to be able to answer learners’ queries more quickly as there was sometimes a bit of a wait to get coach input. I cannot fault any of the individual coaches, but as a course provider, it feels like there needs to be a few more coaches. 

Conclusion

Makers was a great experience and I’m delighted to have finished it. I definitely feel ready to take on a junior developer role, and I’ve been offered a decent paying job the week I finished. As a way into a career in software development, I would recommend Makers. It can feel a little frustrating sometimes during the process, but the course gets you job ready and in a good position to apply for junior dev roles. 

Overall, I really enjoyed my time at Makers, and was able to land a job as a junior software engineer 5 months after starting the course. Certainly worth the money in my eyes.

Course Content - There was a lot of bespoke content, but sometimes it was unclear and took a few re-reads and research around the topic to fully understand. Be prepared to do A LOT of research independent of the course materials. Sometimes recommended tech to use resulted in unnecessary banging heads on desk, due to it having stopped being supported several years ago. 

Course Support - Makers focuses on Holistic learning with a wing of emotional wellbeing. The coaches and the support groups provided by Makers are one of the most important resources, and the patience, approachability and knowledge these coaches have are simply outstanding. Makers focus less on teaching, and more on teaching you how to teach yourself - which is an incredibly powerful skill that I think is often overlooked with classic education techniques. I've done GSCE's, A-Levels and a Masters Degree before joining Makers - and I've learnt more about myself and how to learn in the 16 weeks of the course, than the 10+ years of education I've had in traditional bodies. 

Post-course support - CV writing tips, CV reviews, GitHub cv reviews, how to find a good job via which job boards, job advert breakdown, networking, LinkedIn profile reviews, cover letter guidance, cover letter reviews, interview preparation, mock coding tests, mock interviews, 1 on 1 support. There is a lot that Makers have to offer in the post-course, and honestly, I believe this all was enough to offset the imposter syndrome and provide enough confidence to be able to land my first job. A lot of the tips I learned here I will remember for the rest of my tech career, and I believe that Makers has given me the best start possible.

I decided a year ago that I would like to become a software engineer, as I had yet to start a job I would consider a career. Makers helped me to structure my learning and drive me towards positive change, both technically, and personally. This was achieved through a well developed and focused curriculum that taught essential web development concepts, as well as learning how to learn. In addition a big shout out to Dana Svobada for her excellent emotional quotient lessons, which taught key soft skills such as: Empathetic listening, receiving and giving feedback and different work styles. Whilst the process was overwhelming at times, if you are willing to commit yourself to change and growth, you will inevitably gain a lot from this program. 

The course itself was tough. It's worth saying that straight away. Not just because of the coding but because there are 20 of you, all suddenly out of work with limited money, all stressed and all trying to keep your last lesson in your head. It really does make for a tough time. Makers do their best to give all the support they can and I can't fault them for that but be ready for some tough weeks! After that you will be glad you did it and the support in finding jobs is pretty top notch!

If you're considering a career change, I would highly recommend joining Makers.

I joined in September 2021 and from the start, I could sense how highly intensive it would have been. 
Learning how to code in 16 weeks is no joke, but I was positively shocked by how fast I was progressing with my skills. I started with a little bit of background but I definitely polished my skills and learned a lot about fundamental concepts like TDD and BDD which I had never heard before. 
 
My cohort was amazing, I made friends for life during Makers and I really treasure that, especially in a  critical moment like a career change, it's amazing sharing it with other people that can help you and be there for each other.

After the course, during interviews, many employers had heard of Makers and they were really enthusiastic about it, so it's a great experience to have in your CV as well! ;) 
I've found employment after one month from my graduation (with Christmas holidays included in that period of time).

Joining makers was the best decision I made for my career. 

Before I jump into reviewing Makers, a little context.

I'm older than most people embarking on a technical career - I had just turned 39 when I applied for Makers. I had been aiming at a musical career since I was a teenager, and despite some success here and there, I was still temping in universities to pay the bills. I was no stranger to tech but hadn't coded anything other than a few childhood ZX Spectrum experiments. Perhaps it was my age, or the fact that my daughter was starting to ask what my job was, but things had to change. When my wife told me of Makers, I quit my job immediately to focus on getting in.

The pre-course was a great was to get to grips with the basic tools of the trade - IDEs, the command line, github and so forth. At this point, the Makers student is already at an advantage over someone with a book about JavaScript.

The course itself is very intensive and requires your full attention, all day. This tricky when your sleep is interrupted every single night, and I am pleased that Makers have started a part time version of the course - this would have been my preference if it had been offered at the time.

The curriculum structure is great. Makers mainly teaches Ruby, which is not the most popular language professionally - however its simple syntax allows you to keep your focus on learning the basic patterns that underpin all mainstream coding languages. This emphasis, combined with a couple of weeks' introduction to JavaScript, provided a great impetus to jump in and learn something new whenever it is needed.

Your time is divided between classes that highlight the key concepts, self led learning and pair programming on increasingly complex challenges that neatly demonstrate that week's pertinent topics.

The course's first two group projects are in Ruby and Rails, and the third is a free choice. These allow the student to experience what it is like working on a professional software team.

The general atmosphere is very warm. The Coaches and other staff are friendly and approachable, the building itself was well organised, smart and generously stocked. Thoughtful inclusions such as basic food supplies, games and musical instruments really made all the difference. The presence of a dedicated yoga/meditation/counselling practitioner was absolutely invaluable.

Obviously Makers aren't responsible for this, but all the other students were lovely. The course was pleasantly feud free.

Makers' support doesn't end when you finish the course - you are instead ushered into the Makers Alumni online community, where they help you get a job. They support you through the process of putting together a CV, writing an application and interviewing for jobs. It's great for getting to know other developers and networking to get jobs, and this has been vital during the pandemic. The job board has a special place in my heart as it's where I found my first coding  job!

To sum up - if you want to become a software developer, definitely go to Makers. But if you can't be sure of a good night's sleep every night, do the part time course!

I chose Makers over other bootcamps because via a friend, I knew 2 people who had already done it and got dev jobs. Now, I'm able to add myself, the aforementioned friend and last time I checked, 17 out of the 20 people in my cohort to that list!
Pros+ You will learn things that are difficult to learn and practice on your own as a self-taught developer e.g. test-driven development, object oriented programming.+ You will gain valuable team project and pair programming skills. Again, you cannot get these being merely self-taught and these experiences will come in handy in a real dev job as well as be useful material for your answers to interview questions.+ Job support. Makers have a dedicated team of careers coaches that can help you with CVs, cover letters, interview prep and more. They have careers talks, careers events. You will not feel lonely in your job hunt with Makers.+ Hiring partners. This is one of the biggest pros. Makers have a fantastic array of hiring partners and trust me it's easier to get a job internally through Makers (competing just with other Makers), than it is to get a job externally, competing with every job-seeking junior developer out there pretty much.+ Wellbeing. Unlike another bootcamp I almost did, which was 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, Makers have a healthy approach to work-life balance and also offer yoga, meditation and counselling. Even though I think meditation is total garbage and yoga is not my thing, it's nice that Makers have mental wellbeing in mind.
Cons- Too much pair programming for my liking. I was self-taught for 9 months before going into the bootcamp, others had only a few weeks of programming experience. Guess who benefits from pair programming in those instances? If you're more advanced, the pair programming will often slow you down when you could be breezing ahead and delving deeper into things. On the flip side, if you go into the bootcamp knowing hardly programming, this will actually be a pro. Firstly, you will need pair programming otherwise you will often struggle to get things done. Secondly, you will benefit from being able to pair with and learn from more experienced or adept programmers.- Students reviewing each other's weekend challenges. Not sure as to the efficacy of this. Often it's the blind reviewing the code of the blind. That being said, it does give you a taste for reviewing pull requests in a real job.
In conclusion, I can't compare the content of Makers with other bootcamps because I only did Makers. But what I can say is that I graduated in January 2021, got a job 10 weeks later, and now in December 2021, I know that at least 17 out of the 20 people in my cohort have got legit, full-time, developer jobs.

 Makers Academy takes you from zero knowledge of web development to being able to plan, create and host your own web apps using the most in-demand languages and technologies. It was a fantastic opportunity to make a career change. The aftercare of Makers was by far the most impressive part of the course for me, the process is well managed and the hiring team is fantastic at helping you with your CV and interviews. There are lots of high-quality partners hiring through the academy. I would recommend it to anyone wanting to make a career change!