Evan Graduate • Web Development - Part-Time • Online
Aug 26, 2022
I took MSU's Full-Stack Web Development course from January-July of 2022. I ended up graduating with a C+ average.
As a disclaimer, this is an important subject, as I went into the class to change fields (non-profit to tech). That is not an easy task, and you should expect difficulty in the transition. I spent time going through Free Code Camp's curriculum to prepare, and that absolutely helped.
That being said, I'll first offer my advice on what to do in the course that I...
I took MSU's Full-Stack Web Development course from January-July of 2022. I ended up graduating with a C+ average.
As a disclaimer, this is an important subject, as I went into the class to change fields (non-profit to tech). That is not an easy task, and you should expect difficulty in the transition. I spent time going through Free Code Camp's curriculum to prepare, and that absolutely helped.
That being said, I'll first offer my advice on what to do in the course that I wish I had been better at, and then get to the negatives. Because trust me, there are plenty of negatives.
1. It'll take longer than you think to keep up
- When I applied for the course, it said that it would take 15-20 hours per week to get through everything. For me, in the second half of the class, it was closer to 40. I struggled with the hours quite a lot during the course, but there really is no substitute for sitting down and plugging away at the material. And be sure to practice writing code as you go along. I fell into the trap of just reading instead of practicing to keep up with the breakneck pace of the class, and that absolutely screwed my retention later on. The BEST thing you can possibly do is write down code and check on it with the TA's and classmates.
2. Resources are there to help, but you need to stay on top of them
- There were 3 main resources available to help: Office Hours, tutors, and a class Slack. I spent a little time in office hours, but desperately wish I had gone to all of them. The tutoring system, while helpful, was only 1 45-minute session per week, so it was underwhelming. And while I also wish I was more involved in the Slack, it also felt like a very flat and un-nuanced way of asking for help. But it is there, so you should try to use it.
3. Get used to feeling wrong - it's part of the learning process
- If I could go back and change anything going into the class, it would be this. I felt stupid and lost a lot of the time, and this instilled in me a deep sense of shame that drove me away from the resources I mentioned before. I wish I had spammed my bad and incorrect code to the Slack constantly so that the instructors could help guide me sooner.
So if there's anyone out there like me, please take this to heart: you are NOT stupid, it's a notoriously difficult subject to learn, and you're trying to cram a ton of it into 6 months. Cut yourself a little slack, do what you have to to maintain some balance in your life, and REACH OUT TO OTHER PEOPLE FOR HELP.
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With all of that being said, there was quite a lot about this course that I didn't like. I hope my previous points illustrate that I am coming into this with a level of self-awareness, and these criticisms are coming from an attempt at balanced objectivity. Here are what I think were the biggest negatives of the boot camp:
1. Instruction had a distinct lack of enthusiasm/direction
- Classes were twice a week, Tuesday and Thursday, 7-9 pm. I didn't get much out of them, outside of the breakout sessions, when TA's really shone as a highlight of the class. My instructor seemed profoundly unenthusiastic about the subject, and started teaching the wrong week's material multiple times. It was clear that he inherited the material instead of creating it himself, and that dynamic created a consistent feeling of apathy.
2. Online-only class flattened the learning experience
- This was my first time going through an online-only class. If I can help it, I won't ever do it again. I felt disconnected from what was happening much of the time, and this created a sense of isolation that was extremely unhelpful to retaining the material. I was lucky enough to live near one of my other classmates who, along with a friend of his that had gone through a similar bootcamp, helped get me up to speed after I fell behind. I wouldn't have passed without their help.
So if you find yourself in this class, I again would recommend reaching out to the online resources, to create a dialogue and cut down on the feelings of isolation. And if possible, meet with people IRL. It helped a lot more than I realized at the time.
3. Course material was outdated
- It kind of comes with the ever-updating nature of the field, but a lot of the reading material was outdated or unrefined. New updates to JavaScript were implemented within a year of our class starting, and those were not reflected in the course material at all. This lead to class-wide confusion, especially in the last third of the course. It would've been nice if the instructors were a little more aware of these changes and did things to adjust, but that didn't happen in any comprehensive way.
4. Post-class support has been horrible
- Now here's where I unfortunately have to be the most negative: Post-class, support has been minimal, delayed, and sporadic. Around the halfway point in the class, we were encouraged to start engaging with the Career Services branch of our resources, to work on building resumes, optimizing LinkedIn, etc. I did engage with CS's development steps (there was one Office Hours that was dedicated to it), but updates were extremely slow, sometimes taking multiple weeks for a reply. At time of writing this review, it's 6 weeks post-class and I'm just now considered "Employer-Ready" and transferrable to a career coach. It's abundantly clear that Career Services is understaffed, and needs additional resources to be truly useful.
Speaking of 6 weeks post-class, we JUST got our certificates this week, after multiple inquiries and complaints (We were told it would take 2-4 weeks, and the actual certificate is a shoddy PDF). For those people that are relying on the certificate to get reimbursements from their employer, that is blatantly unacceptable. Our "Student Success Manager", who as far as I can tell was only in charge of sending emails with that week's material during boot camp, was absent from any kind of meaningful discourse. And when these concerns were brought to her by who I would consider the star pupil in the class, she was dismissive, petty, and rude. She deserves any kind of negativity that comes her way, she deserves it.
Overall, again, I still consider this a worthwhile venture, as my previous career path was not optimistic. I just wish the class was set up in a way that was more supportive, and the post-class resources weren't so downright terrible. If you're still reading at this point, I would recommend taking a free online course through Free Code Camp or Codecademy until you hit a wall, then look for programming courses in your area that you could feasibly go to in-person. Good luck out there.
Boot Camp Team of Michigan State University Boot Camps
Community Team
Sep 01, 2022
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us. We know how challenging it can be to learn a new skill and we take your feedback very seriously. We’re sorry that you felt frustrated during your experience with our program.
We truly appreciate your tips and advice for future learners — while we advise learners to set aside at least 15–20 hours per week for classwork and assignments, some of the more challenging material may require additional time to fully digest. This is why we offer the robust support avenues you mentioned; we encourage all learners to lean on their instructional team and learning assistants as needed.
From your review, we understand that you were not satisfied with your instructor’s teaching style. Our program has an intensive vetting process for instructors and requires a minimum of three years' experience as an active practitioner in the tech industry. We hire professionals in lieu of traditional professors to best simulate real-life working environments.
We regret to hear that the virtual learning environment did not live up to your expectations, and we understand that the online format may not resonate with all learners. You are absolutely right that one of the best ways to stay connected is to reach out to boot camp staff and classmates on the channels available.
Our curriculum is based on extensive market research, teaching in-demand skills that learners can use to enter the current field. We understand that you did not feel this learning approach was sufficiently beneficial for you and we appreciate your input, as we're constantly optimizing our curriculum and program offerings.
We would love the opportunity to speak with you directly to learn how else we can assist you at this time. If you would like, please reach out to us at (313) 918-1028.