Prime Digital Academy

I attended the Prime Digital Academy Software Engineering program in the beginning of 2019 and graduated in June. At first I felt unsure if this was going to be a smart decision because of the expense, but based on what I had heard about the program, I knew that I was paying for quality. I experienced this as soon as I visited the campus. I would show up to the campus during tier 1 just to get a feel for the buildings and for the people at prime. Nothing but welcoming hearts from every individual who worked there. None of them are the same, but they all have a common goal: *to see you succeed*. I spent a lot of time speaking with these people individually (Fred, Mary, Ally, Dane, and many current students.

It was a challenging program. I would not reccommend working while attending prime. On top of the work load, there are many curve-ball life challenges that I saw happening to pretty much everyone while I was there. Including staff. So many people had their own problems, and we all felt for them because it doesn't take long for your cohort to become a family. One of the things that Prime promotes is that you are engaged with your classmates so you get a true experiece of working with others, not in competition but in community.

To sum this up, expect to work hard in order to Read, Write, Speak, and Teach code. In the process, you'll have as many human experiences as you do machine.

At some point in life everyone has that moment they can pinpoint as being completely life altering, my moment was my acceptance into Prime.

I started Prime as a college drop-out floating through life with no idea of what to do. I left a completely different person. I'm strong, confident (most days), independent, and I feel prepared for the future. Prime doesn't just teach you how to code, it teaches you how to be a better you.

Prime is aware that you have a life outside of school, no matter how limited your interactions with the outside world may be while in the program. They have resources for students in need and are always willing to help; if it gets to be too much even with everything they offer, you are allowed to drop back into a different cohort when things calm down.

I actually had to drop back into a different cohort due to events outside of Prime. The staff was very helpful, my classmates in my first cohort were supportive and endlessly kind. The curriculum itself changed a surprising amount in the month between cohorts. I learned things day one of cohort two that hadn't been covered before. The curriculum is ever evolving into the best possible combination thanks to some very dedicated staff. Student feedback also plays a large part in the curriculum; there are daily and weekly (optional) feedback forms that the staff uses to make these changes and keep general tabs on the students. They care about the wellbeing of each and every student in the program.

The atmosphere is incredible. Everyone supports each other regardless of where in the program you may be. You grow to be close to your classmates even though you only spend 12 weeks with them face to face. I've made multiple friends in the program that I still keep in touch with and hang out with even after graduating.

TLDR Prime is awesome. Absolutely life changing. You'll learn code, soft skills, and how to be a better person. Would recommend!!

Prime Digital Academy is a fantastic program that teaches you more than just coding. Although you learn an incredible amount about different technologies (JavaScript, jQuery, Ajax, AngularJS, Node.js, Express.js, SQL, MongoDB, Grunt, Git, Gulp, Bootstrap, Angular Material, just to name a few) but you also learn a lot of important soft skills that are important to the industry. Some of these soft skills are public speaking, working together as a team, communication, handling conflicts with non-violent communication, and many others. I would recommend Prime Digital Academy to anyone who is willing to accept the challenge and is willing to make a change in their life. 

Before I went to Prime I was stuck in a job that I did not enjoy and gave nothing back to me as person, or a professional. After going through Prime I'm happy to say the exact opposite. I'm exicited to go to work every day, I have a better paying job with unlimited potential that I have control over, not someone else. Not only did Prime help me perform a complete change professionally, but it also helped me personally become a more well rounded individual. My wife noticed hands down my mood not shifting out of control after a long day of work, but rather excited to talk about what I did that day and who I got to work with. All of this brought to you by Prime Digital Academy!

I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Prime. They do a wonderful job creating a learning atmosphere across many different races/ages/genders. In my time there, I didn't encounter a single person that regretted their decision to join. Prime teaches many things, but the most important thing I took away from Prime was the learning mindset. Not that the technologies you learn aren't worthwhile, but in the Twin Cities area there aren't a lot of jobs for the MEAN stack. Estimates show that these job will become A LOT more common in the next couple of years, but until then it is difficult to get an Entry Level job. Prime does its best to assist you through the program and beyond. They host weekly Alumni meetings that focus on employment preparation and tactics. 

CONS:

-The Stack they teach isn't the most relevant in the TC market

-In class portions of the course can be overwhelming

-Working while at Prime will be VERY difficult (Most average around 55ish hours a week for homework and classwork)

PROS:

-They focus on your development as an individual and assist you in avoiding things like "Imposter Syndrome"

-They are constantly adapting the curriculum to meet current standards and to match the class' pace

-Prime has a reputation of producing hard working individuals who know how to adapt to new environments. It's reputation in the TC area makes employers feel a little safer when considering taking on one as a Developer

-Prime teaches how to learn and how to make one more presentable (as an individual and as a job searcher)

-Prime instructors are readily available if you need help, they may not know the answer to every question, but they always know how to find the answer

I highly enjoyed my time at Prime and I would strongly recommend it to anyone who is looking to get a foot into the Web Development field!