Tech Elevator

After coming from a few different careers the idea of starting a coding bootcamp seemed ridiculous to me. Being able to have a new career after 3 months seemed like the biggest scam to me but after meeting and talking with the faculty at Tech Elevator I quickly realized this was the furthest thing from a scam. Everyone that is employed there is thinking of your best interests and the ultimate goal of getting a job. There is not enough words to express how amazing everyone who works here is. They care about you as a student and as a person and want to help you in every way. The program is very difficult and they know this and take it into consideration every step of the way. They were always available for assistance if you needed help with something and that was easily the best part about the program. If you had a question someone was there to help you. Having a pathway program that helps you on your soft skills and interviewing was amazing. Coming from an undergrad degree and a masters program where no one takes your careers into consideration this was a fantastic change of pace. I felt prepared when applying to jobs and interviewing. The technical aspect was amazing as well. With incredible instructors who take their time and help you learn the material. I feel confident going into my new career as a junior developer.  It was a fantastic experience that I would recommend to anyone who is considering a career change. You could not be in better hands than the people who work at Tech Elevator.

The biggest part that separates this bootcamp for others is the fact that they help you get a job. On top of all your lessons they also provide sessions after your class to help you prepare for getting a job and also set up various interviews in order to help you have a job lined up after the class ends. Even if you don't have a job lined up at the end, they will continue to help you after you graduate so you're not just leaving desolate. Most bootcamps can teach you how to code but very few can teach you how to land a job.

I can't say enough good things about Tech Elevator! I'm a fairly risk-averse person, so quitting my previous job and taking a chance on a full-time bootcamp was a huge decision. I had heard good things about Tech Elevator from previous students, and everything they said turned out to be accurate. Tech Elevator provided the instruction and support I needed to go from someone with no technical background to a full-stack developer in just 14 weeks. (NOTE: The pace of learning and the workload are not for the faint of heart, but Tech Elevator was upfront about this from the beginning. If you are willing to work hard and trust the process, you'll be successful.)

One thing that sets this bootcamp apart from others is the Pathway career preparation program. I had no idea how to prepare for a career in tech, but the Pathway team guided me and, most importantly, provided direct access to employers looking to hire students like me. I officially graduate tomorrow and, thanks to Tech Elevator's employer matchmaking process, I have already accepted an amazing position as a full-time software developer at a major company in my area.

Finally, the people at Tech Elevator are its strongest asset. Throughout the 14-week program, all of the instructors and staff provided much-needed encouragement, ample academic support, and genuine enthusiasm and investment in our success as students. I recommend this program to anyone looking to "elevate" their career!

I was a Java student in pittsburgh’s first fully remote cohort, and it was the best choice I’ve ever made. I didn’t know much (anything) about coding before I started, but I knew I needed to make a career switch.  In 14 weeks I went from knowing nothing to graduating with a job offer as a software developer. I didn’t know everything leaving, but I left with a solid framework to build upon and the confidence that I could learn what else I needed to on the job.  And so far I have, and I’m so glad I made the switch and so glad I chose tech elevator.  They are not just there to collect your tuition and push you out the door. They want to help you get a job. And unlike other boot camps they actually set up interviews with local hiring partners, which is how the majority of my cohort got hired.  Curriculum aside, the instructors, pathway director, and staff are just good, caring, wonderful people who are genuinely dedicated to getting you a job and seeing you succeed.  I cannot say enough positive things.  Choose tech elevator. You won’t regret it.  

I came into this with 0 coding experience, and can say that this program far and away exceeded my expectations. I never felt out of place in anything that we went over and loved how willing the instructors are to go out of their way to assist students. 

I will say that if you are coming into this with a coding background, you may not learn much in the beginning. However, if you were self taught, the .NET instructors do a great job to ensure you understand good code format and writing techniques to make your code easily readable and fixable. They teach test driven development in the beginning and proper formatting to get you on a similar playing field to those who have been coding for years.

While this is a coding camp emphasized on student success, I must mention that it is still up to you to take full advantage of what is being taught. Self motivation is still key here, and knowing when to reach out for help is an important character trait to be successful in this program. 

Onto the Pathway program. This entire part of Tech Elevator is dedicated to getting you job ready, and is separate from the coding instruction. They provide plenty of opportunities to meet other companies, attend coding events in the area and online, and to destress with others in the camp. However, some of the required presentations, in my opinion, were a bit unnecessary. I also felt students would ask very strong questions regarding things like the interview experience and how to present yourself, and I do not feel the answers to these types of questions were very strong. That being said, your resume and LinkedIn will look incredible by the end of the program if you take their advice. This is and the matchmaking events more than makeup for any downfalls I have with the Pathway program as a whole.

TL:DR

The instructors are very passionate and want to see you succeed. They start from the ground up and do a great job breaking down basic topics without wasting time on unnecessary information. Classes are highly interactive and questions are addressed seriously and immediately to the best of the instructors knowledge's. The Pathway program is hit or miss, but you can be sure you will leave this program having met plenty of potential companies and with a killer resume and professional presence on LinkedIn. 

Overall Schedule
The first 3/4 of the program is highly focused on teaching you to code, while the last 1/4 is mostly focused on getting you ready for the job market.

I'm coming up on graduation in 6 days, and I can emphatically say this was a great decision.  Tech Elevator has a solid curriculum, taught by exceptional teachers, and is run by a passionate staff.  They all want you to succeed and are willing to put in the work if you are.  To be clear: it was a LOT of work and is not for everyone.  But if you are determined, willing to put in lots of effort, and eager to learn, this is the bootcamp for you.  They will give you technical skills AND networking skills.  I personally was very weak on the networking/interviewing side of things and chose TE partially because they build that into the curriculum.  Why that isn't the standard way of teaching in every field is beyond me...
I give 5 stars in each category unreservedly.  If you can make it through a bootcamp and want to start a career in software development, pick Tech Elevator.  It will give you all the tools you need to succeed.

 This bootcamp worked for me.  And by 'worked' I mean I am now working as a software engineer, about to have my 90 day review at a company and job that I love and it has only been 7 months since I started the program. Only 3 months after graduating, I am earning over double any of my previous salaries.  Prior to starting Tech Elevator, I had dabbled in HTML and CSS and tried to teach myself more but it never worked. However, going in Tech Elevator does not require you to have any coding experience. They start from the ground up and build the fundamentals you need to think like and become a developer. Starting with either Java or C#, you learn the core concepts of object oriented programing and then move on to databases, APIs and end with some experience in front end technologies.  Alongside the tech portion is the 'Pathway Program'. It is this side of TE (along with their excellent graduation and job placement rates) that originally drew me to this bootcamp. They have dedicated staff who help you craft your new tech forward resume, update your LinkedIn, and network with TE's hiring partners in your area. This help is INVAULABLE. You could be an amazing self taught programmer, but if you don’t know how to present yourself to possible employers you wont get very far.  Added to this the instructors are incredible. They are impressively knowledgeable, passionate, and have real industry experience. One of my teachers told us that he wouldn't let us graduate if he could see himself hiring us to his own development team. So while it could just be a 'factory' where they push you through like some bootcamps, they are truly dedicated to the end result of you being an employable and competent programmer.  But ultimately Tech Elevator is more than the sum of its parts. It becomes a community to help you through an intense program and into your career beyond. I built a network of peers and mentors that I know I can count on moving forward. My passion for this program makes me want to stay involved and mentor current students in turn and that is what makes Tech Elevator special.  All sentiment aside, if you are able to dedicate yourself full time to a 14 week intensive bootcamp, Tech Elevator can turn you into a developer and help you get that job. Their numbers speak for themselves. 

 Coming from a healthcare background with no coding experience and also a stay-at-home parent, the 14-week boot camp at Tech Elevator was one of the hardest things I have ever done. I couldn’t have made it through without the help of my classmates, instructors, and our pathway director. Everyone in my class was going through the same experience as I was and the TE staff is always there to help.If you plan to do this make sure you are 100% committed to investing 14 weeks to learning. Tech Elevator will prepare you for a career in Tech in two ways, teach you everything you need to know to start out as a Junior Full Stack Developer and the Pathway Program will teach you how to land a job. The pathway program includes resume writing, creating a LinkedIn profile, mock behavioral and technical interviews with instructors and recruiters, and Match-Making events with reputable companies.The support from the staff continues on even after you graduate through interview preparation, coding tutorials, reaching out to recruiters, out-of-state jobs, and a lot more. I met with our pathway director and instructors for interview practice every week until I was able to get a job. I am very grateful to the TE staff for their patience, encouragement, and support. 

I had heard about this program through a friend who was a huge advocate for them. I took the leap and could not be more ecstatic with the result. I have a background in education, and I was amazed by the caliber, knowledge, patience, and genuine warmth my instructors exuded. I have never had a better educational experience than this program. The support on the job hunt is also tremendous, the pathway directors always seemed genuinely invested in my personal hunt, and I felt like they were extremely available for help before and after the program. I have been pushing my friends to look at it, it was an incredible experience, even fully remote. In the end the job I found more than tripled the salary of my last job, it really probably is the best decision I've ever made.

In terms of curriculum and education, this Bootcamp has what you need for sure. I came out of it prepared for the majority of interviews and with many projects to demonstrate my work to potential employers. They don't get into high-level concepts like code efficiency however. Most employers I spoke to understood I would have a limited understanding of that, but some technical assessments had an efficiency variable to them that I always struggled with. There are certainly concepts that you need to research on your own to push your employability over the edge. One negative thing I will mention is that the instructors are gearing their expectations of you toward people with very little experience in technology. As someone with a technology background, I could have been pushed much harder, but instead, I was often assured that the work I was doing was difficult and time-consuming and to not push myself too hard. I'm sure that advice is much-needed for many Bootcamp students, but I think one major failing of the curriculum was not treating differently the students who were excelling, and sometimes I could feel stagnant. The best way to make up for this is to help others who are struggling a lot. It gives you confidence and a better overall understanding of the content while helping out your newfound friends. Teaching us to pair program and "mob" were invaluable, and I talked about my love for those styles of programming with many interviewers who were excited to see a team-player and someone who could easily fit into a team. 

I want to end by saying that by far the most valuable part of this bootcamp is the Pathway Program (Job-search assistance program). Tech Elevator has connections to an incredible amount of tech companies in their locale, and the support that I got after graduation was comprehensive and always available. I wouldn't have landed the job I did without being set up for success by the Pathway team. Not only do they help you prep your interview skills, resume, etc., but they will often land you direct interviews with employers whether or not you had formally applied there. The chances you get to prove yourself in interviews are numerous, and the Pathway team never stops providing those opportunities until you get a great offer. They even have connections to tons of hiring managers directly so they can help put on you on the right track when places are starting to hire or looking for something specific. I'm really happy with my choice to attend Tech Elevator. I'm confident I made the right choice in Bootcamp, and I have now received an offer to be a Software engineer with a credible company, sporting the best salary I've ever had.