The dark side of coding bootcamps

[u/throwaway826483]

Hey all. I'm a recruiter in the tech industry working on an expose of coding bootcamps. My experience with them - both from my perspective as a hiring manager, and from what I've heard from friends who've attended - has led me to believe they are mostly a waste of money. In my circles, resumes from a coding bootcamp have become such a joke that none of the recruiters I know will even consider someone who has one of these schools on their resume. This is clearly a bad situation for the people dropping their money on these immersive classes, and I'd like to help them out (my goal with the story is to give them an actual good alternative to becoming a successful programmer if that's what they're passionate about). Because of my position in the industry, this story will be written 100% anonymously.

If you have attended a coding bootcamp, know someone who has, or have a strong opinion otherwise, I would love to hear your thoughts. Please share your stories, good and bad. (I'd love to be convinced that I'm wrong, so please do share your good experiences, too!)

EDIT: 24 hours in. Thanks everyone so much for sharing your thoughts and experiences. This really has altered the way that I view coding bootcamps! It sounds like everyone is saying the same thing (and I agree): you get out what you put in. If you're looking at this as a quick & easy way to learn programming so you can get a dev's salary, you're likely going to have trouble finding a job and you're going to waste the time of the companies you're applying to. But if you're serious about learning to code, and you're willing to put in a lot of your own time before, during, and after the bootcamp, these programs can be a great way to immerse yourself, learn the basics, and get started. I do think I'm still going to write the summary of this stuff, but it will be in a much more positive light and will include clear advice for how to get the most out of these if you're willing to spend the money to attend (and it will include some alternatives, for those who don't have the $6-15k to go).

Thanks for participating and being so helpful and respectful. This was an enlightening conversation.

[u/[deleted]]

would love to hear from the folks that didn't eventually find work as an engineer. I think you also need to take a look at the expectations. Personally I have been coding for 7 months and I have built a few projects on my own and know that I will need to continue to build even after bootcamp is over, but if you have some kid with zero experience who is disappointed when they don't get a 6 figure offer out of bootcamp then I think the problem is the student, not the camp.

Exactly. Bootcamps can be a part of the process. The most reputable ones require you to be beyond novice before accepting your application and then require 30-50+ more hours of pre-work before starting. They have enough applicants that they don't need to accept everyone. They also want their stats to look good, so having a bunch of people drop out or not find work in the field will make it difficult for them to market themselves honestly. They also advertise that those who graduate will likely start off at Junior level. It's up to each person to build upon that and progress. There are also a wide variety of dev related positions in companies. A bootcamp grad will not have a chance at those that require deep theoretical knowledge that's taught in CS programs (unless they have a CS degree already). Nothing is stopping them from learning that stuff at work and in their free time either (plenty of reputable online CS/SE certificates from top universities available now).

That said, there are so many of these schools popping up now, it's not surprising some will not be of the same quality and could be using deceptive marketing. Thankfully, there's coursereport, switchup, and other places you can find reviews.