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Do top bootcamps teach DSA?

r/codingbootcamp

u/michaelnovati replied · ★ FEATURED
I lot of bootcamps incorporate DS&A practice into the programs, AA, Hack Reactor, Codesmith, for starters. That said, I don't know of any bootcamp that actually teaches fundamental problem solving with DS&As. Codesmith spends under a week on all the theoretical concepts for DS&As and even though they assign you a problem a DAY they don't actually teach you how to solve them. I've worked with numerous Codesmith grads that can flail through a LC Medium problem but wouldn't pass a Facebook-level interview because the thought process demonstrates a lack of deeper understanding. I'm the co-founder of Formation, which is a program for experienced engineers that focuses on DS&A, SD, and behaviorals, and it typically takes most people - including graduates of HR and CS - 2 to 5 more months of pure DS&A focus to get to the top tier bar. So it takes the entire length of time you spent in a bootcamp or longer to get good at these concepts and hence why no bootcamp teaches them well. So I would recommend learning them on the side and after. Everyone learns differently and I've seen people rely more on self study, others rely on mentorship, others rely on practice with feedback, so ultimately it depends on you and how you learn. But I would recommend like a Stanford/MIT open course on DS&A as a starting point.