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is codesmith and other top bootcamps worth it if u have a CS degree?

3 of Michael's comments in this thread · View thread on Reddit ↗

u/michaelnovati replied · · edited ★ FEATURED
It depends on which school you went to and what experience you had (i.e. internships) and what your goals are. If you have very strong fundamentals and are having a hard time getting interviews because of a lack of interviews and you want to work at a non-tech centered company (e.g. an agency or maybe a bank), Codesmith could be useful but purely as a job hunting strategy because you'll add this OSP project to your resume that's branded as professional experience in order to help you get past resume screens (this is fairly controversial with people on both sides of the ethics of it, but it works). If you did a CS degree, the project is the size and scope of a semester long 4 person group project, however many alumni market it like they worked at a company for a year, and that helps you get initial interviews and sometimes even mid-level roles at 3rd tier companies. The alumni connections are very helpful compared to other bootcamps to get opportunities, and this will also help you if you are having a hard time. (Disclosure: BIAS) I'm the co-founder of a career accelerator called Formation.dev and I think you should compare bootcamps to this class of program as well - Formation, Interview Kickstart, Outco, Pathrise, and Scaler. All of these are focused on the job hunt and skills needed to do well in the interview process, negotiations, etc...

u/ForgotMyNameeee wrote (the comment Michael replied to):

so assuming if i didnt have very strong fundamentals (which i don't imo, especially javascript), would that mean the bootcamp is definitely a good deal? what the other person said makes sense about how a lot of people felt like they were drowning and not retaining a lot of info s

u/michaelnovati replied · ★ FEATURED
So if you aren't aiming for top tier companies with heavy DS&A interviews, and you don't have any internship experience, then I would consider a bootcamp or career accelerator. If you did a lot of DS&A in school, have an internship or two and want a leg up in the competitive environment, then definitely career accelerator and not a bootcamp.

u/ForgotMyNameeee wrote (the comment Michael replied to):

actually nvm about that. im just gonna try out their free program. i cant justify paying 22k for it when its online for free.

u/michaelnovati replied ·
You can also look at Launch School for a cheaper, month to month angle.