Sorry to kill the suspense, but no, attending a coding boot camp will absolutely not get you a job.
More specifically: if you had zero qualifications for a technical job beforehand and attend a coding boot camp, you won’t suddenly find your resume fast-tracked, instead of tossed in the “we’ll keep it on file” pile.
However, if you had a significant skill set and think brushing up on coding skills will give you an edge, then perhaps a few weeks of coding camp can be enough to tip the scales. For instance, you might be someone who wants more literacy in a programming environment you weren’t familiar with, like a Java programmer who wants to learn Ruby on Rails. Or, perhaps you’re a creative jack-of-all-trades type that wants to tout MySQL familiarity on your marketing resume.
(Could this blog be wrong? This report says 80% of companies have hired a coding bootcamp graduate and would do it again.)
Scenarios like these can make boot camp training a perfectly acceptable route, as long as you do your research, put in the effort and keep realistic expectations. As for everyone else, stay far, far away!
Coding Bootcamp Problems
Coding boot camps are relatively new in the grand scheme of things, so nailing down exactly what can go wrong would require a lot of musing and conceptual sifting that we don’t have space or time for.
Instead, consider these main issues with these coding boot camps:
- They are not accredited or regulated, meaning that alleging fraud is difficult and that you are never certain of what you’ll get by definition
- Usually camps cost five figures or more, making them a high-risk investment that could potentially be better made at a quality community college course that provides a legitimate certification
- Rigorous schedules leave little time for your day job or personal activities, something not everyone can accommodate
- Camps are usually self-driven, meaning you get out of it what you put in
- They may force-feed you knowledge and experience that is hard to translate into real-life applications
Coding Languages May Still Seem Like Gibberish
Looking specifically at that last point above, for the benefit of the non-programmer seeking to learn, let’s consider a scenario between two people who want to learn French. One person studied Latin and Spanish in both high school and college, whereas the other never took a single foreign language class.
If the course they take provides a solid foundation in grammar, syntax, conjugation and more, then both students will see value in it, even if one grasps it quicker than the other. This groundwork can be made even stronger by practicing French both verbally on-the-fly and in written form within paragraph long mini-essays.
However, if the course just teaches students how to translate specific sentences, then the inexperienced student may have issues bringing those skills into the real world. Drag-and-drop style tutorials, where every single step is spoon-fed while offering no critical thought, can give the illusion of confidence, only to make the student feel out of their depth later on. After all, no one will be there to hold your hand when you start trying to ask strangers where the nearest supermarché is in Montreal.
This scenario is why many of those “I got a career after learning to code!” types get canned after 60 to 90 days. Naturally, a hard-working student can do a lot with just a little hand-holding, provided they makeup exercises on their own and cross-check their work. But if you’re paying many thousands of dollars to learn something right, why would you have to do the curriculum builder’s work for them?
Why Boot Camps Offer Value For Some
Not every coding boot camp lacks value. Picking out the good from the bad is difficult, but success stories are certainly out there.
Therefore, if you already have a background in coding and want to boost your knowledge, we say find a course with a well-documented reputation and go for it. If you’ve never coded in your life, shelling out $10k or more isn’t necessary to get your feet wet. Plenty of websites and schools offer free classes. Self-paced courses like Lynda.com are a much better value. Even if you decide to further your studies later, you will be in a far better position than 100% of newbies.
Bottom line: Coding boot camps aren’t the magic salary-boosting bullets many promise them to be. Certain ones can be a great resource for upskilling, but “buyer beware” is the central takeaway.
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