Are Coding Bootcamps Worth It?
How Coding Bootcamps are Creating Paths Into the Tech Industry
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The hot jobs in the workforce are shifting. Tech is in! As a result, people are looking to retrain and pursue bold career shifts. Yet, they are often met with the burdening time and cost of higher education. At the same time, the tech industry is expanding and struggling to fill its growing needs. Recently, coding bootcamps have stepped up to the plate to solve both sides of this problem!
Designed for Success
Coding bootcamps equip students with the hard and soft skills to succeed since they can adapt to the changing needs of the tech industry. Students gain plenty of concrete skills. They learn coding languages and gain experience working in groups to complete projects. Most importantly though, they walk away with the skill of how to learn a language. Employers value this more than anything. Coding bootcamps give students the opportunity to showcase their eagerness and ability to learn.
Lowering Your Opportunity Cost
Time and cost is a huge barrier for most people hoping to enter the tech industry. Taking this into consideration, bootcamps only last 14 weeks on average. They’re accelerated and intense. Yet, they are seeing comparable job outcomes to 4-year bachelor degree programs! While the average cost of one year at MIT totals $60,000-$70,000, the average cost of an entire coding bootcamp sums to $14,000! They’ve also implemented CourseReport surveys, bootcamp graduates “earned higher salaries after graduation and saw greater salary lifts – ~$10-15K higher salaries.” General Assembly and SV Academy are two examples of bootcamps that offer ISAs/DTAs to help create paths into the tech industry!
General Assembly
Serving over 42,000 students in 9 years, General Assembly is one of the largest coding bootcamps. Co-founder Jake Schwartz describes it as the “solution to the global skills gap.” They offer classes in tech, design, and management online and in-person. But, they're most well-known for their full-time immersive bootcamps. These offer training in software engineering, data science, and ux design! They boast a 99.2% job placement rate, which is a result of partnering with Fortune 100 Companies. Alongside impressive job outcomes, General Assembly strongly values diversity. Their programs are composed of 50% women, 77% nonwhite, and 100% underemployed or unemployed students.
Graphic from General Assembly
SV Academy
SV Academy offers an alternative way to enter the exciting tech industry. They offer tech sales and customer success training programs! Students can fund these programs with Deferred Tuition Agreements, which don’t require graduates to make payments until they earn a yearly income over $45,000. While 97% of their students come in with no tech background, 60% of their graduates receive promotions within the first year of employment!
Photos from SV Academy
Stride proudly partners with General Assembly and SV Academy. We’re grateful to have a role in supporting students as they achieve their dreams of breaking through the tech industry!
Sources
https://www.gettingsmart.com/2019/04/bootcamps-a-viable-alternative-to-college/
https://registrar.mit.edu/registration-academics
https://www.coursereport.com/coding-bootcamp-ultimate-guide#state
https://medium.com/@coderacademy/clayton-waldock-how-a-coding-bootcamp-changed-my-life-cb37d39e1bd
https://www.wired.com/insights/2014/08/rise-coding-boot-camp/