Coding Bootcamp vs. Online Video Courses (or Both) —Part 2
Following up to my part 1 of this blog post, I am currently in my final week of lessons at bootcamp before we break for the holidays and resume in the new year with Career Services. This is where the technical lessons end, and the coaching begins for your search for your first position as a Developer. This is also where any comparison between coding bootcamps and online video courses end as well. Online video courses don’t help you to find a job.
Coming from my previous life as a recruiter, I wasn’t sure how much I would be taking from this part of the bootcamp, other than hopefully some networking opportunities with companies, but we have had a few lessons on what to prepare for, for the career labs and what to expect. I have to admit, I have received some really good feedback on how to improve my resume and profile. This is definitely another win for the bootcamp I attend. Not sure if all bootcamps offer this service or not.
The biggest difference I have experienced between bootcamps and video courses are the community. Not just that a community exists, as online courses all seem to have a Slack or Discord channel you can join, but in the feeling of community you get. Over the last 9 weeks, I have built relationships and bonds with my classmates. Whether it’s working on a project till 3am or just joking around over Slack during class.
That also leads to another comparison I didn’t even think about when I initially started planning this post. Not wanting bootcamp to end. I haven’t fully completed any of the video courses yet, so maybe I will have the same feeling as well when I do, but I can’t imagine it would be in the same capacity. I am going to miss the routine of waking up and having somewhere to go (Zoom). But what I will miss the most, and especially relevant during a pandemic, are the regular interactions with my peers and mentors. Joking with them. Learning from them. Being inspired by them. We will hopefully all keep in touch and will hopefully all be able to meet up when the pandemic is over.
In summary, if you are looking to become a Developer, and have the time (you need to be able to fully dedicate your days to classes and some/most of your evenings and weekends to projects) and means (it’s not cheap, but there are payment programs that help), go to a bootcamp. The programs they have built are designed to help you to succeed and everyone needs some help when learning something new — whether it’s from the instructors or from the community of peers. And I highly recommend Juno College!
