blog article
Flatiron School vs Dev Bootcamp
Written By Liz Eggleston
Last updated on September 1, 2015
Written By Liz Eggleston
Course Report strives to create the most trust-worthy content about coding bootcamps. Read more about Course Report’s Editorial Policy and How We Make Money.
Course Report strives to create the most trust-worthy content about coding bootcamps. Read more about Course Report’s Editorial Policy and How We Make Money.
As of December 8, 2017, Dev Bootcamp will no longer be operating. Dev Bootcamp and Flatiron School both offer intensive full-time web development programs that focus on Ruby on Rails, but that’s where their similarities end. Whether your focus is strictly coding or you are seeking a complete life overhaul, it’s a hard choice between these top New York coding bootcamps.
A recurring theme in Dev Bootcamp reviews is their Engineering Empathy course. Their holistic approach to coding requires students to do some serious soul-searching that has left many a student in tears. Engineering Empathy requires students to answer deep emotional and psychological questions in a group setting (note: pleading the 5th is not an option). However, in Dev Bootcamp reviews, alumni note the experience as life-changing. Of the 900 hours students spend at Dev Bootcamp, about 80 percent of that time is spent coding and learning about code, and 20 percent of that time is spent in sessions like Engineering Empathy or yoga. Dev Bootcamp is an entirely "coding focused" bootcamp with a whole-self approach.
Flatiron School offers courses in Web Development and iOS mobile development. The programs tend to take a more coding-focused approach. However, students code in pairs, do yoga, knot-tying and other exercises to work on soft skills like teamwork and community building. The school has recently expanded their offerings to general Front-End Development, Data Science and DIY Electronics courses.
If you are doing a bit of soul searching and ultimately seeking self-improvement, then Dev Bootcamp is for you. For a more coding-focused web-development bootcamp or to learn iOS development, stick with the Flatiron School.
Flatiron School courses cost $15,000 for iOS Mobile Development and Web Development. The Flatiron School also offers a unique program for NYC residents over 18 that make less than $50,000, the NYC Development Fellowship. The fellowship offers a 22-week Web Development course to meet the need for programming professionals generated by the growing amount of startups in the NYC community.
Dev Bootcamp courses are $12,700 in Chicago and $13,950 in New York or San Francisco. Minorities, women and veterans qualify for an automatic $500 scholarship.
In the past, both schools have offered tuition rebates to students who have been hired through the job placement program. Rebates ranged from $3,000-$4,000.
Both Dev Bootcamp and the Flatiron School operate under a blended learning format in which students first complete coursework online and immediately following attend traditional classes on campus.The Flatiron School has two campuses in New York, Manhattan and Brooklyn. Dev Bootcamp has campuses in San Francisco, New York and Chicago.
The initial requirement for Flatiron School includes 150 hours of pre-work prior to attending either the Web Development or iOS Mobile Development course. The Web Development and iOS Mobile Development Courses are 13 weeks. For the NYC Fellowship, the time commitment is 22 weeks.
At Dev Bootcamp, "Phase 0" is a 9 week intensive, structured remote program that includes weekly challenges, guided pairing sessions, and feedback from instructors. It requires about 25 hours a week to complete. Dev Bootcamp's full time, immersive, on-site portion is divided into three, three-week phases: Phase 1, Phase 2, and Phase 3. In New York, San Francisco, and Chicago, students may repeat Phase 1 or 2 once if recommended by an instructor. Core program hours daily from 9 to 6, with evening and weekend assignments, challenges, and enrichment activities.
Developed by their seasoned teaching staff, the web development curriculum at Flatiron School teaches HTML5, CSS, Javascript, Ruby on Rails, geekery, Git Control, databases, SysOps, APIs, test-driven development and agile methodology. The iOS mobile development incorporates a bit of old and new by teaching the new and more popular Swift, while also including Objective C.
The Dev Bootcamp curriculum has evolved to emphasize both JavaScript and Ruby, as well as Rails, HTML, CSS, Sinatra, and database modeling including Active Record, SQL, and PostgreSQL. Quite a few students remark that the overall emphasis at Dev Bootcamp is on Ruby.
Flatiron School emphasizes a pedagogy-focused approach in a world where formal education, teaching experience and qualifications are normally eschewed. The school has a set group of instructors and shuts down 4-6 weeks each year for teacher training and curriculum development. All teachers have significant experience. As a result, the original curriculum has been deemed easy to follow by Flatiron School alumni. The pre-work curriculum of 150 hours guarantees students enter the camp with some coding knowledge.
One of the most unique aspects of Dev Bootcamp is the ability for students to repeat a phase if they're falling behind. The Dev Bootcamp team tells us about the assessments: "During the immersive 9 week program students complete regular challenges to provide insight into how they are learning the material. In addition, each three-week phase contains a group and solo coding challenge to determine how well students have mastered the material before moving on to the next phase. Dev Bootcamp concludes with a final project where students work in a small group to pitch, plan, build, deploy and demo a fully functioning web app in eight days."
The curriculum and teaching style at Dev Bootcamp varies depending on instructors and session. Student feedback is highly valued by staff at DevBootcamp.The school curriculum can and does change even in the midst of a session based on feedback from students. The bootcamp hires different teachers each session. In many cases, no two cohorts will have the same instructors. Former students are often hired as mentors or instructors.
For students that place high value on teaching quality, Flatiron School would be a great fit. If hands-on learning and mentoring from students who’ve been there are more your style, try out Dev Bootcamp.
Dev Bootcamp’s admission rate is 60%, notably higher than most higher education institutions. Former Dev Bootcamp instructor Jonathan Eyler-Werve says, “Dev Bootcamp accepts everyone that we feel can be successful in our program, and we feel will make the people around them more successful. Our most important screens are for culture.” That said, you may also land on a waitlist for Dev Bootcamp, particularly if you apply to their San Francisco location. According to Dev Bootcamp, "acceptance to Dev Bootcamp is on a case-by-case basis and is based on cultural fit, readiness for an immersive learning experience and the coding challenge during your interview."
Flatiron School’s acceptance rate is a more stringent 6%. Flatiron School founder Adam Enbar says, “We want to know you are passionate about learning to code and don't just see it as a means to an end...we’re looking for people who see code as a craft to which they want to devote their careers.”
If coding has changed your life and you would code forever if no one paid you for it, you’ll fit right in at Flatiron School. If you’re committed to learning something new and helping others do the same, send your application to Dev Bootcamp.
According to Flatiron School’s most recent job report (November 2014), 94% of the bootcamp’s job seeking graduates were placed within 120 days of graduation, and 99% are placed after that. Per founder Avi Flombaum, an early 2013 cohort of graduates reached a 100% job placement rate within 5 weeks of the program’s completion. As of October 2015, Flatiron School is one of the only schools to publish independently verified job placement and demographic stats. Do note, that part-time students will not benefit from job placement assistance.
The most recent Dev Bootcamp job placement rate (self-reported in 2012) states that 90% of graduates were placed within 60 days of graduation. In reading through Dev Bootcamp reviews, you’ll note that students appreciate the one-week long career training focus after the completion of the program, which includes resume review, interview prep and tips on building an online presence. Most graduates rated Dev Bootcamp four out of five stars in the job placement area.
Most coding bootcamps cite culture as a key part of the application process. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that many Dev Bootcamp graduates state that they’ve found new friends coworkers and even business partners through the school. As of September 2015, Dev Bootcamp has over 1,600 graduates. New cohorts graduate every 3 weeks from our locations in Chicago, San Francisco and New York City. The Flatiron School also has a strong alumni network with Flatiron graduates hiring fellow alumni.
The application process for both Dev Bootcamp and the Flatiron School require an initial online application, and one or more interviews if that’s successful. Applicants should expect to hear from the bootcamp within a few weeks with a request to schedule an interview, a task to complete, a request for additional information or a rejection letter. Both coding bootcamps accept complete beginners, though some experience coding is advised.
The interviews at Dev Bootcamp and the Flatiron School are required for all applicants and include both a personal interview and technical task related to coding or logic. At the Flatiron School, you’ll interview with both an instructor and a founder. At Dev Bootcamp, you’ll complete a 45 minute interview with the admissions team, in which you’ll discuss the coding exercises and their Engineering Empathy video.
Reading through Dev Bootcamp's reviews you’ll find three consistent things:
In Flatiron School reviews, you’ll note the following three things:
Liz Eggleston is co-founder of Course Report, the most complete resource for students choosing a coding bootcamp. Liz has dedicated her career to empowering passionate career changers to break into tech, providing valuable insights and guidance in the rapidly evolving field of tech education. At Course Report, Liz has built a trusted platform that helps thousands of students navigate the complex landscape of coding bootcamps.
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