Meet Our Review Sweepstakes Winner: Valerie of Mate academy

Valerie, a graduate of Mate academy’s Web Development bootcamp wrote a Verified review of their bootcamp experience and won our latest sweepstakes competition! Over 1,200 tech bootcamp graduates wrote a Verified review for their school on Course Report and went into the draw to win a $500 Amazon gift card! We caught up with Valerie to hear about their bootcamp experience!

Want to win $500 in our next Reviews Sweepstakes? Write a Verified review of your coding bootcamp experience – we’ll pick the next winner on January 1st, 2023!

When did you graduate from Mate academy?

I graduated a little over 4 months ago.

What inspired you to enroll at Mate academy?

I had just graduated university with a bachelor's degree in Computational Linguistics, and was starting my master's degree program when I decided that it was time to find a serious job. I wasn't very stoked about my major, but I did have some basic web dev knowledge from taking some online courses (not nearly enough to land a job, though!). I decided that's the area I wanted to work in and started Googling for some junior developer openings. That's how I found Mate academy — I thought I'd have a much better chance at getting a good job with professional help like that. So I decided to enroll! Best decision of my life so far.

How difficult was the Mate academy application process?

I didn't think it was very difficult — the requirements are pretty reasonable. You don't need to know how to code beforehand, so the application process isn't meant to test your coding knowledge, more so your ability to learn how to code. All of the necessary resources to help you pass are available on their website, so you've got pretty good chances even as a complete beginner.

Where do you work now? 

I work at Preply, a language learning app and e-learning platform. I've been a Frontend Engineer here for about 4 months now, and I'm incredibly happy with my job! I'm really grateful to Mate academy for making this a reality.

What is your advice to someone considering Mate academy?

If you've decided to be a programmer, Mate Academy is a really good choice. Their courses are thorough and teach relevant skills, and are also very beginner-friendly. The mentors are all super friendly and helpful. One of the most valuable things for me personally was their help in getting me ready for the job application process and going through interviews and such, which is something many people get wrong even if they have the tech skills. Also, Mate Academy constantly adapts to the demands of the job market, so I honestly think they're one of the best programming bootcamps out there.

Congrats, Valerie! Want a chance to win the next sweepstakes? Write a verified review of your coding bootcamp experience!