Codeup

Going to Codeup was the best decision of my life. The technical skills that you learn at Codeup are the exact skills necessary for the world of programming. I use these skills on a daily basis and not just for the sole purpose of income. Codeup truly taught me how to solve complex issues with a fundamental approach, and taught me several lessons that transcend programming. If you have an interest in learning how to code, check out Codeup. I'm confident that you will share the same experience as I did.

The boot camp was hard but I already knew that and you should know that as well. The staff is always willing to help you out if you reach out to them which they encourage you to. Kenneth is a great instructor. He has a great sense of when to push new material, breaking it down, and time to step away from the code. He reads the classroom very well. If I had a chance to do it all over again, I don't know if I would. There are a lot of free resources to learn to code. Cheaper options too with certificates that hold way more weight than the Codeup Certificate. I will always view Codeup as a business. I got pushed though the program so they can receive the tuition fee paid off by government benefits that I got approved for. I never bought into the staff telling us that its not easy to get in Codeup and that we are very lucky to have gotten accepted. I don't know what to believe. Maybe they are telling the truth. I would not recommend Codeup to anyone unless they have tried to use other resources. Some people learn better in person than at your own pace online. The whole staff at Codeup is great, helpful, and will bend over backwards for you to guide you towards your goal. I just think they are overpriced compared to other bootcamps. 

I've honestly been debating writing this review for a long time.  On one hand I think people need to hear my experience to help make an informed decision about their future.  And on the other hand I understand that my experience with Codeup was over two years ago now and that things, from what I can see, have changed for the better at least somewhat.  In the end I decided to write this review mainly for me since I find myself to this day thinking back on this course and what went wrong.  I won't go into to much detail as I don't want this to seem like a nitpicky rant.  I just want to recap my experience as briefly as I can.
I started Codeup in mid 2019, opting to go through their full stack web development course.  In the beginning it was a struggle for me.  I didn't exactly have a background in the technical field and I was having a hard time at first grasping the subject matter.  I have to hand it to the Instructors and my classmates who not only met with me on their own time before, during, or after class to help me understand more clearly, but went above and beyond to make sure I had what I needed to succeed.  This is where I think Codeup truly shines.  Their support system and way they teach this subject material in such a short time is truly a testament on how teaching should be done. 
As the course continued and the weeks went by I found myself understanding how to write and execute code better and better, all while making cool projects along the way with my newly obtained skills.  
A little over halfway into the course I had my first official meeting with the placement team.  And I remember at this point feeling excited.  I felt like I was in good hands and was eager to finally start a job doing something I liked for once.  
Towards the end of my time with Codeup we started our Capstone where we split off into groups for the final big project.  I really enjoyed this as it was a demonstration of all the things I had learned coming to a head.  And by the end of the course I felt like I had accomplished something great.
Unfortunately this is where everything took a turn for the worse.  I graduated close to the beginning  of the pandemic.  We met with the placement team every other week via zoom due to the current world events.  This is why I have a hard time trying to critique the placement team.  I understand that adapting to a pandemic Is not an easy thing to do.  But it felt like with every time we met there would always be more and more new graduates joining the call.   I felt like I wasn't a priority anymore and that opportunities wouldnt be sent my way anymore.  There were too many times the placement team had me fill out an application only for me to never hear about it again or follow up.  So much so that after 4-5 months I had only had about 3 actual interviews with companies that I felt like I was competing for with the other students.  It felt like nothing was working.  On my own time when I wasn't trying to improve my skills I was filling out dozens of application a day and notifying placement of each one.  To this day I still wonder if they followed up on any of the application I had filled out.  They never told me if they ever had.   I was losing hope.  Nothing in the zoom calls felt like it applied to me anymore and with more and more people graduating I felt completely sidelined.  After 8 months I stopped attending the zoom meetings while trying my best to keep in touch with the placement team.  After about 10 months, after spending days on end sometimes waiting for a reply from placement, I was done.  I did not get a job.  I did get a refund but it honestly didn't feel good.
Since then Codeup seems to have better adapted to the pandemic and have put programs in place to better help students.   I wish nothing but success to anyone attending or looking to attend Codeup and I thank you for taking the time to read my review.

I graduated from Codeup in 2020. The curriculum is great and the instructors were super helpful, but do not put too much faith into the placement team. Within the six months after graduation, I never received an “in-field” job offer and they’ll push your cohort to the side once a new class has graduated. Even though I attended every monthly meeting, met the number of weekly GitHub commits and weekly job applications, I was passed up on better opportunities that were given to students who didn't push a single line of code since their Capstone.

Dimitri Antoniou and the Codeup Placement Team falsely stated that I received an “in-field” job offer through the Codeup Apprentice Program. The program is a 3 month contract with an employee partner and if they feel that you’re a fit, they might extend an offer for a permanent role. It is not guaranteed that the company will extend an offer. I did not receive a verbal or written offer, instead I was sent an auto email from Gusto- a payroll service, and was pressured by Codeup to provide my banking information. I did not feel comfortable giving this information before receiving an offer because I wanted to review the offer before accepting. Due to their constant pressure, I withdrew my application. 

Do not count on getting 100% of your tuition refunded if you end up without a job. I was only refunded 25% back and that was based on their false claims of receiving an offer. During my exit interview with the Placement Team, they were belligerent and condescending. If you get any sort of offer and decline it or you withdraw your applications from an unfit employer, Codeup will claim you do not get a refund because you were unwilling to work with the Placement Team.

Whether you found the job on your own, used a local grant partner or if you took a job that isn't related to the Web Development field- the Codeup Placement Team will try to take credit to meet their quota of hired students.

Very political, like stupid political. Uses students who love code and learning takes there suggestions without giving correct feedback. Also will try the hardest to get money, if you check any of the offered scholarships from they school itself it never goes to the student. It ONLY goes to codeup. So you dont see any scholarship money really hit student hands. The grants and twf will cover the most of it. And just know they open doors and teach you the basics at bare minimum. Why review anonymously? Because the staff can't handle any negative feedback and are vindictive as high school students.