Skillcrush

TL DR

I love it! have tried tons of online boot camps and Skillcrush is the only one that makes it fun -- complete with jokes, silly sound effects, music, analogies and cheerleading. The platform is the most well designed I've seen from a technical, aesthetic and pedagogical perspective. The founder and instructor, Adda Birnir, is very inspiring and lovable. 

I recommend taking "Learning How to Learn" by UC San Diego on Coursera before embarking on an educational endeavor. After taking this short course (rated 4.8 stars with nearly 17K ratings), you will see Skillcrush applies the principles of effective learning very well. It breaks big concepts into chunks, uses analogies and metaphors, gives quizzes frequently, has you practice on your own and reviews what you just learned. Listening to a lecture and then reading the material helps cement the info because you're reinforcing what you've learned in multiple ways.

The Whole Shebang

Since embarking on my coding journey nearly two years ago, I have read a truck ton of reviews on Quora, SkilledUp, Course Report, Reddit, etc. I also tried just about every online coding school with free trials: 

• Dash
• Scratch
• Khan Academy
• Codecademy
• Rails for Zombies
• Code School
• Udemy
• Udacity
• CodeCombat
• Treehouse
• FreeCodeCamp
• Flatiron
• The Firehose Project

By nature, I thoroughly research and compare all potential options because I am an aggressive shopper/bargain hunter and a business reporter. (Check out my coverage of Shark Tank and investing for Forbes! :0) I got addicted to test driving online boot camps in search of the holy grail of coding schools. I would do several modules on one site and then get seduced by another school's ad for a shiny new course or discount offer.

I never completed a full course at one school. The material was over my head a few lessons into the Ruby on Rails and JavaScript classes. I would get stuck and look up answers in the forums but I never fully understood the concept because the answer was spelled out for me. I was constantly looking for something better and I couldn't decide which language I should learn first. I was also unsure whether I should pursue front-end, full-stack, data science, Wordpress, etc. 

At first, I felt like a loser for being a professional quitter but I really shouldn't be. After all, I can't know what works best for me until I try it myself. Online reviews are helpful but they cannot guarantee you will have a similar experience. We all have our idiosyncracies when it comes to learning. As the Japanese saying goes, "10 people 10 colors."

In an effort to buckle down and see a course through, I decided I should attend an in-person boot camp. I figured the teachers would keep me on track and I wouldn't get easily distracted. I signed up for newsletters and interviewed with a handful of the major schools. I also visited one school in LA and watched many group webinars. I made a monster spreadsheet with Google Docs comparing 25 schools in my area and online. 

My got a "women in tech" scholarship from one school in LA but it would still cost me $8,000 to attend -- far more than some online schools. I was reluctant to try Skillcrush because of a few bad reviews on Quora. But I tried it because of the good reviews on Course Report. I just started and I am nearly finished with the second week of the Front-End Web Development Blueprint at Skillcrush. I love it! It's really the best I've seen and I've seen a lot. I intend to finish it.

Living the html&css course right now. The lessons are easy to understand and I am breezing through the material. I love it! I've already recommended it to a few friends and family members. I do wish there was a separate section outside of the lessons where I voted practice creating the codes more, instead of just inputting the missing data that I just learned. It's great while going through a lesson but not so much for a cumulative learning program. Again, I am still in the beginning stages of the course so there may be more practice later.

I was very excited to sign up for one of Skillcrush's Blueprints because I admired their mission and purpose. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the curriculum and structure of the course.  I am more of a visual learner and I thought I would get that kind of instruction in this course. Instead, I would watch a short video of the instructor speeding through her explainations of how students are expected to implement the code. Following the video, there would be written instructions of what the instructor quickly explained in the previous video. After I would complete what I was instructed to do, the written instructions displayed what my code should look like. To my suprise, I would see other class names and new properties added that I was not told to include in the written instructions nor had I ever seen them prior to the lesson. It was a common thing for me to see new concepts added without any thorough explaination beforehand. 

I did well in the first section on HTML & CSS in the course because I'd already done the HTML & CSS course in Codecademy. Plus, the explainations and instructions were more thorough in that section. However, once I got to the Responsive Development (Skillcrush 206) section, things changed. There were a lot of gaps in lessons, meaning videos and lessons were not very in depth, and I like I mentioned before new concepts would be added without prior knowledge or explaination. I felt like the course went, "Ok, you know HTML & CSS, now you're on your own."

Anyone who decides to sign up for Skillcrush, I would advise them to have some knowledge of Web Development beforehand or you will get lost and have to use outside resources often. Remember that you have 30 days after signing up for their courses to get a full refund so make sure to go through at least the second section of the course to determine whether you like it or not. Sadly, I did not find out how the remainder of the course would be until after the 30 days and it was too late to get my money back. 

One good thing I can say about Skillcrush is the instructors would respond to my emails within a few days and helped a great deal, but I often was able to find the solution to my problems quicker in Facebook groups and on stackoverflow.com. Skillcrush's blog posts also offer great content and I read those often but I was very disappointed and not at all impressed by their Front-End Blueprint.

I switched to Treehouse and I like their courses much better. They offer a monthly subscription which I prefer over paying one rate of $399 for Skillcrush, and they break down their lessons more and explain every little detail which I appreciate. Honestly, you can find much better courses for a lot cheaper and gain more knowledge about Web Development. 

I'm currently enrolled in the WordPress Blueprint and extremely happy with the results. I had been trying to teach myself Wordpress by redesigning an old site for a friend of mine, but I was floundering a bit with the details and sometimes gerry-rigging something I knew wasn't a best practice. The WordPress blueprint. has taught me all of the basic structure of a custom WordPress page, as well as how to set up a professional workflow. It's full of professional development, too, and I can't imagine a better preparation for starting to freelance. The only downside is that it can be a bit too easy--they will often give you the option of writing your own code or copying and pasting a chunk--but it has helped me stay on track with the lessons despite a crazy schedule. If you're looking for a course  that's full time and super technical, this is not for you. If you're looking for practical know-how to start freelancing as a WordPress designer--sign up! 

I enrolled in the front end developer blueprint. I enjoyed the videos with Adda and the uplifting attitude she has. I tried to learn while working a full time stressful job, which was very challenging but I got through it. I think that this bootcamp is the most cheerful out there, which makes a big difference. There is a large amount of effort that went into the courses which I appreciated. I am glad that I took a chance and was able to become part of the skillcrush community. I did not enjoy 206, I found it to be overwhelming, way too fast paced, and I felt thrown into the deep end of the pool with no assistance, which caused some feelings of discouragement and resentment towards the work, and I now think coding is not for me after going through the entire blueprint. I think that if you are interested in becoming a developer, you should definitely take a blueprint, whether it's the front end dev or wordpress dev or web dev; if nothing else, going through the challenging world for 3 months with Adda cheering you on in the videos will help you to make a truthful decision about where you're at with this field!! :)

I learned so much in such a short amount of time with Skillcrush. The way the information was presented each week was very organized and helpful. I loved that the weekends gave us a break and time to catch up with the lessons. I also enjoyed how after each section we were given a week break to work on the final projects. Skillcrush introduced me to a community of experienced and new designers that are willing to share and help with each others work. I enjoyed the webinars that gave me that extra boost in knowledge and helped me figure out how to start a real freelance career once I am done with my blueprint. Between the videos and the design resources, I feel like I have the tools to continue to flourish in my skills at my new job as a social media manager. I can't wait to apply my new skills to a real freelancing career. 

When I started in the hospitality industry 15 years ago, I thought I found my calling. The high energy, dynamic, fast-paced job was perfect for the 20 year old me. Each day was different, and I had the opportunity to be part of people's lives that put a smile on their face. I started working at a prestigious hotel and years later found myself working for Events. The rush of experiencing an event from the conceptual phase to completion is next to none. I have been fortunate to have been part of teams who have delivered small events such as meetings and conferences to enormous concerts and festivals bringing hundreds of thousands of attendees. 

In 2012, my life changed. I met the love of my life and just over a year later we welcomed our son. My priorities instantly changed. The commute to work and the long (grueling) hours spent away from my family started to take a significant toll on all of us. I have spent the last 3 years struggling with the possibility that the industry may no longer be the right fit for me. There is an unsaid rule in the event / hospitality industry for those of us on salary; don't count your hours. Ever. I ignored that rule and figured out that I had spent over 80 hours working in just one week. 

The hours and the stress started to affect my health and general wellbeing. I decided that I needed a change. I started scouring the internet for alternatives and discovered there was an industry which thrived on remote employees. This seemed like a no-brainer. I needed to figure out how to get 'in'. I found Skillcrush (insert lightbulb and 'ta-da' music here)! 

While completing the free boot camp class I noticed the hop in my step had returned. I never imagined that I could be interested in 'tech', let alone be excited by it. I read through the blueprint descriptions and signed up for Front End Development. As a problem solver and one who lives to make things 'fit', this seemed like the right blueprint for me. Did I mention that I have absolutely no tech experience? Well, it's true.  

This is the first online course I have taken and did not know what to expect. We are now into the second week of the blueprint and I am beyond impressed with the caliber of the course. The material progresses at a great pace. The course is built to engage each learning style. Each section includes: a video, examples, step-by-step instructions, an exercise, and a really handy quick-reference guide. The interactive google group dedicated to each cohort is a great way to interact with fellow classmates and expand one’s perspective. The group is monitored by a Skillcrush team member who steps in when needed, and ensures responses are correct.

Last week we received a timely e-mail which I felt was written specifically for me. It outlined tips and tricks for staying on track with the blueprint and how to practically fit the course into your existing schedule. With a fiancé who works shifts, a very busy 3 year old, and a hyperactive collie, this could not have come at a better time.  This is just one example of many which make me feel like the Skillcrush team is cheering me on.

I am looking forward to completing this blueprint and will likely sign up for another. I recommend Skillcrush whole heartedly and can’t wait to see how my new career path unfolds.