Tips to survive coding bootcamp
Tags: webdev, beginners, learning, career
Published: 2023-06-05 01:56:38

There's a reason it's called a bootcamp.

With 8 hours per week of live online classes, a recommended 13 hours per week of facilitated self study (most likely more), and lightning fast pace of content delivery, the course has certainly lived up to its bootcamp moniker. 

As someone working full-time while studying with no prior coding skills (official noob status), it's been an intensive, rigorous, and at times gruelling experience. I've had to be extremely disciplined and organised to ensure I maintained a work/life/study balance. And, to be honest, there were many times this didn't happen and I was a bumbling mess.

Here are some things I've learned to help me survive (and occasionally thrive!) during coding bootcamp.

**Always ask questions**
It sounds so simple in theory! However, the fear of looking silly or inexperienced in front of your peers and educators can be a strong influence. I've had to constantly remind myself that we're all beginners and the educators are here to help.

_Ask that question, no matter how stupid you think it is._

**Connect with your classmates**
Online-only study can be tough. Besides the occasional virtual chat or sending of random memes, you miss out on the traditional bonding (i.e. shared suffering) with classmates that comes with face-to-face learning.

I organised a meet up with students in my city and it was a great experience! We shared our interests, experiences and hardships over a few drinks and created some meaningful connections.

_Don't go it alone, share the journey with your classmates._

**Leverage the collective knowledge of developers worldwide**
I've discovered an abundance of free resources outside of bootcamp to help me learn. At times the concepts taught just weren't 'sticking', so I sought out YouTube tutorials with super experienced developers who explained things in a way that made sense to me. I've also spent a lot of time on forums and tutorial websites like Stack Overflow, Medium, Codecademy and FreeCodeCamp to troubleshoot and overcome roadblocks. The global developer community is wonderfully supportive and open to sharing their ideas and solutions.

_Embrace the wealth of free resources available._

**Practice self-care**
Bootcamp can be an all-consuming experience, and at times I've neglected my mental and physical health due to assignment deadlines or just the general grind of classes and homework. This led to illness and the beginnings of burn out.

To get back to a state of balance I've had to regularly take time out to do what I love, and importantly, to rest. 

_Take care of yourself._

**Be self-aware**
Throughout the bootcamp I've suffered bouts of imposter syndrome and comparisonitis, and would question whether I'm good enough to be a dev. 

I'm constantly battling my own self-doubts, and must practice self-awareness to catch the negative feelings and thoughts that can impact motivation. I regularly remind myself that I started this course less than a year ago; I'm still a beginner and everyone learns and develops at their own pace.

_Remember where you started, and how far you've come on the journey._

As a final tip: **celebrate the small wins!** Fixing that bug in your code or implementing a new function or feature in your program is an achievement!