Should You Join A Coding Bootcamp?
Tags: beginners
Published: 2020-12-15 17:13:48

Joining a coding boot camp is a great way to start your programming career and for good reason. Research conducted by Career Karma indicated that between 74%- 90% of coding boot camp grads are placed in Software Developer jobs within 6 months post-graduation. With numbers like that it's easy to see why the explosion of people attending coding boot camps has skyrocketed. Just last year in 2019, around 35,000 people have graduated from coding boot camps and I think everyone can agree that this number is only going to grow. Lucky for grads, the demand for software developers is still not being met. In September there were  1,365,500 job openings in the United States. It is important to note that we don't know how the pandemic has affected boot camp graduates. Technology is one of the few jobs you can do fully remotely so hopefully job placement wouldn't be affected too negatively but we will have to wait for that data to come out.

Now let's talk about cost. The average boot camp is on average $13,293 and this price is expected to rise as coding boot camp popularity increases and people continue to get jobs from these institutions. Sadly that price is only a dime compared to the average cost of a degree, for a student who lives on campus a degree can cost a terrifying $84,800 in 2020 according to educationdata.org.  It's easy to see why individuals young and old are trying to find alternatives to formal education. Some boot camps offer that you pay nothing upfront and sign an income shared agreement based on whatever job you obtain after the course. It is important to note that this agreement, most of the time, applies regardless if you're a software developer or a car salesman. Make sure you read the fine print and ask the right questions when you talk to boot camps.

You've decided you want to attend a boot camp. Which one should you pick? I would recommend attending a boot camp with a reputation for getting people jobs! Also, selecting one that's local to you can help as well. Most boot camps have career coaches that recommend jobs to you and have connections in the area. Connections play a big part in getting your foot into the door and you should take any opportunity to connect with individuals. 

While it can be scary to take a leap of faith for a new career if you're willing to work harder than ever before, have a passion for technology and the real-world problems that can be solved with it, you should go for it! I recommend going onto https://www.coursereport.com/best-coding-bootcamps and putting in your information. Don't forget to ask about any scholarships they're offering. If you are a person of color or underrepresented minority in any way, it can greatly increase your chances of getting a scholarship.

Thank you for reading my article. I plan to write about my own boot camp experience soon so stay tuned for that. You should connect with me on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/katelynntenbrook-111/  and follow me on GitHub https://github.com/Ktenbrook1 

Sources for those curious, 
https://careerkarma.com/blog/bootcamp-market-report-2020/
https://educationdata.org/average-cost-of-college