Actualize

I went to college at Indiana University for a double major in Telecommunications and Communications & Culture (basically film and media studies). After graduating, I got hired at GP Strategies, a learning solutions provider. They make training materials for other companies. I was a Content Developer, which involved a lot of proofreading and organizing content from clients into specific templates and formats. I started teaching myself to code through online tutorials about a year before the first day of Actualize.

  When considering joining Actualize, the biggest hesitations were money and location - I moved up to Chicago to take the class. I chose Actualize over other bootcamps because it gave me the ability to attend and while still keeping my day job.   I loved the way the classes were taught. There was a lot thrown at us constantly, but it was structured in a way that you would learn something new, learn a few variations of it, and then be set loose on your own to solve problems. It was a very effective way of teaching. If students ever had questions or concerns, our instructor was also great at helping you on a one-on-one level. Since taking the class, I am happier with my job, making more, and am excited to be a part of the industry. I would absolutely recommend Actualize. The classes are great, the people are cool, and you are given a ton of support and resources.   The only thing I would add is that you shouldn't think of the course as something where you waltz in, spend some time in a classroom, and then are immediately offered a job as soon as you graduate. There is a great deal of information that is given to you at a high level, but when looking for jobs, my experience was employers were looking for those deeper levels. So to succeed and actually get a job in this field, it takes a lot of additional time on your own.   

I chose Actualize becasue of their focus on teaching.  Peter, my instructor, was passionate about teaching, extremely knowledgeable, and always happy to answer all my questions.  The class being part time didn't bother me because I'd usually spend 4 to 5 extra hours each day studying on my own anyway.  And when you have 3 hours of intense lecture everyday, you can't absorbe anymore, it's just too much information.  

Overall I was completely satisfied with my experience at Actualize.  I actually had a job offer three weeks after graduating!!  The company that hired me specificly wanted someone a little older, I'm 36, and from a coding bootcamp.  They recently had a couple bad experiences hiring kids straight out of college with CS degrees.  

Good luck out there!

1. What was your background before coming to Actualize? (Include college/past career)
   
   I graduated college with a degree in Computer Science and worked temp jobs in IT and call centers while searching for development position.
    
2. What hesitations would have prevented you from joining Actualize?
   
   My main hesitations were if the bootcamp was going to be worth the time and money. I had a Computer Science degree and didn’t manage to get anything development related. So I was a little skeptical.
    
3. What impact did Actualize have on your life?
   
   I would say it had a huge impact on my life. Actualize has provided me with the experience necessary to move forward to a development position.
    
4. What specific feature did you like most about Actualize?
   
   The apprenticeship was the selling point for me. It provided real world experience building websites for non-profits.
    
5. What made you choose Actualize over other bootcamps?
   
   I would definitely say that the apprenticeship was what made me choose Actualize.
    
6. Would you recommend Actualize, and if so, why?
   
   Yes I would recommend Actualize. What you learn throughout the course will shape your way of thinking and the experience that you get from the apprenticeship is indispensable. Having any experience with developing real world projects is necessary to get a job.
    
7. Is there anything else you would like to add?
   
   The instructors are great and make sure you have a firm grasp of the material they teach. Job placement isn’t guaranteed, but if you take advantage of the resources Actualize offers the chances improve greatly.

What was your background before coming to Actualize? (Include college/past career)

  Went to college at SIU and graduated with a degree in Mass Communications/Media Arts, specializing in Music Business and Audio Engineering. I have an informal background of internet marketing and SEO, working for a family business about 5 years before coming to Actualize.     What hesitations would have prevented you from joining Actualize?   Mainly cost and location.     What impact did Actualize have on your life?   It has paved the way for the career change I had been looking for. My work/programming life was much more confined and personal than it is today. The biggest impact is that I now have a network of like-minded individuals that I socialize with, work with and go out of my way for as an extension of my business/career objectives.     What specific feature did you like most about Actualize?   The emphasis on creating your own, personal capstone projects. I also really liked the class structure (amount of students per teacher plus some TAs).     What made you choose Actualize over other bootcamps?   It was part-time and taught creating back-end applications and APIs. A lot of the other bootcamps were too front-end design oriented.     Would you recommend Actualize, and if so, why?   Yes, I would recommend it to anyone seriously considering programming as a career. It is much more effective at training individuals in coding for real life situations compared to something like a CS degree. I would recommend it over the other bootcamps because of the staff. Everyone that works there is nice and want each other to succeed.

PROs: The instructors and part-time schedule was key. It was important for me that the teachers were not only experts in their field, but that they had the best teaching skills around (Shout out to the Chicago staff!). I also needed to work during the day to be able to pay off my loans. The Apprenticeship and Job Placement program directly after bootcamp were also very important to me. Attending a bootcamp was the most rewarding challenge I ever took, and while I'm still learning about the many languages a programmer can study, Actualize gave me the supportive community and healthy learning environment I needed. I made friends with my peers, and together I learned so much more than I could ever accomplish alone. I didn't feel alone, and had lots of opportunities to pair-program. I had been trying to self-study for years and visited several bootcamps before choosing Actualize. 

CONs: Financially, enrolling put a huge dent in my savings and the time commitment affected my social/family life. Also, there were only two females including myself in my class, but I eventually met plenty of inspiring female coders that graduated from other cohorts.

Attending Actualize was a truly life changing experience... in all the right ways! After a good amount of research, I realized that Actualize was the right bootcamp for me, moved cross-country to attend, and haven't looked back since.  Before joining the coding world, I imagined programmers to be quiet, introverted, and the types of people who only worked alone.. oh, how wrong I was!  Right from the first day of class collaboration was not only allowed, but encouraged.  I enjoyed the classroom setting, where "lectures" truly felt more like a conversation between students and instructor.  The in-class exercises were a stellar reinforcement of the material taught, and the weekly blogs, capstone project, as well as apprenticeship helped me stand out to employers (interviews are much easier when you have experience to share!).  Being new to Chicago, I met most of my closest friends here as a result of Actualize.  I also am part of an ever-growing network of awesome alumni, and I love my new career!  Absolutely recommend!

1. I have a degree in acting and my only experience in coding was SQL for a job. 2. The cost for sure and the time.  3. I felt like a learned a lot and met and worked with great people. 4. I really enjoyed working on my own project for the capstone. 5. It was part time with an apprenticeship. 6. Yes absolutely. I would say that if you want to get into this field it is a great tool to help you. 7. !Strange is the best cohort. 

What was your background before coming to Actualize? (Include college/past career)
I had worked in Web Traffic Management right out of High School for a few years. I then went to Art School for Video Game Design, but I realized I wasn't actually interested in making video games, just playing them, so I never actually completed my degree. I then moved to working in Email Marketing and Design which pushed me into Basic Website Maintenance (HTML and a little CSS).


What hesitations would have prevented you from joining Actualize?
My only hesitation was would I be able to comprehend and keep up with so much information coming at me all at once.


What impact did Actualize have on your life?
It made me realize that I can listen and retain a lot of information at once. I didn't always remember everything I learned from the previous day, or even week, but I remembered the basics which helped me narrow down the problems to find the correct solutions.
I use this on a daily basis in my current job as a Web Developer.


What specific feature did you like most about Actualize?
The fact that it was part time. I had a number of friends who went to Dev Boot Camp, but I couldn't commit to 9 hours a day, 6 days a week. Actualize allowed me to learn and build my skills while still being able to work without ever feeling overwhelmed.


Would you recommend Actualize, and if so, why?
I would. The way that the program is run is very good. Explain the language with examples, and then complete excercises. It just makes sense. You can also go back and review the video of the class on your own time which helped out immensely.


Is there anything else you would like to add?
I really enjoyed my time in class, but the Apprenticeship afterwards is invaluable. You work on real projects in a real team with a Mentor. This will prepare you for what you can expect during your first Developer job.

The course is tough, the pace is grueling, and the material...well if you are a newbie like I was, its all gibberish. The team at ACLTC realize this, and they do their best to make everything digestible. Mark Richardson and most of the other staff are teachers first, developers second, which sounds backwards but is very important. 

These folks describe difficult concepts in ways that make sense, and their skills are only getting more honed with each class. I loved the TA's, Jay is the coolest CEO ever, and Mark, can't say enough about him. I would give the instructors a 6 if possible. The people made this course, and I would not have wanted to go anywhere else for my coding experience. I got a job 2 weeks after the course ended, so it works! Its all about what you put into it, and this program is great for the flexibility and the money. 

What a great experience. The curriculum is broad enough to get a birds-eye view of building web applications. From the basics, through typical application constructs from scratch (like to-do lists, shopping carts, contact apps), data modeling and database building, building and consuming APIs, and exposure to the front end like working with front end frameworks and building dynamically loading pages using Angular JS. Being challenged through the final process of building an app of our own choosing was a great way to cap off and reconnect our lessons throughout the course. The instructors are exceptionally prepared, passionate, and encouraging. The TAs were great, too. Beyond the classroom, the ACLTC team did many value-adds like coaching on interviewing and helping put our resume together. Not to mention the great group of classmates I got to meet through this experience. Highly recommended!