Bloc

I am a BLOC student on the Web Developer Track who is a 50-year-old African-American woman and a European resident. I desire a career change that allows me to work from home and on my schedule. I come from an electrical engineering background but with limited coding experience.  However, I have been doing websites using an editor the last five years as a volunteer at my church and work. I wanted to take my skills to a higher level but needed an online program that offered flexibility and accountability without having to earn another degree. I found BLOC!

After numerous hours searching online, I found BLOC and was very impressed by the program offering and testimonies. I could relate to the alumni. Regular meetings with a Mentor and the flexibility of obtaining new skills online sold me on the program. I like its structure, the encouraging feedback from the Grading Team, and the course content. BLOC also offers Group Sessions which allow me to supplement the curriculum and interact with other students and mentors. BLOC’s Student Portal has an excellent layout. I can chart my progress and also see the next steps. 

My education at BLOC started to pay off during my first month. On my job, I serve as my team’s webmaster and help with online communications in addition to other duties. I was able to troubleshoot code and even code an entire page without the web editor. I had surprised myself. Also, I noticed I could better understand my peers in IT and direct vendors who I outsource e-marketing jobs. 

BLOC’s curriculum is very intense, but the key is that you go at your own pace. You are not in competition with anyone. I commit 20 hours a week to my studies. At times with the demands of my job, serving in the church, and being a wife, I may do less. But the key for me is dedicating set hours to schooling and keeping my Mentor apprised of any concerns I may have. Once persons found out I was going to school, I started getting support in different ways. My interns and the younger members of my church are in awe that someone my age is going back to school and doing something they consider “hard.” My husband is my biggest cheerleader.

BLOC’s curriculum, focus on customer satisfaction, and flexibility is equipping me to bring my dream to fruition. I recommend BLOC to everyone.

The full stack web development program is well thought out. There are many checkpoints, reasons and things to keep you busy. Regular mentor meeting keep you on track and help when you get stuck. There is also a good community on slack to ask for help.

The program is also about what you put into it. You can put in the bare minimum or go the extra mile. I am satisfied with my experience at block and think that the program provides great value for what it costs. The part time option is also perfect for working professional. And the ability to slow or speed up your pace is great. I had take a few days off and it was perfectly fine. If you find the coursework overwhelming you can slow down your pace and have fewer weekly mentor meetings.

I think that my time with bloc really prepared me to attack any coding challenge put in front of me. More than learning how to code, you are also learning how to learn and creatively solve problems.

I completed the Web Developer Track of Bloc, and overall I enjoyed the program.  I came in with little experience, and while initially overwhelmed with the fast-paced learning, things began to click as I progressed. It was the project portion of the course that helped to tie everything together.

I guess that’s the case with learning any new skill. You can learn the details, you can understand their meaning, but if you can’t combine the smaller pieces into a greater whole then you haven’t begun to master it. When I initially tried learning to code on my own, I felt like I was stuck in that situation of studying piece after piece of information but unable to integrate that info into anything useful. Bloc offered the glue to connect the selected languages, frameworks, libraries, etc. for greater comprehension through projects that you might use in every day-to-day life.

Not to mention, the projects are great for portfolios – especially for those just entering the development field.  Rather than simply stating you know certain techs, you have substantial proof of your knowledge to back up the assertions.

I'm so happy I chose Bloc!  I considered several other paths for UX/UI design and frontend code (General Assembly, Codecademy, Treehouse, UC Extension, and others), but I ultimately chose Bloc because I was so impressed by the design portfolios I found online that were made by Bloc alum, and I really appreciate the flexible/remote format they offer.  

I wanted a program that would be very results-driven, and Bloc is absolutely that!  Even though it's a remote course, I feel they offer even more support than I received back when I was an undergrad at UC Berkeley.  At Cal Berkeley, it was sometimes hard to get one-on-one assistance or feedback on your work or level of understanding, and you didn't want to schedule office hours with your professor or TA just for a couple small questions.  With Bloc, you have tons of people at your service to help you learn.

With Bloc you get: 

1 - A COMMUNITY & TEAM. On Slack, they have a mentor team available around the clock to help with any questions (big or small) that you post. I've literally aways received helpful responses within the hour. And via Slack you can interact with other Bloc students, see what students ahead of you in the program are up to, get inspired by the things peers are making, ask each other for feedback, even collaborate...  You never feel like you're alone in the program.

2- A HELPFUL GRADING TEAM. They also have a grading team that doesn't just gloss over the work you submit. The graders give thoughtful feedback and actionable advice on every submission -- helping you grow into a legit designer.  

3- MENTORSHIP. You have a specific mentor (you get to select) who you meet with every week via video conference.  Your mentor is there to look out for you, answer questions, show you how to do things, and provide insight as you progress through the course.  

4- DAILY DESIGN CRITIQUES. They also host daily design critiques via video conference which are super informative; you can learn so much by listening in on critiques of other students' work, and by submitting your work for critique!  At first I felt intimidated to submit my work for critique, but I listened in on one and realized that they're actually very constructive and positive.  Instead of sarcasm or tearing your work apart (the way movie critics do, for example) they really just focus on actionable advice for improving and learning what you need.  

5- CURRICULUM. They've put together strong and relevant curriculum.  While tech and design trends and tools can change rather fast, Bloc keeps their curriculum and assignments up-to-date. 

6- TUTORING.  They monitor students' progress through the curriculum in REAL TIME.  When they notice that students are getting jammed up in a particular area, they'll host video conferences that students can dial into and basically get tailored tutoring in the specific area you need help with.  How awesome is that?!  They had no way to do that for us back at Berkeley, so in this regard I've even say the tailored, skills-oriented/results-oriented education you get with Bloc rivals an Ivy League education!

7-HIGH STANDARDS.  They keep high standards so that you'll be highly interview- and work-ready when you complete the program.  They don't want to simply pass people through the program, because it would make both you and Bloc look bad when you go to an interview and turn up poorly equipped.  Bloc has it in their own best interest to look out for your best interest!

For me, Bloc feels like a big sandbox that you get to have fun digging in and begin building cool things!  We're all here to learn, and, as such, there's no such thing as failure.  Like Thomas Edison said, "I haven't failed; I've just found 10,000 ways that don't work." Bloc is there for the sole purpose of helping you succeed and discover what works well....as quickly as possible and with as much guidance and support as you need.  

Needless to say, I'm more than satisfied with my Bloc experience.  I wish this existed back when I was in college, because not only is design and code fun and interesting, but in bang-for-the-buck, I feel Bloc's design track is more valuable than my liberal arts degree from a top university.

I am about 30% through my Bloc program and so far, have enjoyed my experience. I decided I needed a career change after feeling unchallenged and unmotivated in my current job and realized I needed some hard skills. I started teaching myself HTML, CSS and JavaScript but decided I needed a program to hold myself accountable if anything was going to come of it. I looked at several coding boot camps but Bloc seemed like the best choice financially and fit best with my schedule. It was part-time and online so I wouldn’t need to quit my job while I completed the program. I applied for a scholarship for women in tech and was able to get my tuition reduced, which made the decision even easier. It’s self-paced, but they do recommend how many hours you should work to finish in a certain amount of time. I decided I would do 25 hours a week and fully commit to the program. It’s hard work, but it’s enjoyable and rewarding. The program is broken into 4 modules with checkpoints that you need to submit to a grading team, and each module has a career prep section that will help you with your job search. I have a mentor that I meet with online once a week and am able to walk through anything I was having problems with. There is also a Slack community that is incredibly helpful. I think the best part about Bloc is that they hold you accountable. They will not give you the answers so you need to do the work in order to understand. Part of being a developer is being resourceful and they really put you to the test. Bloc also shows you how to use some of the tools that real developers use like the command line and GitHub. Some weeks are really hard and tiring, but the hard work pays off when you see the fruits of your labor. I do not have a background in tech so most of the material is completely new to me and I’m learning so much every day. I actually can’t wait to get online and work on my program. I feel like I’m finally using my brain again and that I have a second chance at having a challenging and rewarding career. I would highly recommend Bloc to anyone who is looking for a career change to web development and is willing to put in the hard work. 

I'm 5 weeks into the Bloc Web Developer Track, and so far, I love it!

The curiculum seems up to date, and thorough, and the community support is amazing.

The staff seem to be genuinely interested in the success of the students. I can't say whether or not I was able to get a job from what I have learned yet, because I still have a few months to go, but I am finally feeling like I'm getting somewhere.

I would definitely recommend Bloc to any family or friends.

I've been a new student into the tech design world as I was looking at a plan B career or even possibly a new plan A career once the course is finished. So far, Bloc has provided so many useful tools and resources to help get you through each section with full confidence. They just added student design discussions webinars that you can attend weekly that goes over some checkpoints in the track to give you more insight of how to go about that certain project/checkpoint. Overall I would definately recommened Bloc and I can't wait to see what happens when I finish the program!

I started the Bloc Design Track a few months ago and am incredibly satisfied. I currently work full time job and a part time job and the slowest track is definitely a manageable option. I was worried that the program would be too hard considering my background is in teaching and I have NO design or coding experience.

The information is delivered in a straightforward way and progresses logically. The exercises are al hands on explorations of the skills you just learned and focus on real UX design challenges. They are a good mix of challenging yet doable.

The best part if the amount of support I get. I have a great mentor- she always shares best practices from someone actually working in the field. Her feedback always pushes me to the next level (without making me feel overwhelmed.) In addition to that we have access to a whole network of professionals, mentors and other students on Slack. If you have a specific question it is answered within the hour, often minutes, by a mentor. Students share their work for feedback and there are always great resources being posted. There are now also daily live critiques on zoom and optional live group lectures. I haven't had a chance to jump into these yet but I am excited about the prospect.

I would definitely reccommend this to anyone working full time who is looking to change their career. It is also one of the only programs out there that offers an affordable repayment plan. 

I'm about 5 weeks into Bloc's 24 week design track, and am really satisfied with the program. My mentor has been great, and is always giving me feedback as to how my projects would be treated "in the real world," which means I'm already being prepped for the job search. She asks me questions about my projects as if we were in an interview, which again is very helpful for job search prep.

Bloc has lived up to all of the rave reviews I read here before selecting a bootcamp. The student success team is great and always has a solution. The curriculum allows you to learn quickly, but is also the right amount of challenging. Bloc recently implemented a new system where your projects are reviewed by multiple mentors instead of just one, so you receive a wide variety of experienced perspectives, which is crucial for growth. 

Right now I'm in the middle of frontend fundamentals, which based on my research with the UX / Design job market, makes Bloc design grads more competitive. This was also a key reason for choosing Bloc - I didn't see a lot of other design programs that had the intensive frontend component.