Chegg Skills

I finished the course in just over 2 months. Coming into it I was really familiar with javascript and hit the ground running. Overall I really enjoyed my learning experience at Thinkful. I've taught myself a handful of web technologies over the past few years and the learning model here provides a good balance to gain a comprehensive picture of not only how to use the technology but the pain points that produced it. It for sure beats out piecing together outdated tutorials and gives you a good return on time invested. I could move at my own pace and work on projects that were relevant to me and my dev teams priorities and goals. My mentor was knowlegeable, encouraging, and helpful. I think the price fit the skills learned. It's pretty comparable to a semester class at a local community college only way more convienient and custom.

I'm about a month into the Web Development Career Path and am enjoying it thus far. Although I can't yet speak of the job assistance at this point, I like the way I'm able to view everything that will be coming up in the curriculum and the availability of my mentor. I meet with him three times a week over video chat, and have met with two other staff online who have been super welcoming, nice and helpful. It definitely helps as a motivator to see other people working for Thinkful who are so excited about what they're doing and they have great advice. Most importantly, I love that it's completely on my own time and flexible and remote, as--like many other--I'm not the person to sit still for 8 hours a day in the same spot all at once. There are a lot of extra resources, and essentially a good chunk of the program is teaching yourself how to learn, both now and in the future. This is an essential skill to have since everything is constantly changing in the programming world.

It's hard to find a criticism of this program. I always had an interest in learning how to code and I even looked (and got accepted) into competing bootcamps before deciding on Thinkful. The deciding factor for me was that I could learn on my own time and still work my day job, since I couldn't drop everything for 12 weeks. 

This ended up being the best decision for me because I had no prior experience. Working at my own pace allowed me to become comfortable with the material and my mentor helped me work through any issues I came across. I was so pleased with my progress that I went from the part time web development program to the full time web development career path. That allowed me to have 3 mentor sessions a week which was more immersive and made me feel more accountable for my work.

Since this is a review for people who are weighing their options I will say that your success depends on you. You could learn on your own but there is only so far you can go without any assistance. Having a mentor helps and in my experience, the mentors have a wealth of knowlege and are extremely helpful. There is also a very active community on Slack as well as live Q&A sessions where you can go for more information or if you have any questions.

So far I've had three mock interviews and my mentor is helping me iron out how I can present myself to potential employers. I didn't give the job assistance 5 stars yet because it's still ongoing and I stilI have more mock interviews beyond the introductory ones that I've had.

Overall, I have had a great experience with Thinkful and I definitely recommend it to anyone who has the drive and determination to become a developer.

I've checked out nearly all of the coding bootcamps that are being offered near my location. I initially avoided the online programs since, as an educator at a university, it's a real challenge to offer the same quality and experience in an online environment compared to physically being in a classroom. However, in my evaluation process I was continually disappointed with many aspects of the programs available. Several were struggling to get qualified instructors with any significant experience, class sizes were clearly too large to manage, recruiters seemed to be struggling to get qualified students who could handle the rigorous load, and the cost was extremely high with no factual evidence presented that graduates were getting jobs.

Then I came across Thinkful. After several weeks of asking questions via email and evaluating the information provided, I decided to interview with an advisor. What a difference! Noel answered all of my questions and I never once got the impression that I was the target of a marketing campaign to fill a seat. Afterwards, I met online with Derek, a program manager, who gave me a clear idea of what to expect, as well as, some initial advice on what it would realistically take for me to switch careers - again, no meaningless slogans or false consolations. As a matter of fact, I immediately took his advice and I'm already talking with individuals in the field to improve my chances of getting a job even though I'm only three weeks into the curriculum.

A major benefit of the Thinkful approach is the mentor. There's no substitute for being able to have access to a professional developer when you're trying to master these types of skills. Sure, anyone can buy the textbook and complete the assignments, but it's the instructor that makes the difference in the quality of the learning experience. My mentor, Vincent, has a great deal of experience which is evident when he critiques my solutions and responds to my questions. This type of one-on-one mentorship is exactly what I anticipated since I want to be able to think and code like an experienced web developer, not just complete some assignments.

I'm also impressed with the way the program is designed to accomodate the learning pace of the student. This may be one of the most under appreciated aspects of education, especially when your objective is mastery of a set of skills. The pace flows with me so I never feel like I need to rush over a topic because the class is moving on to something else. When I need more practice, or just want to take some time to explore a related topic, I can do so without worry that I'm holding anyone else back.

To get job-ready skills, it's clear that I need to put in a great deal of time and effort. This means reading everything I can get access to, searching through resources, asking questions, attending local meetups, seeking out workshops, and writing code everyday. The resources and people at Thinkful have been instrumental in givng me the direction I expected and is definitely worth the cost. I'm sincerely glad I took the time to explore this program!

I've taken quite a bit of online course and as a matter of fact, my BFA in Visual Communication is from an online course.  And I can say most of them were helpful, but Thinkful has been by far the best.  I've learned more about Javascript and what to expect from the industry then from any other course I've taken.  The curriculum can be tough, but as long as you keep engaging with your mentor and spend at least 2 hours a day you shouldn’t have a problem.  And even though some of the lessons I’ve actually encountered before from other online sites, there has been a couple of times that my mentors were able to help me expand my understanding of that subject.  I think that is where Thinkful excels.  They have some of the best professionals in the industry and they give you the opportunity to “work” with them.  All of the other online courses I’ve taken before didn’t really give you that interaction, and for me I feel that I learn more when I can when I can get some guidance from time to time.  Though it’s important, especially in this industry, that you can learn new frameworks or technologies on your own.  And thankful does provide some resources that I have not known about until now.   

Their staff is pretty great to.  When I first started with Thinkful, taking the Front End Web Development course, I had some financial issues that prevented me from continuing.  They were able to postpone my course until I was able to start again, and even went the extra mile when I decided to change my study (twice!) in the first month of the course.  I finished up the Front End course and now working on the Career Path.

I'm about 2 months in and I'm already getting some Job Assistance in the form of getting prepared with my resume and branching out my network.  So far, pretty cool.

I have been really impressed with the Web Development Career Path here at Thinkful.  I only had prior experience building a website using HTML many years ago (that took about a semester to build) and updating a blog.  I have already learned so much more from this course as I am 7 weeks into my program and still learning at a rapid pace. 

It's a lot of information and really challenging, but there's a big Thinkful community here with lots of resources and mentors ready to help.  I even get to meet with my own assigned mentor 3x/week and it helps keep me on track when I'd normally stray by now. The thing that's amazing about Thinkful is that it's constantly updating its curriculum to stay current with the latest programming language trends and you get to showcase them in the projects here.

Everyone is enthusiastic and out to help each other.  It's really nice and encouraging.  The added bonus is that you get career services at the end of the bootcamp which they will help you find a job.  I've already had a pre-session to discuss what to expect and I am excited to finish and get out there. 

Thinkful has really opened my eyes to endless possibilities and I am grateful for it all. 

I am about one month into the program and I have learned a good deal more than I have learned on my own. First off, I am going to say that I am not coming into this bootcamp as a fresher, I got my BS in software engineering and have been studying independently through books and pluralsight (another awesome resource in my opinion). I came in with the goal of getting a web developer position which has eluded me for years and although I had a small github presence, I can't say that it was anywhere near impressive. Just in the first month I have pushed 15+ projects to github which have slowly increase in complexity per project and I still have a long way to go. The mentor I was assigned has provided me a good deal of guidance and is trying to push me into more advanced areas to improve my overall code quality seeing as some of the other topics as easy to me. So essentially the mentor doesn't just sit back and watch you do your work, but actually tailors your sessions to push you further as a developer. The course material is good and very well guided but it also doesn't give you all the answers, giving you the chance to think of solutions or do additional research to come up with the answer. Of course, if you are stuck, you can either talk to your mentor or go to Q&A session which are available throughout the day where you can talk to other mentors for assistance. The course also offers workshops which direct in the learning of other technologies. Don't get me wrong, self study can get you far but studying everything without a focus can often leave you without a job. This is where mentorship is working well for me. Thinkful focuses their curiculum in a way that prepares you for work from day 1 and also helps you prepare for interviews. The preparation for interviews is not only in the curriculum, but also tested at intervals through mock interviews which then provide you feedback to go over with your mentor. And of course, there are career services which help you to understand where and how to get out and meet people in your area that both work in the field and can help you find the career you are looking for. Even though I am not finished with the program, I can really say the program is worth it. 

I can't speak highly enough about my experience with Thinkful.  I enrolled in the front-end web development career path program last fall, and just graduated last week.  I was originally accepted to, and planned to attend, an in-person, 40 hours per week FEWD bootcamp, but discovered Thinkful just days before I was due to begin that program, and I'm glad I did.  

Being online based, Thinkful was extremely flexible in allowing me to work around my own schedule, and keep my part-time job while working my way through the program.  And my mentor was even more flexible, allowing me to move our meetings around if something changed with my job schedule, with minimal notice.  

And speaking of my mentor, he was nothing short of AMAZING.  Seriously.  The FEWD career path program allows for three one-hour meetings with your mentor per week.  Well, my mentor often went above and beyond that guideline.  I can recall a handful of times when, if I was struggling with something, and he had extra time on his hands, our sessions would last two to three hours.  He was happy to take the time I needed to get it right, and feel comfortable with what we'd just worked on together.  

On the occassions my mentor wasn't available for whatever reason, fellow students, other mentors, and various Thinkful employees would often be available on Slack to discuss bugs in code, or just to chat.  Rarely did I ever feel I was on my own.  

I'm just now about to start into the career services portion of the program, so I can't speak to that at this time.  But if it's like the rest of my experience with Thinkful, I'm certain I won't be disappointed.  

Great course!  The mentor and Q&A time is singular.

Mentor time: recurring time you get 1x weekly with the same mentor.  They help steer your ship.  My mentor is also responsive to email, which is great for getting hints on what to search for when I hit a snag.

Q&A time: random time slots with experienced developers.  If you're stuck on something look for an open Q&A related to your subject, join the hangout, and start debugging.  

Both are helpful and lower frustration while increasing learning.  This is important when you are already working 50 hours a week.

I did not rate Job Assistance as I am in the middle of the course.

I've been in the Web Development Career Path track for almost a month and have been very impressed with the curriculum, the Thinkful community, the staff ,and my mentor. There's no doubt that the coursework is substantial, but Thinkful help and support is never far away. The Thinkful staff periodically reach out to see how I'm doing, I've already had one call to discuss career plans, and my mentor is awesome. The three sessions every week really help keep me on track (especially since I'm also working full-time) and it's great to discuss what I'm learning with someone who has been doing this work for years.

I am a full-stack web developer with an background in illustration and painting. I hit a wall in my career and decieded to up my skills with the Modern Web Design course. The exercises were thorough and I learned a great deal about typography, design, logos, etc. My mentor was amazing, and we really worked well together. She gave me a lot of ideas and tools for finding inspiration on the web. This course and my mentor really helped enhance my skills and helped me to become a more aware and thoughtful front end developer. I am back on track and excited about what I have learned.

My experience taking the UX Design course was pretty great! Unfortunately, when I first started the class I was paired with an instructor that was unable to attend meetings after the first week. I was paired with a new mentor after about a week. I was not refunded for my first 2 weeks (I had to start over with the new mentor). Once I was paired with Tom, everything was awesome! He simply explained any area of UX Design that I was struggling with, gave me great ideas, helped me realize things that could be improved upon, told me alot about real world experience and how to help myself in the future and spoke to me as a professional. I am giving a 4 star rating for "Instructors" based solely on the fact that my first instructor quit. If I was rating Tom, he would get 10 stars. The course curriculum is well written and very easy to understand. The projects are great and lend themselves to be open-ended and can turn into amazing portfolio pieces.