Skillcrush

I signed up recently and found the material to be well arranged and put-together. They clearly did a decent job of designing the course work. Now for the trouble:

1. There is really no way to guage the success rate of their graduates. There are hundreds of students, and only a handful of them give any sort of testimony(I think this is the case with many schools). They give you a 30 day refundable window, but the trouble is that you can't tell if this is going to work out for you in 30 days, especially if you are doing this part time.

2. One thing they DON'T tell you in advance is that you have tp purchase software, and later, domains. The software with cost between 40-100 dollars per month.(I don't know what the domain costs)They give no HINT of this when they are sending marketing emails to get you to sign up, but spring it on you after class starts. I asked them about this, and their answer was glibly stated as "sorry for the 'misunderstanding'".

3. Be careful of schools with excessingly high review numbers(this school gets about 4.8 on this site). I don't know exactly how all reviews are generated, but I've seen this sort of thing in the past. Without going into detail here, just understand that it is possible, and often is the case, that review numbers get skewed upward intentionally. I simply think that a Skillcrush student who is unhappy gets his/her refund(which in fairness to them, they will give without an argument) and forgets about it without leaving a review. 

4. I found instructors and any sort of assistance to be inaccessibe. They try to stear you to the community or FAQs, which is fine on a certain level, but if you are a student you need to get an answer from a qualified instructor in a timely fashion. I don't think they deliver well on this.

Bottom line, let the buyer beware. Some other reviewers have recommended Lynda or some other free or inexpensive sources. I think that's a good option for some. Skillcrush didn't work out well for me. That doesn't mean it won't for others. I'm sure they're glad to see me go, they likely viewed me as a trouble maker. That's fine. All I wanted was to be given a straight answer from the start(about cost, expectations and everything else), which they won't do. The bottom line is I think that the thing they do best is market themselves. Thanks for reading.

Skillcrush is an excellent resource for anyone trying to break into coding. That said, it will not be for everyone.

It is important to understand how Skillcrush works before investing in a blueprint. From my own experience: I purchased the Front End Developer Blueprint. I spent on average somewhere between an hour and two hours every weekday for about three months (with the occasional week off). In that time, I worked through four classes focused on HTML, CSS, Javascript, Git, and Responsive Web Development. Classes were a mix of video, reading, and hands on exercises. Personally, this worked great for me. It gave me the time and flexibility to work through the material at my own pace, spend extra time on subjects I had more difficulty with, and if I was well and truly stuck, I could reach out to my fellow classmates via forum, or speak directly with the instructors using Zoom.

Obviously, this will not be the right way to learn for some others. People who want to go all in and get to work as fast as possible will most likely be better served by a more rigorous program that demands more time from its students, but is spread out over a shorter period. Skillcrush's time commitment is very much up to the student. If you spent ten hours a day on lessons and worked weekends, clearly it would not take three months. That said, students interested in learning at such a pace might be better served by another service that is built with such speed in mind. A note in Skillcrush's favor though, these programs are usually significantly more expensive than what Skillcrush offers.

Ultimately, you get out of Skillcrush what you put in. Yes, instructors, alumni, and other students will help you. There is a catalog of additional master classes to watch. There are career materials to work through to help with getting a job in the industry. But all of this is reliant on the student. As much as Skillcrush does to make the process as painless as possible, they do not do the work for you. If you do not feel like you have the self-discipline to keep up, or would prefer to work with instructors in person, then a different program will most likely be a better fit. For those who do feel comfortable learning remotely, Skillcrush is offers several programs for getting into coding, all reasonably priced, and with a bevy of extra materials for the students willing to get as much out of their course as they can.

You know the adage... "You can't teach an old dog new tricks...."

Well, Skillcrush is giving that statement a run for its money :) 

I have been "self-taught" in design for over a decade. My philosophy to commit to being a lifelong student has allowed me to learn what I needed as I progressed along. As I began the first track of my Blueprint to say I was skeptical is an understatement, especially when I saw how short and concise the modules were.  After the first two classes, I was like "OH NO!" what did I just do? I could have learned this on my own on some free site with Professor Google and Dr. Youtube. 

But obviously, I was not paying attention when Ada said the course is designed to be easy and then increase in complexity.  By my fifth module, I was literally doing a happy dance. Not only was I learning short cuts to things that used to take me much longer to do, the way the learning modules are set up WORKS! You are not inundated with a lot of information.  I liken it to building a house.  You get a foundation and then you add the beams for the walls, then the plaster, then roofing, etc... you get my drift.  

At the end of the first leg of my All Access Blueprint track which was called Visual Design, I already see why we started there and are progressing on into actual coding.  Now, you have to exercise self-discipline with any online course. 

Let's talk community!  When you first join you introduce yourself to the sea of other Skillcrushers.  And slowly you begin to interact with constructive feedback, encouragement and yes HELP from people who may be further along.  Not once have I felt alone in this and as I stated before I am no spring chicken :) 

My first instructor that I could call out to for help was PHENOMENAL.  She didn't make me feel stupid for asking what may have been obvious questions.  She was thorough, she was helpful and booking office hours was easy. I am excited as I move forward and I feel reassured that if I hit a wall there will be someone there to assist me.  All I have to do is seek for the help and I will get a response.

As I am almost 80% complete with my next track, I can't believe how confident I feel in what I have learned. From the staff, to the additional resources provided, to the structure of the course...I am glad I made this investment in my future and took the leap to explore. I dare say if I can do this... honey child...ANYBODY can do this! 

As the title says, I almost didn't sign up for a blueprint at SkillCrush.  About two months ago I was on the fence in regards to boot camps.  I've heard all sorts of things good and bad.  I also had invested in courses to learn on my own through Udemy, watching free YouTube video amongst other things.  My hang up...do I really want to spend more money? 

Did I really want to spend money to go through someone's curriculm, get to the end feeling I got it, to only end up back where I started? Well, I took the plunge and signed up for the Wordpress Developer Blueprint. So far, it's the smartest thing I've done this year!

The courses are broken down well.  Meaning there isn't too much at once and there is a flow that makes you want to do more in one sitting then say having to dedicate 5 hours a night to studying and doing code.  I love the flexibility in this program, it's probably one of the best features.

The instructors and the learning environment is very nurturing.  The hardest thing when you tackle something new like this is feeling that you are alone and having self-doubt set in.  SkillCrush is an environment that teaches code but promotes self-worth in the materials and the conversations with the staff.  Definitely a "Can Do" attitude throughout the company.

I'm finishing up my 1st month and I don't feel lost or less than capable in any areas.  Of course, coding is a technology journey that never stops needing improvement.  You only get out what you put in.  So, far my experience at SkillCrush has been a very positive experience and I'm hoping it will continue to be.

Ron

I have only completed my first class in my skill crush all access blueprint but it went really well. I feel like I learned a lot really fast and I'm excited to see what else I get to learn in the near future. The classes seem quite structured and it's pretty easy to follow the instructions and complete the assignments. I am not a super fanof sharing my workbefore its complete, which is suggested often, but I think if someone is more open to it and enjoys progressive feed back, then its probably great. I think its just my personality, I'd rather get a project completed and then see how people feel rather than share each peice, as I finish it, but to each is own. It's great that the program doesn't require that you share in the google group but rather just suggests it.

My experience so far with instructors has been okay, I feel that although I'm sure its difficult some instructors should work on not imposing thier own personal opinions on style to students work, and try to be more neutral in thier suggestions, but over all its great to have them as a resource to go to when neccesary. 

In my first 100 days I had tried a LOT of on-line programs for learning to code. Most had, at some point, an issue I could not get around or find help - for instance how to properly set up Cloud 9.io.  Others were expansive in their curriculum but not practical. I have passed all sorts of programming courses, but was left with the nagging thought of "Could I apply this in the real world?"  I looked at Skillcrush's reviews on-line and took them very seriously. Recently out of grad school and unemployed, I took the cost of Skillcrush seriously as well.  For me, this was an investment - in time, in treasure, and in faith that Skillcrush's Blueprints will get me to where I want to be as a coder. Skillcrush's self-paced program is great but their real attribute is the Office Hours.  The TAs are invaluable and a great asset to the program. They are kind, sympathetic, and gracious. That being said, be prepared to do the work. Make the effort and embrace the program.  Coding is the reward. 

It is difficult to save money for this type of program. That is the drawback, but there are so many advantages. You get: 

A forum where people can help you with questions. 

Email support

Frequent video conferences where you can ask the teacher whats on your mind. 

One on one teacher student conference. 

Comprehensive content. 

Many exercises to help drill in the information. 

A real tool to use, my website.  I did all the work, but I was guided by excellent teachers. 

In summary, 

I have to save for this program. It takes time. But on the other hand, the program was finished. I completed it because of all the support that I had. Many of my Udemy classes on the other hand are not completed. So thank you. I appreciate it, I just wish I could afford to take classes faster. 

I found Skillcrush by accident, reading an article about it at LinkedIn.  I had been mulling over a career in web design and development for years, classes my friends took (and failed) seemed designed to discourage students.  Skillcrush seemed very different so I looked into it.  I ended up holding my breath and taking the plunge - I signed up for the free 10 day bootcamp.  I had a blast and learned about all sorts of new things, even got the chance to code in Ruby and Python.  I ended up signing up for the All Access Blueprint.  I am just finishing up my first segment on Web Design, and it has been a wonderful experience!  I've learned so much about Photoshop Creative Cloud, and how to design a website, from layout styles, colors, fonts, what and how to use each element and I am going to end up with a website designed to help me break into the industry!  And what a wonderful, supportive environment - if you get stuck, have a problem, have a question, or just want to share your work for feedback, you belong to a wonderful google group of students and instructors who are there to help you out. This is one of the best learning environments that I have ever been involved with, and I have had a lot of "traditional education". With the help of Skillcrush, I know that by the end of this year, I will have the skills and knowledge to launch myself into my new career!