We interviewed a few and will probably never consider resumes from bootcamp grads again. Calling them Jr. isn't even fair towards CS grads that are actual Jr. level
Can you elaborate on why you would never consider resumes from bootcamp grads?
Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
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Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#42Is it intentional that Hacker School in NYC isn't on this list? It's structured very differently from many of the other code bootcamps, and I'd be curious how its differences shake out in terms of effectiveness of graduates. I know intermediate and advanced level coders can do Hacker School as well, but I ask because I worked with a Hacker School graduate who fits your definition (never coded before, only spent 2+ mo…
I don't think of Hacker School as a bootcamp. The emphasis is very different than my understanding of what a bootcamp provides. The way I think of HS is as a place where you can focus and learn with like minded people in a conducive environment. It isn't designed to churn out app/web developers (not that that is a bad thing). It's as they say, "like a writing retreat".
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Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#43Is it intentional that Hacker School in NYC isn't on this list? It's structured very differently from many of the other code bootcamps, and I'd be curious how its differences shake out in terms of effectiveness of graduates. I know intermediate and advanced level coders can do Hacker School as well, but I ask because I worked with a Hacker School graduate who fits your definition (never coded before, only spent 2+ mo…
It was an intentional choice, based on my (incorrect) impression that it was exclusively more advanced folks. Though now I'll act like vitno's logic was mine, too :) I think if I were to do it over I might include it, but at this point I'd rather not change anything and risk messing something up in the survey data. Thanks for bringing it up.
Oops - apparently Hacker School no longer really encourages that sort of person. I can't edit my post to say that, unfortunately. That's a shame; they trained our guy far better than most of the candidates I see coming out of "bootcamps"....
From their FAQ:
>>I don't know how to program. Can I do Hacker School? No, sorry. Hacker School is currently only for people who already know how to code. Think of it like a writers workshop. We're here to help people become great novelists, but you have to already know English and be comfortable writing essays.
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#44I'm a cofounder at http://www.hackreactor.com -- AMA Here's a note from a DBC employee that is dead for some reason: ----- Full disclosure: I am a former Wealthfront employee, and am now an instructor at Dev Bootcamp. We hired two DBC grads onto my team while I was at WF, and a third after I left. We also interviewed DBC grads who didn't make the cut. Obviously I came to DBC because I believe in what they do. My expe…
How did the employee die?
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#45I'm a cofounder at http://www.hackreactor.com -- AMA Here's a note from a DBC employee that is dead for some reason: ----- Full disclosure: I am a former Wealthfront employee, and am now an instructor at Dev Bootcamp. We hired two DBC grads onto my team while I was at WF, and a third after I left. We also interviewed DBC grads who didn't make the cut. Obviously I came to DBC because I believe in what they do. My expe…
How did the employee die?
They just mean the note itself is "dead" (voted down into oblivion or from a person who is hellbanned) - you have to view HN with "showdead" turned on to see dead comments.
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm still able to submit more than once. I find that polleverywhere's sms based voting is a good way to get around this (but kind of annoying for voters).
Pretty sure that's because I didn't have that setting on before your first submission, as I'm not able to do multiple submissions. Either way, we'll watch out in the results for suspicious behavior. Thanks for bringing this up.
Still seems to be a problem?
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#47I'm a CS major, and have worked a few years as a programmer in embedded systems. For a number of reasons I'm making the switch to Ruby, and am attending Dev Bootcamp to accelerate that process. I find the practical-centered bootcamp makes a nice compliment to the theory-heavy computer science taught in college. I haven't attended the camp yet, but I've worked with a few students on projects so far (there's a lot of p…
"We're asked to work upwards of 100 hours a week."
It doesn't seem like one could learn effectively while fighting physical and mental exhaustion.
Asking people to work 100 hours a week sounds more like an indoctrination program to make them believe that the long work hours they're likely to find in startups are "normal". Or maybe a way for the bootcamp to market their grads to startups: "Our graduates survived 100-hour weeks, so if you're looking for people who are willing to put up with abuse, we have lots of those right here."
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#48I will say that where I work we appear to have managed to get on a list of "startups to send your resume to" by one or two of these bootcamp shops, and the resumes tend to be severely underwhelming. Here are some of the things that have been negatively affecting my reaction to them (I share in hopes this is useful, not to bash bootcamps or folks that attend them!): ONLY A GITHUB PROFILE It seems pretty clear that the…
Great advice! I am on the non-technical side of our team but I work closely with the devs and have recently attended a career fair at a university and was faced with the same problem. Grads came to us wanting to work with us but with little to no research on the company and the biggest thing to me was no reason as to why they wanted to work with us. Something I find for new grads, from any type of program, are lacking a foundation in how to find the right job for them. They panic and apply to every single job opening without stopping to think what is important to them in a job and what it is they actually want to do. All be it we all have to start somewhere, but starting somewhere you're passionate about from the start is going to have a huge impact on how you begin your career!
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#49I'd prefer to hire dev bootcamp grads over fresh CS grads. We've interviewed a ton of the latter, but hired 2 of the former.
Why? A lot (not all) of CS programs are out of date when it comes to the ever-changing state-of-the-art. Unless they are exceptional, these students won't know much about applying modern open-source technologies, and still think of building webapps in Java.
Also, those who go through a bootcamp show an intrinsic motivation and passion for the work. They put themselves through an intense program, because they want to. And pay money for it.
In the end, the best devs are continuously self-taught. A bootcamp jumpstarts that process better than a degree.
Re: Ask HN: If you worked with a grad from a code bootcamp, how effective were they?
#50Is it intentional that Hacker School in NYC isn't on this list? It's structured very differently from many of the other code bootcamps, and I'd be curious how its differences shake out in terms of effectiveness of graduates. I know intermediate and advanced level coders can do Hacker School as well, but I ask because I worked with a Hacker School graduate who fits your definition (never coded before, only spent 2+ mo…
It was an intentional choice, based on my (incorrect) impression that it was exclusively more advanced folks. Though now I'll act like vitno's logic was mine, too :) I think if I were to do it over I might include it, but at this point I'd rather not change anything and risk messing something up in the survey data. Thanks for bringing it up.
They don't accept people who's never coded before, but you don't need to have coded a lot. (I was surprised at this news of someone who'd never coded at all -- I'd still guess it's just a slight exaggeration.)