Grace Hopper Program

I had a great experience at Grace Hopper at Fullstack Academy and I learned a lot. It is expensive but is a good investment in your education. Overall I would recommend, but it’s not perfect.

Grace Hopper vs. Fullstack Academy of Code
The Grace Hopper... Read More Program in NYC is an all women’s program within Fullstack Academy of Code. The curriculum is identical, the instructors and most of the staff are shared (the instructors only teach one cohort at a time, but rotate through both programs). The main difference is the all women environment and the deferred tuition. Another difference is that in the summer, the main Fullstack Academy of Code includes college students who will be returning to school in the fall, which is not the case of the Grace Hopper program. Students from both programs are invited to optional lectures during lunch and other joint activities.

The Curriculum
Fullstack Academy/ Grace Hopper teaches full stack javascript, which sets it apart from most other bootcamps (many teach Ruby on Rails). One advantage of full stack javascript is that you get to do a deep dive into a language (javascript) that you will need to use on the front end anyway. On the other hand a lot of people don’t really take javascript seriously as a server side language, and it has some quirks which make it harder to learn. I am undecided on whether I would recommend a full stack javascript curriculum over a Ruby on Rails curriculum or a curriculum that incorporates Python.

One great thing about Fullstack/Grace Hopper is they are constantly improving/changing their curriculum as technologies change. While I was there we learned Node.js and express on the backend and React with Redux on the front end. We used a sql database (PostgreSQL) for our database. They really take seriously feedback on what works and what doesn’t and are constantly improving/changing the curriculum. I think React with Redux is a good choice for the front end.

Computer science concepts (data structures, algorithms etc.) were incorporated throughout the curriculum, which I really liked.

The schedule
Builders:
Some students (including myself) are accepted to the program on the condition that they complete a two week remote “builders” program which reviews javascript fundamentals. This program does not cost extra. I found it to be very helpful and was glad I was “invited” to do it. I did it while working and it was totally manageable.

Foundations:
Foundations is a remote, part time program to continue developing your foundation in javascript and programming. I found it to be quite good. I continued working while completing this program which was doable but busy. Supposedly the program is 5 weeks, but the last week just setting up your computer and is optional. When I took the course (summer 2018), the bulk of foundations used pre ES6 javascript and then we learned ES6 at the end. I’m guessing this is because they hadn’t yet had time to redo their videos.

Junior Phase: The first 6 weeks of the program is junior phase. This consists of lectures followed by “labs” which are short solo practice assignments and “workshops” which are longer structured assignments completed in assigned pairs. Pair programming is an essential part of the curriculum, and while not every pair will be a positive experience, overall I think it really does help one learn. In junior phase we also had readings/videos to review at home and weekly homework assignments. There were also two tests and a project to help evaluate student progress.

In my cohort there were 5 fellows (teaching assistants who have recently graduated from the program). The fellows answer questions during workshops, help with grading, have office hours, and hold group lunches once a week. The fellows did great work and were a big part of the program being so good. The teachers were also quite good - they varied from pretty good to extremely excellent. Usually you have two teachers for junior phase, but because one of ours had a vacation scheduled we had some “subs” (other instructors in the program) who ended up being excellent.

The students varied in background and I thought the program did a pretty good job accommodating this. There was optional lectures and optional extra work if you wanted to dig deeper into the curriculum, and there were extra study sessions (by invitation) on Saturdays for students who could benefit from more practice. However, if you wanted to slack you could, you need to be self-motivated to get the most out of the program. For the most part the other students in my cohort worked hard and it was a good culture of learning.

Review week: The schedule varies slightly cohort to cohort, but while I was there we had our final exam the first day of “review week” and has the remaining 4 days off. I would have liked if they had been more clear about the schedule upfront. The stated purpose of review week is to review any materials you are weak on, but it is essentially a vacation as you aren’t required to be on campus (although I would recommend doing some review work during this period). During review week the instructors determine which students are ready to move on to “Senior Phase”. If you aren’t ready, you are invited to redo Junior phase (you are charged extra tuition which is also deferred), they call this “replaying”. In my cohort 1 student dropped out in the middle of Junior phase, 1 dropped out between junior and senior phase, and three “replayed”.

Senior Phase: Senior phase is project based. Working on projects is a great way to learn. The instructors did include a few lectures which were good, and I would have liked a few more. The first project is an e-commerce site group project, the second is a solo 4 day “hackathon” project and the last is a 2.5 week capstone project completed in groups. Except for the first project the topic and technology is up to you/your group. I found that in this section of the course you had to be especially self motivated - the resources were there, but if you wanted help from an instructor you had to make sure to request it. I thought the code reviews by the instructors were helpful. Each day in senior phase we also had “REACTOs” which are white boarding practice in pairs. They were great practice although they were different/more difficult than anything I was asked in an interview.

The program does a good job packing in a lot of material in a short time, but I felt that the last week and a half was a bit light in content. They focus on making videos for demo day, which are more of an ad for the school then anything useful for one’s portfolio, and on getting ready for launch day.

Value

The program is expensive.

In terms of an investment, in my opinion it is worth it, you will likely make back the cost of the program in a year (or less) at your first job (not counting the cost of taking time off for the program and the job search).

As compared to other education options I would say the cost is slightly higher but the quality is better. Grace Hopper is a bit more expensive than other bootcamps, but is not the most expensive bootcamp. It costs about the same as a semester at a private college, but prepares you for the workforce better in my opinion. So the price is probably inflated just as most education is these days, in my opinion.

An aside: free bootcamp options
In an effort to increase diversity in software engineering there are some free bootcamp options for people who qualify. Here’s three I have heard of, and I’m sure there’s more.
If you are a New York City resident check out whether you are eligible for the NYC Web Development Fellowship (and whether the city is still funding this program). This is a tuition free program at one of 3 partner schools one of which is Fullstack Academy of Code. While I was at Grace Hopper there was a cohort of Web Development Fellows. They had the same curriculum as Grace Hopper/Fullstack, although there are some (mostly small) differences in the program because it is funded by the city. There aren’t new cohorts as frequently as in Grace Hopper/Fullstack. But basically it is a Fullstack Academy of Code education without the cost.

2. If you are looking for an all women’s experience and would be interested in living in Seattle and pursuing a longer program check out Ada Developers Academy which is tuition free.

3. Resilient Coders in Boston is a free, full-time, 14-week Javascript coding bootcamp that trains young people of color for apprenticeships and careers as software engineers. I met a couple people from this program at a meetup, but don’t have any first hand information about it.

The Job Search

I found that the program had prepared me pretty well for technical interviews, although I did continue to study. I was mostly applying to small and medium sized companies.

Career counselors: Our cohort had a dedicated career counselor. I found her advice (during and after the program) to be helpful, although at times a little generic. I really appreciated that I had someone in my court who I could message on Slack or arrange a call with if i needed advice on what to say to a potential employer in a particular situation, whether an offer was good, how to negotiate, etc. She was very responsive and I really felt that she was in my corner. It made me feel much more comfortable during the negotiation and decision making process. We also each had a remote career counselor who helped us polish our resumes and our “pitches”. Mine was a bit helpful, but I didn’t rely on him very much.

Job search curriculum: The career search portion of the curriculum was ok. The advice on resumes was really helpful - the format they suggested worked for me! The advice for LinkedIn profiles and Github profiles was also helpful. The advice they gave in person was better than the out of date advice in the ‘workshop’ which they admitted needed an update. They put a big emphasis on writing technical blog posts. I think this is the kind of thing that might help you if you do it but isn’t going to hurt you if you don’t (I didn’t).

Launch Day: Launch day (formerly called hiring day) is a career-fair style day to introduce ourselves to companies in New York City. It is combined with the Fullstack cohort. Each student has ten minute interviews with at least 3 companies. The companies are assigned to you. At the end there is a networking session where you can talk to any company you would like to. Because I was primarily looking for jobs in Boston I treated this as a chance to beta test my resume and pitch which was helpful. My classmates who were looking for jobs at Launch Day were somewhat disappointed by the quality and selection of the companies. Our launch day was Labor Day Weekend so that may have made it harder to get top notch companies there. I believe that some people did get jobs from launch day, but not the majority.

Overall Grace Hopper/Fullstack’s network with employers in not strong. Unless you get a job offer from launch day, they are not going to find you a job, or find you jobs to apply to. That is up to you. But they are helpful with advice on how to perform the search, prepare for interviews and negotiate an offer.

Alumni Network:
They don’t provide a directory of alumni, but they do invite you to a slack channel for alumni once you graduate, which is pretty active. Among other things, alumni post job openings, many of these require a few years of experience, but some are looking for junior developers. I found this to be very helpful. I also met up with a few alums in the Boston area in person.

General advice:
Before I chose and attended a bootcamp I had a really clear idea of the gaps in my knowledge that I wished to fill and I found a bootcamp that targeted what I wanted to learn. This helped me get the most out of my experience. As you look for your entry into software engineering I would start by considering what you know and what skills and projects you already have under your belt, and choose a course of study (whether a bootcamp, studying on your own, pursuing a CS degree, working on projects, or something else) that compliments what you know and fills in the gaps. Employers care about what you know and what projects you have made, they don’t care whether you are self taught or went to a bootcamp.

Feel free to find me on LinkedIn if you have any specific questions about Fullstack Academy or Grace Hopper.

When I decided to explore the option to transition my career into software engineering, I was unsure where to begin. I had heard about many bootcamp programs, but upon learning about the Grace Hopper Program and it's mission to empower women to enter... Read More a male dominated industry, I knew this was the right program for me. I couldn't have been happier with my decision, the staff and instructors were incredibly knowledgable and the women in my program were driven and intelligent. I learned so much in the short 4 month time period I spent at Grace Hopper and felt confident upon graduation that I would be able to get a great job and be prepared to take on the role. One of my favorite aspects of the Grace Hopper Program was how I learned to adopt new technologies at a rapid pace; as technology is constantly changing and advancing, I felt this skill was one of the most beneficial and real-world applicable. I highly recommend this program to any woman who is considering a career transition into the software development industry.

It's difficult to encapsulate the transformative experience I've had at the Grace Hopper program at Fullstack Academy in a few words, but I'll try! I have never before experienced an educational environment that condensed such a high amount of marketable... Read More skills in such a short time frame. This however, would not be possible without the incredible instructors and helpful fellows who are determined to see EVERY student succeed. This is also evident with the deferred tuition plan that comes with participating in the Grace Hopper program. This means that Fullstack is so invested in your potential that they will not accept payments unless you have received a developer or software engineering role within a year. Within just 5 months I have gone from for loops to full stack applications that non technical users can enjoy. And even with an undergraduate education, I can honestly say this has been the most rewarding educational experiences I have ever had. If you enjoy coding and want to push yourself to the next level, Grace Hopper will not disappoint.

My summer at the Grace Hopper program was without a doubt the most intense and most fruitful learning experience of my life. It wasn't easy, but it was absolutely worthwhile.

I had previous coding experience, in Python with a focus on data analysis and... Read More machine learning, and I decided to complete a bootcamp to gain software engineering skills that I could combine with my data science skills in order to be able to a) actually make cool stuff that people can use, and b) have the skills to be considered for a wider variety of jobs. This prior experience definitely helped, but many of my most talented cohort-mates hadn't had any coding experience before preparing to apply for the bootcamp. I would recommend Grace Hopper for people with any level of prior experience.

I'll lay out some of the highlights that defined my experience at Grace Hopper in terms of pros and cons.

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Pros
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Preparation resources: Fullstack Academy (the umbrella bootcamp that Grace Hopper is a part of) has a great array of resources to help you prepare to apply and get in. I used a combination of one of their in-person bootcamp prep classes, and their online "JavaScript Jumpstart" course. These are both great as opposed to using outside resources because they prepare you specifically for what you'll be assessed on in the application process.

Program content: The Fullstack/Grace Hopper team do an amazing job strategically creating, honing, and constantly improving their curriculum. Talking to graduates from previous cohorts, it's easy to tell that every cohort gets an updated, carefully edited iteration of the curriculum. This applies to everything from small details such as what order workshops are presented in, all the way up to major changes like teaching completely different frameworks (e.g. switching from Angular to React), if they assess that a newer technology will be more in demand on the job market.

Program structure: The program is split up into three phases (one remote preparation section, then six weeks of Junior phase, then six weeks of Senior phase). This was really helpful in terms of making things more digestible. The one week break between Junior and Senior phase is something that I think all bootcamps should implement! In Junior phase your time will be spent on a mix of lectures, labs, and workshops. In Senior phase it's a mix of team projects, individual projects, interview prep, and career success prep. I really appreciated this structure. You consume and process a TON of information in Junior phase, and practice using it through small projects. Then in Senior phase you put it all together through bigger, longer-term projects. I really appreciated this structure and found it very conducive to learning and mastering skills.

All-female environment: Learning software engineering with a group of thirty women was a wonderful experience. My favorite part about it was actually that day-to-day I never really thought about the fact that we were all women. I was just able to completely focus on learning, rather than spending mental or emotional energy on dealing with interactions tinged by gender bias. Coming from tech education experiences where I was one of very few women in the room, there was an incredible difference in how much better and more unhindered my learning experience was.

Location: The bootcamp is located in the financial district, which is much less crowded and tourist-ridden than midtown. If you live in Brooklyn, I highly recommend commuting via ferry. The building is five minutes from the Wall St/Pier 11 ferry terminal. I barely had to go to midtown or take the subway all summer!

Deferred tuition: An obvious draw!

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Cons (Really just one thing to be aware of going in - not necessarily a true con.)
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This applies to any bootcamp, but make sure you're willing to fully commit 100% mentally, emotionally, physically, and logistically. Most of your waking hours will be spent coding or thinking about code, and you will dream in code at night. This is only a con if you're not prepared for it/willing to embrace it! The total immersion of a bootcamp is a PRO in terms of learning, even if it's challenging and requires a lot of stamina! Also, if you've worked for a startup before and that's a helpful point of comparison, I found that working for a startup was similar to bootcamp in terms of the time required. However, startup life was actually a lot more stressful than bootcamp life because with a bootcamp you have an end date, and the experience has been carefully engineered and honed over multiple iterations to make sure you have the best possible experience. With a startup you have neither of those things!

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Conclusion
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Get in the right mindset, do the preparation necessary to get in and do well, and take the plunge!

I first took the bootcamp prep course while working to see if I loved this new field enough to quit my old job. I enjoyed BCP so I continued to study and told myself once I was accepted into Fullstacks emmersive program I would quit. It was a big change... Read More but one of the smarted decisions I have made. I chose to attend Grace Hopper but debated back and forth some -- between GH and Fullstack.

The students in my cohort had a wide range of backgrounds - from CS degrees to just learning enough to get into the program. Regardless we were all in it together which makes the atmosphere supportive. In addition, the instructors are extremely skilled and helpful, usually there are two at a time teaching a cohort which is great because you get exposed to a variety of teaching skills. The ciriculum is dense.. I worked every day and weekend to keep up (as you can imagine I had no social life during the program). It is not a long program and it really has to be as dense as it is for you to go in knowing very little then graduating expecting to get a job. I busted my ass but it was very rewarding. After the program, because I loved the atmosphere so much and wasnt confident about looking for a job I became a fellow. This was great because you gain confidence as you help the new students, also you essentally get to go through the program again.

I would definitely recommend Fullstack/Grace Hopper to anyone who is interested in learning to code likely looking to get a job as a developer. It is challenging but if you enjoy coding/learning it is very rewarding. If you aren't sure then I would suggest the bootcamp prep course to get a taste of what will be taught in the full time program.

When I decided to switch fields and become a software engineer, I knew HTML, CSS and had very little confidence in my own abilities outside of that. Grace Hopper provided a learning environment that was supportive and encouraging while also pushing me... Read More outside of my comfort zone with a challenging, rigorous curriculum that prepared me extremely well for a career in software engineering. I left with a strong understanding of foundational CS and JavaScript concepts as well as the ability to dive into new technologies with confidence. I also made so many friends and professional connections, building a network that helped anchor me in a new field. All of this meant that I was able to move into a full-time role in a new career with confidence.

Definitely the biggest pro about Fullstack Academy is its flexibility. They offer flex programs, immersive programs, and a remote version. Throughout all these programs, they use the same curriculum and the same standards for admission. They even offer... Read More a deferred tuition option for women enrolled in the Grace Hopper program.

They also offer a lot of flexibility in terms of how to grow as a developer. For my cohort, they allowed us to explore project ideas on our own because the biggest skill they wanted us to hone was using each other as a team to make the best decisions from start to finish. There was also no restriction on what type of project we could build. And we received A LOT of support from every instructor. Kate and Ashi were there to back our team up with answers to our technical questions no matter what we decided for our project. And even when the first half of the program ended, Karen and Dan, our junior instructors who prepared so well for the project phase were there available to cheer us on and only an elevator away for further advice.

A bit of nitpick from me would be that the job support on the technical side wasn't the best right after I came out of Grace Hopper. Mostly because I had no idea how to prepare for technical interviews...and honestly, this was my first official job hunt ever. Luckily, after 6 months of searching, Ceren started this Mentor-Mentee program and I was seriously lucky to have Wenson Tsai as my mentor (a volunteer mentor too, bless those Fullstack alumni's souls who volunteered). Coming from a physics background with only 3-4 semesters of CS-related classes and no formal job experience in tech (or any formal job really), I was not up to date with the jargon in the tech field and Wenson helped me present myself as a confident developer. He pointed out weaknesses to me in System Design and helped me work on my communicating my projects better. One of the useful things he pointed out to me is that I should use declarative language when solving problems during JS technical interviews . Fullstack also assigned me another career counselor to help me on the behavioral side. That person was Natalie Giuliano. I had no idea what a job hunt was supposed to be like, and I had a lot of phone interviews already before she was assigned as my counselor. So she made sure to help me practice answering those hard behavioral questions and helped me come up with better answers. She also helped me with a lot of job hunt etiquette that I didn't even know.

So after two more months of Wenson and Natalie's help, I did finally accomplish my goal to start making an impact as a formal Software Engineer. And I can't wait to see learn more from my current teammates and other developers in the community :)

I did the Grace Hopper program, which is the same as Fullstack Academy but has deferred tuition. The curriculum is STRONG!!!! Before you get to campus and during your very first week, you will coding and learning very advanced computer science topics.... Read More They truly ensure that every student knows their stuff and is prepared for the job search ahead including whiteboard interviews. I never had a doubt throughout the program that I would have any trouble finding a job because of what and how they were teaching.

One of the great things Fullstack did was make sure from the beginning that students are ready and that everyone is on the same page. Just to get into the bootcamp, you need to know javascript and be able to solve somewhat diffucult problems as well as be familiar with recursion. However, they have a lot of great resources to get you accepted. Foundations covered some pretty advanced topics but they provided a mentor for each student and paced the prework over 5 weeks so that everyone could master it and there were some tests along the way to make sure everyone was learning the material. I learned so much before I even got to campus and I was pleasantly surprised that I was able to converse about code and solve quite challenges problems on the very first day.

I realize that talking about the material in the light of how advanced it is could scare some people away, but I just want to say that I found the program extremely friendly and not scary at all. They just want to make sure everyone is ready and on the same page, and they provide a lot of resources to get you there. If you ever feel like you are falling behind, they will not kick you out like some bootcamps will. Instead, they will get you the help that you need, and even allow you to repeat the first half of the program (junior phase) if you are struggling. Everything they do is to make sure you succeed.

I also found they focus a good amount on soft skills, which was amazing to see. They make sure students learn to communicate about issues that arise during pair programming before these issues ever arise, they talk about unconscious bias, they have retrospectives to reflect on different parts of the program, make sure students are taking care of themselves emotionally, etc. I found that students are able to give feedback about the program and the feedback is taken seriously and changes are implemented almost immediately as a result of student feedback.

The career success program is very strong as well. They don't just teach you how to code and build projects on this program. A big portion of the second half of the program was focused on getting students hireable. We had regular mandatory meetings with the career success team, practiced interviews (behavioral, technical, and whiteboarding), received feedback on resumes and linkedIn profiles, and so many presentations on job hunting. The career success team really sticks with you throughout the process and after you graduate to make sure you get hired.

Overall, this program was amazing for me. I went to a different bootcamp before this program to turn around my career and I constantly felt anxious and unready to find a job. Fullstack Academy eased my worries and I never once doubted that I could find a job in the end. At first I was concerned because Fullstack teaches pure JavaScript instead of mixing in some of the other competing languages, but I truly believe that it served me well. I was able to learn really complex topics in depth and branch out past just web development. I also believe that now I can learn anything. In a nutshell, I learned amazing things, I built amazing projects including a mobile app and VR app with AI, I made amazing friendships with the women there, I constantly felt uplifted, and I had a job offer 10 days at the end of the program.

I applied to the Grace Hopper Program after taking their Bootcamp Prep class, and was accepted on the first application, and began the immersive in June of 2017. I stayed on as a teaching fellow for two terms, and finished my time there having received... Read More a total of five job offers, any of which I would have been happy to take, and which included my absolute dream job.

The curriculum prepared me both for the technical demands of a dev job, and for the soft-skills needed to actually land one.

In many ways, Foundations (the remote, introductory part of the course) was the most challenging, in that the jump from what was tested in admissions to what was tested in Foundations, felt the largest (for other folks considering this course who don't come from a technical background -- when you are getting ready to apply/after you get in, take a minute and get comfy with the CLI if you've never used it before. It just means one less thing to learn at the same time.) -- a bit like being pushed in the deep end. After that, it was much less stressful.

I had a lot of support at Grace Hopper, and it felt great to be in a diverse, LGBTQ-friendly environment. Both the students and the staff were friendly and helpful. The atmosphere is demanding, but not competitive -- everyone shares the view that 'a rising tide lifts all boats' and wants to help everyone do as well as they can.

Cons: it's a program where you definitely get out of it what you put into it, and it absolutely favors people who are solid self-starters and already good at time management (there's so much to do and learn, you absolutely *must* make choices about what does and doesn't get done). There is more support available than sometimes is obviously apparent, and so if you're having trouble with something, personally or technically, it behooves you to reach out and ask. While the staff and management are fierce advocates for their students, communication across the staff isn't always perfect and there were several occasions where it became clear that the left hand didn't know what the right was doing.

Pros:
- GH especially is not about egos. Everyone is there is to learn and do cool shit and get into tech. No intellectual arrogance, little competition.
- Curriculum is wide and extensive and on target for what companies are looking for. You learn A LOT.... Read More You'll be shocked by how much by the end.
- Tough but not overwhelming.
- Good emphasis on working in pairs and teams.
- General fun/collegial atomsphere, ppl make friends.
- Career Services people are GREAT and no bullshit.

Cons:
- Teachers don't have formal teacher training, some of them are people from the industry who are slumming to keep it really real.
- Lack of straightforwardness from the admin side.
- Lots of things get glossed over but that's unavoidable. Can be difficult for learners who are more foundations-based.
- They have a job fair near the end of the program that they call "Hiring Day" even thought that's totally inaccurate.