Grand Circus

Outcome reports being inaccurate is nothing new, whether it's controversy over the U.S. Rankings for accredited colleges or private institutions (like Grand Circus) posting unverified statistics. The fact that the Grand Circus outcome reports on their... Read More site aren't conducted or audited by a third party should tell you not to bother taking them seriously.

The instructors' knowledge is solid, they are extremely knowledgeable and can quickly answer any questions you have about your code.

I completed a front-end bootcamp and once I started going to meet-ups and meeting more Grand Circus alumni, I found most of them were unemployed or found a job that had nothing to do with what language was taught in their bootcamp. Also, multiple students were kicked out of their bootcamp before having a chance to graduate, so the graduation rate reported in the outcome reports I saw has to be a joke. Keep in mind that this is a private, for-profit business that does not have to abide by standards or give students the right to dispute things the way that an accredited school does. They can, and literally will, kick you out with no refund if certain staff members have a reason to hold something against you. There are no clear-cut policies on anything other than the attendance requirement.

If you are considering one of their bootcamps that imply you will get a job with a specific company after graduation, don't expect it to happen. Maybe one or two people in your bootcamp will actually get hired to work there at the end (and they will likely be someone who had extensive training or experience in coding before attending Grand Circus.) The employment services department at Grand Circus mainly posts links on the GC Slack channel to all the job openings for developers that are currently on linkedin. As if you can't find that yourself.

Maybe in the beginning, employers were more likely to hire most GC graduates because this was such a new thing in Detroit, and honestly there still aren't many coding bootcamp options nearby. People from as far as Toledo enroll at GC. But now that a few years has passed since it was created, and employers have seen how students whose only coding experience was 2 months of learning the very basics weren't able to perform up to standards required of an actual developer and have fired so many GC students they hired, they are not so eager to hire recent graduates unless you have considerably more experience and skills beyond what is taught. The better bootcamps in this country, that successfully train students to work as soon as they graduate, can last 6 months to one year. For GC to keep telling people "anyone can code and be ready for employment after one of our bootcamps" is so laughable. You are learning the bare basics, which is a good start but not enough to qualify you for a full-time developer position without other skills and experience beyond what they covered.

Try to talk about any of these concerns with the staff and you'll get their very defensive, pat responses of "We know what we are doing. We've trained hundreds of students." Absolutely nothing is offered to back-up what they say, other than trying to parade around the few alumni who have good jobs and got offers before they graduated because of their background outside of GC.

GC is continuing to sell-out their bootcamps because they are the only option, not for being a great option.

The main point is that if you want to attend one of their full-time bootcamps, be prepared by having a lot of money saved up since you will have so much homework to do (their 10 hours or less a week claim is such a joke) having to work even a part-time job can prevent you from being able to complete the assignments on time and adequately practice for your assessments. They are not qualified to use federal student financial aid and if you have money saved up in an education expense account, this is not a qualifying place to use your funds towards. Be prepared to act like you have no responsibilities, no children, no family, etc. and can go out drinking with some of the GC staff after being there all day, because that is the only way you can get the upper level staff to like you, say you are an awesome student and give you professional reccomendations, apparently.

Pro Tip: If you decided to attend their boot camp, dont believe they will help you find a job after graduation and dont believe their hiring percentage because its a lie ( ask them to show you hiring % of last year or this current year ), only 2 out of 18 students found jobs after the boot camp. also they are very racist towards non whites "nothing new, right ?".

If you’re curious about a job in tech, CHOOSE GRAND CIRCUS. I’ve learned so much from my instructors and peers, and have made lifelong friends as well. I went from HATING my job in sales to a junior software developer within months of graduating, and... Read More the coolest part about this is the fact that I didn’t know how to write a single line of code prior to GC - and now I work for a very reputable company in Metro Detroit as a developer. Enroll in one of their programs. It’s worth it.

I truly enjoyed my time at Grand Circus. It was everything I needed to make the transition into the career field I wanted. I had access to knowledgeable instructors who provided access to great information and opportunities for growth. I enjoyed being... Read More an environment with other individuals also pursuing opportunities in this field because it pushed me to focus on doing my best work and trying to excel. It means a lot to me that Grand Circus is focused on the Detroit Tech community scene and that the entire staff care about the work they are doing and the impact they make. Thank you for being a partner and support Grand Circus!

I think Detroit has the benefit that the coding bootcamp model is growing in credibility. This helps employers see the value in hiring a bootcamp grad when some other markets may hesitate to make the choice. The challenge continues to be that HR directors... Read More aren't as sold on bootcamp grads and that can make it difficult to get a conversation with the right people. After nearly 40 interviews with employed I got 4 in person interviews and I got a job in the field within 2 months of graduating. I know that was faster than some of my peers but I believe Grand Circus played a big role in my success.

The class is a good mix of code learning and what they call soft skills training. My resume has never looked so good because of their advice. The grand Circus team is big on feedback and that was a big benefit to me because I'm going into a completely new field. The entire team jumped in to make sure our class was prepared for the job hunt w/ various training exercises and advice. Very supportive.

Before applying I would advise students to start with some online tutorials. Coming from a nontechnical background I think it might have been more overwhelming for me to learn the classwork than some of my peers. But if you put in the work, follow the advice they give you at grand circus and really put yourself out there you can definitely find a new career because of this training.

Coming into Grand Circus I didn't know what to expect but I'm glad I took advantage of the opportunity it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. The weeks flew by and it felt like so much information was being thrown at me at one time, but the... Read More small class sizes and office hours with the TA were great in that they helped reinforced what we learned in class. The soft skills training and mock interviews were also very helpful you may think that being great at writing code is enough but being able to communicate that in a meaningful way to a hiring manager is as equally important and a useful skill in any industry. It was a great experience and you can tell that each staff member is there because they enjoy helping others in some form or fashion and they are all dedicated to your success. I also like that the staff doesn't stop being help once your bootcamp is over. They offer office hours, have events specifically for alumni and all alumni get discounts on future workshops and courses. Once you become apart of the Grand Circus community you have a lifetime membership.

Grand Circus believes in Detroit. All of Detroit. I can attest to this first hand. Having started a GC TechHire Java Bootcamp in January, graduating in April to getting hired in April.

I'm a native Detroiter. I have had the gamut of the Detroit experience.... Read More Good, Bad Ugly and Beautiful. Trust me. Still, I have an unshakable love for my City, that is at the forefront in Tech right now.

I could see coding is necessary to be a part of the global communities of the future. I was determined to work hard in order to represent the Detroit I know and love. As well as committed to being a part of Detroit's growth in the IT industry.

I came in to the program having only basic knowledge of programming from free online websites like Codecademy and EdX.org. I found that the instructors and staff were not only people who knew programming, but actual Educators and professionals who put wholehearted effort into teaching us how to code.

Genuine people who, without prejudice of what I looked like or my background, invested in me.

Their (GC) goals were the same as mine. To ensure that a citizen of Detroit who was looking to change his career and life had the opportunity to do so.

I knew a job was far from promised at the end. I also knew that I was given the best resources, advice and tools available to get one.

Every thing from Soft skill training, resume training, business cards, interviewing, white-boarding, to actually meeting possible employers who've hired GC graduates in the past, and were looking to hire more.

It was worth every second of every minute.

I consider Grand Circus to be a true Detroit Gem. I encourage anyone interested in learning to code to please, invest in yourself and seize this opportunity.

The education through Grand Circus provided everything I needed to start getting into the tech workforce. Coming from a background with no technical knowledge, their recruitment manager gave me tips on ways to get some basic programming knowledge before... Read More I would be accepted in to the program. One I took those steps, I applied to the front end full time program a month before classes started. Every student starts with prework which can be challenging for someone without a ton of code knowledge, but w/ conversations among my future peer students and some Google searches I was able to complete it. The class experience is a good mix of lecture, labs and homework.

The staff of the program, even if they aren’t directly related to the classroom – were very supportive in making sure we had everything we needed to be comfortable and successful. A lot of late nights. A lot of trouble shooting. A lot of realworld experience. They even create a system on trello to help with the job hunt giving insights and tasks to accomplish in this. Grand Circus has a lot of community events in the space which are also helpful to introduce students to ppl working in the industry and alumni. I was able to get a job within a month of graduating, making double what I made before the program. I think I could have learned maybe 1/2 of the class through online tutorials but would never gotten the connections and exposure to the industry in the way that Grand Circus provided. I would have also become much more frustrated with the learning without my peers and instructors and am certain it would have taken me much longer to get a job in this field.

Attending the Grand Circus Java Bootcamp was truly life changing in such a positive way. Transitioning into the tech industry can feel intimidating without the proper resources or guidance, but Grand Circus helped to assuage that intimidation. The program... Read More included not only the necessary technical training, but included tech soft skills sessions to help students navigate and network in the tech industry. Instructors proved to be beyond knowledgeable in programming languages and helped to strengthen my critical-thinking and problem-solving skills. The environment at Grand Circus is extremely student friendly and you truly build a network of cohorts that you glean an array of information from. I would highly suggest to anyone passionate about learning code and transitioning into tech to consider attending a bootcamp at Grand Circus.

I recently graduated from Grand Circus's Java bootcamp and I can not say enough good things about my experience. The workload is intense but I learned so much here. Everyone on the Grand Circus staff team is amazing at their job and they treat you like... Read More family when you are here. I would definitely recommend this bootcamp to anyone looking to make a career switch into tech.

Outcome reports being inaccurate is nothing new, whether it's controversy over the U.S. Rankings for accredited colleges or private institutions (like Grand Circus) posting unverified statistics. The fact that the Grand Circus outcome reports on their... Read More site aren't conducted or audited by a third party should tell you not to bother taking them seriously.

The instructors' knowledge is solid, they are extremely knowledgeable and can quickly answer any questions you have about your code.

I completed a front-end bootcamp and once I started going to meet-ups and meeting more Grand Circus alumni, I found most of them were unemployed or found a job that had nothing to do with what language was taught in their bootcamp. Also, multiple students were kicked out of their bootcamp before having a chance to graduate, so the graduation rate reported in the outcome reports I saw has to be a joke. Keep in mind that this is a private, for-profit business that does not have to abide by standards or give students the right to dispute things the way that an accredited school does. They can, and literally will, kick you out with no refund if certain staff members have a reason to hold something against you. There are no clear-cut policies on anything other than the attendance requirement.

If you are considering one of their bootcamps that imply you will get a job with a specific company after graduation, don't expect it to happen. Maybe one or two people in your bootcamp will actually get hired to work there at the end (and they will likely be someone who had extensive training or experience in coding before attending Grand Circus.) The employment services department at Grand Circus mainly posts links on the GC Slack channel to all the job openings for developers that are currently on linkedin. As if you can't find that yourself.

Maybe in the beginning, employers were more likely to hire most GC graduates because this was such a new thing in Detroit, and honestly there still aren't many coding bootcamp options nearby. People from as far as Toledo enroll at GC. But now that a few years has passed since it was created, and employers have seen how students whose only coding experience was 2 months of learning the very basics weren't able to perform up to standards required of an actual developer and have fired so many GC students they hired, they are not so eager to hire recent graduates unless you have considerably more experience and skills beyond what is taught. The better bootcamps in this country, that successfully train students to work as soon as they graduate, can last 6 months to one year. For GC to keep telling people "anyone can code and be ready for employment after one of our bootcamps" is so laughable. You are learning the bare basics, which is a good start but not enough to qualify you for a full-time developer position without other skills and experience beyond what they covered.

Try to talk about any of these concerns with the staff and you'll get their very defensive, pat responses of "We know what we are doing. We've trained hundreds of students." Absolutely nothing is offered to back-up what they say, other than trying to parade around the few alumni who have good jobs and got offers before they graduated because of their background outside of GC.

GC is continuing to sell-out their bootcamps because they are the only option, not for being a great option.

The main point is that if you want to attend one of their full-time bootcamps, be prepared by having a lot of money saved up since you will have so much homework to do (their 10 hours or less a week claim is such a joke) having to work even a part-time job can prevent you from being able to complete the assignments on time and adequately practice for your assessments. They are not qualified to use federal student financial aid and if you have money saved up in an education expense account, this is not a qualifying place to use your funds towards. Be prepared to act like you have no responsibilities, no children, no family, etc. and can go out drinking with some of the GC staff after being there all day, because that is the only way you can get the upper level staff to like you, say you are an awesome student and give you professional reccomendations, apparently.

Pro Tip: If the director of learning wasn't sleeping with one of the instructors, maybe students wouldn't have to deal with some of the T.A.s treating them like a pool of potential people to sleep with theirself. Seriously, I've never seen any place other than this where someone was allowed to have a relationship like that with their supervisor.