Pdx Code Guild

I recently graduated from PDX Code Guilds full-time bootcamp. I was very happy with the training I received. Learning how to code was challenging at times but the school provided tons of support. Anytime I needed help or clarification on a subject there... Read More was always someone I could reach out to whether that be the main instructor or TAs. I feel like I learned way more than I would have trying to learn to code on my own.

Really enjoyed the training I received for PYTHON 101. The class style is instructor led on Zoom since no classroom availability due to COVID-19, with group coding practice and 2 individual labs per session which are reviewed by the instructors. Plan... Read More on to take PYTHON 102 to enhance my skills.

Where to start.. so, I completed the full stack evening course last year. I came to PDX Code Guild already with several years of IT, and programming/scripting experience. So I knew that some material would likely be redundant for me, and that I would... Read More need to keep an open mind and view it as a refresher. Unfortunately, a large portion of the material was very shallow, and didn't go beyond the level of your standard "Intro to Programming" YouTube playlists, or guided beginner tutorials like FreeCodeCamp.

Assignments were extremely basic for the most part, and a lot of them felt like simple, academic, first-semester CS 101 questions rather than exercises that would build competency in modern Python/JS/programming. Again, if you have *any* programming experience, you'll be knocking these assignments completely out of the park, rather than feeling like you're being challenged and having to grow as a developer. Also, it was pretty clear that the curriculum really hadn't been updated for several years, and personally I question why the focus was on Django, when that is definitely a fringe web framework at this point. It also feels very disjointed and jarring to whip from Python to JS/HTML back to Python over the duration of the course. I would have strongly preferred a full stack JS curriculum, but at least on that note, I can't blame them - they don't hide the fact that they're going to teach you Django.

But how about the experience for new/zero experience developers? Well, in a nutshell - I saw those classmates completely drowning, and neither the instructor nor the TA jumped in to "save" them by taking them aside, recommending additional resources, or otherwise engaging them. Additionally, no one's work was really reviewed or critiqued, and I definitely saw some people graduate without being able to code any better than they could before they started. You might say "well, they should've spoken up", and I would agree, but it's also the responsibility of an instructor to talk to the person if they're not turning in assignments, and are clearly struggling. But I got the distinct impression my instructor either didn't care, or was too uncomfortable approaching struggling students - and that the bootcamp itself was just happy to take the money of folks like that.

I could really go on and on about how low effort this bootcamp was, but I'll just make my final gripe that the career assistance is completely non-existent. I was never approached by anyone, given any leads, or otherwise contacted after I graduated. I felt like they got their money, and were done with me.

The two upshots for me were - I used the curriculum as a starting point to learn modern web development (by supplementing it with Udemy courses and online tutorials), and a lot of my peers in the course were fun to meet. Aside from that, I would strongly recommend you avoid this place and go to one of the more respectable PDX bootcamps, or go the much cheaper, yet far superior route of using online resources. Shame on Sherri and PDX Code Guild for basically being a super expensive Web Bootcamp Diploma Mill..

When deciding which bootcamp to attend, I knew what I wanted and what I didn't want going into it. I wanted an inclusive, friendly learning space where I felt comfortable asking questions and making mistakes. I wanted to learn languages that employers... Read More are hiring for but I didn't want to be pigeon-holed into only writing and being proficient in one or two languages - I wanted to learn the hardest thing about programming: how to THINK like a programmer. I also wanted a knowledgeable instructor that I could have access to whenever I needed to ask questions.

While other bootcamps in Portland offer popular languages, friendly learning spaces, and knowledgeable instructors; PDX Code Guild was the only bootcamp in Portland that ticked all of my boxes! Needless to say, it was an easy sell.

I spent the first 4 weeks learning Python 3. There was a huge emphasis on learning how to program rather than how to write in Python specifically - something that would make learning JavaScript later on in the course beautifully easy. We wrote a dungeon crawler game, a phonebook, wrote algorithms, and much more.

The class then moved on to FrontEnd: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. We built our own portfolio page, a photo gallery, a dice game, and a few other smaller projects. I especially loved this section!

Finally, Django and database design. This was the final piece to the full-stack puzzle before moving on to working on our Capstone Projects. Each Capstone was completely unique to each student. We were allowed to choose our project based off of what interested us. The only requirement was the project had to at least include all of the languages we learned. Many of my classmates, including myself, put an emphasis on the part of programming they loved best and focused on that. My project was, while also demonstrating deep understanding of backend, very front-end heavy.

All-in-all, it was a great experience. It was VERY hard but I came out a programmer! My instructor was VERY knowledgeable and supportive, the staff friendly, and the overall curriculum exactly what I was looking for. I would recommend this bootcamp to anyone!

I had a great experience at PDX Code Guild. I just completed their 4 month Evening FullStack Development Program, which covers Python, Javascript, CSS/HTML, SQL and Django. The program emphasizes quality over quantity of work, so in each section we learned... Read More the basics of the technology, completed a small instructor led project, and then completed a custom custom design project, with input and guidance from our instructor. The projects I worked on are as follows:

Python:
Todo list/Task Manager
Weather Forecast App using forecast.io
Mini HTTP Server

HTML/CSS
A personal portfolio website

Javascript:
Yahtzee Game
E-Commerce Front end using AJAX to query product info

SQL:
A SQL back end for the E-Commerce Project

Python/Django
Blogging Platform
Capstone Project (mine was a recipe engine that created a cocktail recipe
book based on the ingredients you had on hand).

The classes are small (max of 12), so you get a lot of time with your instructor, and they are able to go in depth into software design concepts and design patterns. They also offer advice and career guidance, help you organize your LinkedIn and Github and provide professional headshots.

I worked full time (as many of my classmates did), and the hours were long. There is no homework, but I think that in order to get the best results, one should set aside the 4 month period for learning. I spent many nights and weekends perfecting my projects, and it paid off. I received a job offer the day after class finished from the #1 firm I wanted to work for. I have also been contacted by recruiters in other local tech firms based on the strength of my LinkedIn and portfolio. I accepted the offer, which was more than a 50% raise from my current position. Fair warning, PDX Code Guild advises that it typically takes 3-6 months for a student to find employment after completion, so YMMV. They also advised not to take offers under a certain level (I'll leave it to the Code Guild to provide that information), and the offer I received was over the number they recommended. Over all I am very happy, and would definitely recommend PDX Code Guild.