Coding Bootcamps — A Path to a New Career
College grads who are dissatisfied with their careers often times don’t know where to turn. Another college degree is financially out of reach for many, but withstanding unemployment or underemployment can be just as much of a financial detriment. It’s a struggle that millions of people in the U.S. have. Fortunately, there’s a great solution for those who are interested in going into computer programming — a lucrative career field that’s expected to have significant growth for the foreseeable future — it’s called a coding bootcamp. A code bootcamp is an intensive training program to learn the fundamentals of computer programming and software development. Rather than attending a two-year or four-year school to learn computer programming, participants can attend a code bootcamp for a much shorter period of time — often times 10 to 12 weeks. The goal of a coding bootcamp is to train a novice to receive all the training they need to become a professional coder. There are no other subject matters taught in a coding bootcamp, only computer programming and software development. Students are expected to be completely dedicated and focused on computer programming for the duration of the coding bootcamp. Bootcamps all provide some classroom instruction, then students are expected to put the lesson into practice in hands-on coding assignments. The programming languages taught in bootcamps vary per bootcamp, but many teach both front-end and back-end programming for a well-rounded education. Some coding bootcamps also offer evening and weekend programs for those who need to keep working while they get their education. Costs typically run about $8,000 to $15,000, but some bootcamps offer scholarship opportunities along with perks such as public transportation passes and free rent for the duration of the bootcamp. Most bootcamps also offer employment matching opportunities. That means a beginning coder can come to the bootcamp with no to little computer programming knowledge, then 8 to 12 weeks of training later they’re matched with employer partners who are highly likely to employ them. Depending on the location of the bootcamp, students can expect to get paid about $45,000 a year at first if employed upon graduation and that salary quickly rises to an average of $90,000. A computer programmer’s rate of pay generally increases as their skillsets expand, learning more programming languages, for instance. Code bootcamps give students the knowledge base they need to keep expanding those skills on their own. Bootcamps are for you if you’re a highly motivated go-getter who already has a college degree. Once you graduate from the bootcamp you’ll likely have dramatically improved your chances of earning more money than you did before entering the bootcamp. The average computer programmer in the U.S. makes $90,000 annually. That’s far more than most students make before entering the bootcamp. Coding bootcamps are great solutions for career changers looking for a new direction. They take the minimal amount of time, but students are immersed in learning that gives them the skills necessary to start their new dream jobs.
