If you are thinking about attending a coding bootcamp, there are a lot of factors to consider. Location, duration of the program and cost are all major factors when choosing a bootcamp. We interviewed two current Atlanta students in our Full Stack Immersive program to get an idea how their experience at DigitalCrafts has been so far. Katie Lane is three weeks in and still learning the fundamentals; Marissa Monivis is in week 12.
Katie Lane
Katie Lane's first day at DigitalCrafts was on June 19. "I was so happy the first day!" she told us. "It was nice not being bombarded with information. That morning, if you would have told me I would be coding a Python game by Day 9, I would not have believed you."
Before coming to DigitalCrafts, Katie was a receptionist at a dermatologist's office. However, she felt uninspired and bored with her position there. "They promised me growth opportunities but that didn't happen. I was so bored, I was literally reading entire novels at work to stay busy," she said.
Katie Lane
Now, fully engulfed in her course workload, Katie is far from bored. She talked to us about how she's juggling school and her personal life: "All of the research on the internet says that students will get out what they put into the program. I thought that I would have to code a lot more outside of class but I don't. Class is over at 4 p.m. and I tend to stay until 6 p.m. each night to avoid traffic and review my notes. When I leave ATV, my brain is dead. My fiancé will ask me what I want for dinner and I have zero brain power to come up with a meal. I will code a little on the weekends for about 5-6 hours but that's it, just to keep the concepts fresh."
Katie also discussed her instructor, Chris Aquino, with us. Chris is a new instructor at DigitalCrafts, so she initially had some reservations. "With Chris being a new instructor I'm not going to lie, I was very hesitant to join the June cohort," she admitted. However, we're happy to report he has far exceeded her expectations! "He is fantastic," Katie said. "Chris challenges us to work through the problem instead of just giving us the answer, which is annoying sometimes but appreciated. We don't copy and paste code, we actually write it ourselves."
Marisa Monivis
Before Marissa became a DigitalCrafts student she was an assistant account executive at a full-time advertising agency. She decided to quit that job and pursue her dream of becoming a UX/UI Designer. "I came to DigitalCrafts with some experience in HTML but Python and JavaScript were brand new to me," she told us. "My classmates are currently my #1 support system. The culture here is amazing. We are all a bunch of nerds that laugh and can joke around with each other. It's great!"
Marissa currently works part-time as a personal trainer while taking our Full Stack Immersive course. "My day begins early in the morning," she said. "I'm usually at the gym by 5 a.m. most days, then I get ready for class. I live close-by so my commute isn't bad. I love ATV, free lunch Fridays and all the free snacks...winning! I am hoping to get a job at a startup at ATV once this program is over."
Marissa Monivis
Marissa is also very happy with her instructor, Rob Bunch. "I like the way the class is structured," she said. "I like how Rob teaches concepts and then will explain how we can apply them outside of our projects. Everything has a purpose and real-world equivalent." Marissa's cohort just learned React.js, and she has decided to completely redo her previous projects using what she's learned. "React.js and Sass are by far my favorite," she explained.
Finally, Marissa had some great advice for incoming students: "This program has been an emotional rollercoaster for me from Day 1 until now. You will question yourself on whether or not you made the right decision. Don't worry -- everyone else is wondering the same thing. I know I made the right decision."
Marissa Monivis is on track to finish the course on August 9, while Katie Lane's last day is October 13.
Interested in learning more about our Full Stack programs? Click on the button below to download a course packet!
