Carleton University Boot Camps

I recently graduated from the Business Analytics & Data Visualizations Bootcamp from Carleton University and it is a complete waste of money because you will not be able to find a job. The Instructional staff was absolutely amazing, my group also had a TA and he was phenomenal, but other than that, it's a total waste of money if you're trying to change your career. The skills and knowledge taught in the bootcamp are great and you will definitely learn a lot but the outcome afterwards makes it completely redundant and pointless. Having only a certificate (not even a certification, yes, there's a difference) gets you absolutely no where in the real job market. Even for entry level and new graduate positions, the bootcamp alone is not enough to even be considered. I maintained an A+ grade the entire bootcamp, receiving 100% on every assignment and it has ended there. Our professor was absolutely amazing, she really genuinely cared about our success and was extremely invested in all of us, but after classes ended and the bootcamp was done, there is no value to taking this course if you are trying to enhance your career, and make a change. My choice to pivot my career as a registered healthcare professional into the tech industry and a data based future seems extremely bleek.

This was a fast past 6 months' Bootcamp. 

In this Bootcamp, we learned a lot of technical skills: Excel/VBA - GitHub - Python (Pandas - NumPy - SciPy - Matplotlib - Seaborn) - SQL - SQLite - Flask - Web Scraping - Leaflet - GeoJSON - Mapping - Tableau - Statistics and R - Hadoop - Spark - HTML/CSS - NLP - Cloud computing - AWS - Machine Learning (scikit-learn - TensorFlow - Neural Networks)

Instructor Arooj and the assistant Harshitha are amazing. Arooj made things easier to understand and learn. She is just a phenomenal instructor.   

This is a great start toward a career in Data analytics. However, after nearly 2 months of graduation, I can say that this Bootcamp gave me the surface level and it's definitely not enough to be job ready. After graduation, you have to keep in mind that daily learning and upskilling are a must to find a job. The fact that this certificate doesn't come with an internship or COOP program is a big drawback as companies prefer to take internships from universities that have a COOP program. 

This is probably the most densely packed and interesting learning experience I have had, and this is right after I completed an MBA. The instructor was great! He showed empathy as we slowly picked up concepts and is a great communicator - able explain very technical concepts in digestable ways. The TA's were knowlegeable, supportive, and easy relate with and it was great to have additional reservable TA services. In addition, the program is fully loaded with career support, from resume, linkedin and portfolio consulting, to optional weekly career related seminars. Take advantage of all this! This program will test your willingness to learn from ground zero and capacity to handle frustration during the learning process, but if you stick to it you would be amazed at how far you have come in 6 months. Goodluck :D

During this tough course, I found incredible joy and inner strength, even as I battled health issues and faced a life-altering surgery. It’s a reminder that success is achievable if you’re ready to put in the hard work.

My journey isn’t just about books and assignments; it’s about discovering something extraordinary within myself. It’s like a secret power that you only realize you have when you push yourself to the limit.

So, for anyone out there aiming for success, remember this: it’s all about dedication and effort. You’ve got to be willing to roll up your sleeves and dive in headfirst.

This experience isn’t just about me; it’s a lesson for anyone facing challenges. It’s proof that when life throws curveballs, we can hit them out of the park with sheer determination.

So, no matter what you’re up against, believe in yourself. I did, and I found strength I never knew I had. In the end, it’s a story of resilience, hard work, and the sweet taste of success.

I took one Computer Science course in university where my professor told me I should be majoring in Computer Science. I didn't listen to him and it has been my biggest regret ever since. 

The past six months in the bootcamp has been incredibly difficult, but so rewarding. I have learned so much in the past 6 months! From the fundamentals of webpage framework to databases and APIs. Now that it’s over I am eager to continue learning even more! The instructional team is incredibly intelligent and always ready to help you. As is the careers team. The bootcamp has been an amazing experience and I am eager to continue to grow as a Web Developer.

My advice for anyone starting the bootcamp would be to put in the effort to learn right from the beginning, take advantage of all the resources that are offered to you, ensure you dedicate time each week to review the past weeks lessons. I’d you do all that you will be golden!

The bootcamp was well laid out. Consisting of 21 modules the teachings started off with Excel/VBA, coursed through well known languages, and ending with learning about machine learning models, before heading into the final group project. Classes were twice a week from 6:30-10:00pm and was broken down as such: 6:30-7:00 - Office Hours, 7:00-9:00pm - Class, and 9:00-10:00pm Office Hours. The office hours were a great opportunity to meet other students to get to know each other better, and help each other along the way. The challenges for each module were based off of the material that was covered in the respective classes, although extra researching and querying was more common than not. The group project was a challenging time, as it put many skills to the test, and not just programming skills. Ultimately, it was an opportunity to develop team building, various degrees of project management skills, and programming, naturally. There were many challenges along the way, and it often required to stay up late, despite having work the next day, and to push through with the help of the support teams the bootcamp offers. One of those support networks is the Learning Assistants (LAs), which consists of a group of alumni and experienced programmers who are there to assist with troubleshooting, installing packages, or by budging you in the right direction in your assignments/challenges. The professor that taught us was absolutely spectacular, and that, in of itself, is an understatement. Every single student in the cohort was fascinated by her, and were always happy and willing to engage in conversations with her. If anyone ever had a question, and raised their hand, she would finish her thought and acknowledge the student's question. The Teaching Assistant (TA) was just as amazing. She was always kind, patient, steady, and incredibly knowledgeable of all subject matters that permitted her to become such a strong pillar of support for both the instructor and the students. There are career services available and am currently collaborating with them to get a resume application-ready. Based on my experience, I would recommend this course.

This Data Science bootcamp is exactly what you need whether you are looking to enrich you resume, learn new valuable skills or for a new beginning the data field. Arooj and Harshita we're great instructors from the beginning to the end of this bootcamp. With help from them outside of class hours and help from tutors 24/7, you are on the right path to success. Sureer has been very helpful in keeping my classmates and I on track with going the extra mile and offering us different recommendations to insure you understand clearly the material thought in class. With the help of these 3O instructors along with 24/7 from online tutors that help within the program, you wont be looking anywhere else for Data classes and will be happy you picked this one! 

I really enjoyed the Coding Bootcamp at  Carleton and a big reason why was due to the instructors and the support team. I would really like to highlight Sureer Jimale who was very consequential in my success with the program. Sureer's passion for her work and the people she helps is very evident in her work ethic. She's very quick to respond to communication and her touch bases with you always have you feeling uplifted and supported. I honestly wouldn't have been able to be successful in the program without her gentle and empathic nature. Whether is was figuring a timetable to keep yourself organize or scheduling extra support for assignments you never felt alone when talking with Sureer. It's people like her that make challenging and new concepts for a beginner like myself stay motivated. Thank you so much Sureer for all that the work you do!!