Codesmith

Codesmith’s Software Engineering Immersive was one of the most demanding, rewarding, and unique experiences of my life. I entered the program after 10 years as a professional musician, with no technical background, and am leaving with the skills and confidence to work alongside seasoned software engineers.

In my search for a software engineering immersive, I went through considerable research to find the ‘best’ option. For options in Los Angeles, the search led me to Codesmith and Hack Reactor. To evaluate these programs I worked through their respective online prep materials, attended in-person info/coding sessions, and spoke with company representatives. While I experienced Hack Reactor as high-quality and professional, Codesmith was a cut above. In the areas most important to me, curriculum and culture, Codesmith impressed.

CSX, Codesmith’s online prep platform introduced advanced JavaScript topics and provided challenging exercises to reinforce learning. (It took me 2 days to solve Intersection on the Callbacks & Higher-Order Functions module! This was my introduction to one of Codesmith’s teaching paradigms, learning through struggle.) Their live workshop series, ‘JavaScript: The Hard Parts’ provided an opportunity to connect with aspiring engineers, current residents, and faculty. The people I met were personable and encouraging. They didn’t make me feel self-conscious about my lack of prior experience but created an environment where I could build confidence in my nascent coding skills. These observations, of Codesmith’s high technical standards and supportive community, convinced me to enroll in their full-time Software Engineering Immersive.

My time at Codesmith as an engineering resident was intense, in the best possible way. The pace moved quickly through advanced material. As students, we were constantly being stretched to the edge of our ability, which served to accelerate our learning. Every two days we were assigned a partner to pair-program through various units on Algorithms & Data Structures, React, Redux, Node, and SQL databases. We were provided high-level lectures and support from Engineering Fellows, but much of the learning came through reading documentation, struggling through prepared challenges, and collaborating with other students. This helped me to see that Codesmith has designed its process to not only teach software engineering, but to build meta-skills of collaboration, navigating uncertainty, and learning how to learn.

Codesmith balances its academic rigor with a supportive, inclusive learning environment. Prospective students are screened for cultural fit and soft-skills like empathy and cooperation. It shows. My cohort consisted of brilliant, driven people who supported each other through the process. In a setting that might easily become competitive, my peers were humble, team-focused, and committed to helping others.

Lastly, Codesmith’s hiring program is incredible. Hiring lectures are thorough and battle-tested. Students receive detailed feedback on resumes, online profiles, and outreach strategy, along with one-on-one support for salary negotiations. CEO and co-founder Will Sentence personally reviews and signs-off on each resume. I was so impressed by his investment in the success of every resident!

I realize a review so positive might be met with skepticism, but I’ve found Codesmith to be exceptional at every turn. (Time and again I felt the value provided far exceeded the cost of tuition.) For those who are determined and willing to push through every obstacle, I’d recommend Codesmith without hesitation.

I don't know where I'd be if I had chosen to attend any other bootcamp instead of Codesmith. As a recent grauduate from UCSB with a Financial Math and Stats major, I was unsure of my future as I began having second doubts of my career that I had selected. Codesmith took my interest in coding and turned it into a passion to learn more about the technology that is affecting our world today. In such a rigorous yet rewarding course, I've constantly been challenged to improve myself in critical areas, technical and non-technical. From tackling problems with the right mindset to the ability to communicate clearly to colleagues, I consider every skill I've picked up critical to to myself and the future of my career.

Getting into Codesmith isn't easy, and it doesn't better once you get in. However, with such a careful selection process of cohort members and supportive staff, I found myself so immersed in my work that I didn't mind staying longer than regular hours. It'd be a mistake not to consider Codesmith.

This program is parallel to none.  I went to undergrad at Berkeley, and my three months at Codesmith was more academically rigorous than any semester during college.  But there is a great deal of support.  The instructors, TAs, and fellow students all put in the extra hours to support each other and make this place feel like home.

I had another friend who went to a different coding school in the same city two years ago, and he's been working as an engineer in industry since.  I'll be commanding a higher salary than him upon my graduaduation here from Codesmith.

To me, CodeSmith can best be described as an accelerator. If you're a self-driven learner, CodeSmith will challenge you with a very intense and in depth JavaScript based Computer Science curriculum. Every day, you'll be pair programming with a group of like-minded students and pushed to explain your thinking and build up your technical communication skills.

By the end of the experience, you will have multiple projects in your portfolio and feel confident going out to the search for a mid-level or senior-level software engineering role. More than teaching you Node.js, React and Redux - Codesmith teaches you how to tackle and conquer any new technology.

 

While the computer science education is fantastic, perhaps the greatest value CodeSmith provides is its rich career development program. The insights you get from the founders of Codesmith - who teach the career development curriculum themselves - is worth the price of tuition alone. 

 

Codesmith is probably one of the top 3 bootcamps in the US. I was skeptical about their average starting salary report, but now that I've graduated and begun my job search, I definitely believe it. The way that you talk about technologies and the level of code you write when you leave is really impressive.

I initially became interested in Codesmith because I was really impressed with their curriculum. After researching and attending an in-person workshop at both Codesmith and another Los Angeles bootcamp, I was pretty sure Codesmith was the best program in Southern California. I highly advise attending free workshops at whatever camp you’re considering! I attended a Codesmith JavaScript Hard Parts (JSHP) Meetup and was very impressed at the level of detail they went into how JS works under the hood. My mind was left reeling, trying to understand the single thread of execution going through the code, how execution contexts were being popped on and off the call stack, how closure worked due to JavaScript’s lexical scope, etc. I also saw that some residents were actually C.S. grads! So I knew that Codesmith was pretty technical and probably had a decent filter for admits. When I joined, a number of my cohort-mates were actually bootcamp grads from other bootcamps! Codesmith was their 2nd bootcamp. :O

About the culture/people: there were definitely times I felt our cohort was warm and fuzzy and supportive. Each cohort is very different, but they do a good job of picking the right people and building an inclusive, collaborative culture. They also support women/minorities in tech and educate about imposter syndrome and gender/race biases, with the hopes that we as future senior-level engineers can be cognizant about these issues. Thumbs up.

That said, I don't think Codesmith is necessarily for everyone - there is a high degree of autonomy in the last 6 weeks, and you have to be strict with yourself. In the first 6 weeks, the curriculum also moves quickly in 2 day units. The instruction is excellent and I think the curriculum is extremely well thought-out, but since you only get three 1-hr lectures for each unit, you must challenge yourself. You learn to read documentation and problem solve aloud via pair programming. This mirrors real-life and sets you up for future situations in work. For future improvement, I did wish they enforced punishments as it'd be good motivation! I also wish they provided a teeny bit more guidance as we struggled through the challenges haha~ but the on-site fellows were amazing and often nudged us in the right direction whenever we needed help.

The hiring lectures and job preparation/resumes were phenomenal. The advice they give you is gold, and it's quite a transformative process when you look back at what you were like before. You make back your monies in those workshops right there. 

I don't think you'll regret it - it's a worthy investment in your own future. Just attend a JSHP and check it out for yourself! :)

I was going nowhere, not even fast. I was going nowhere slowly. I was making 30k, with no room for career advancement.
Then, I came to Codesmith. I just accepted a 100k+ offer as a Software Engineer. Trust the process. This is real.

The market needs what Codesmith helps you become. 

I researched 4-year universities, I researched grad programs, I researched AA degrees, and I researched bootcamps. Then I found Codesmith, which is none of those things. Codesmith is indeed a resisdency, which asks more of you than a bootcamp and offers more to you than any other program. 

Personally, I have a 4 year degree. I had it prior to Codesmith, yet I was never challenged to work as hard as I was during my time at Codesmith. I was never put into a box a Codesmith, the way I was at my university. 

Codesmith is not making cookie-cutter repeat devs, Codesmith is looking to help you identify your personal strengths/interests and bulid them into a marketable skill set. Codesmith is looking to evolve you. Every graduate who comes from Codesmith is great in their own way, powered by their own strengths, and moving forward by the strength of their own legs. 

They do so by challenging you to accomplish impossible tasks, or at least tasks which seem impossible...until you find yourself completing them. 

Over and over again you will surpass what you thought you were capable of understanding. Over and over again, you will discover knowledge which was earned through problem solving. Over and over again, you will find yourself lifted by an amazing community. 

You will struggle. You will get stuck. You will feel like you can't do it. 

However, Codesmith and the community of learners on the journey with you will do literally everything they are capable of doing to help you along the way. 

This place wants you to succeed, wants to help you succeed...the only question you have to ask yourself is, "Am I ready to succeed?"

If the answer is yes, come to Hard Parts. 

Success is waiting for you there. 
 

"Transformative." "Easily worth the investment." "Unlike anything I have or will have ever done in the best possible way."

Believe me... I was sitting in your position just months ago reading through the reviews and contemplating which one of these software engineering immersion programs was a fit for me, if at all.

Do this instead: Attend a JavaScript: Easy Parts then a Hard Parts Workshop (cost: always free) this upcoming week. Then go back again over and over. 

Why?

No one goes into as much depth about the intricacies of how JavaScript works, especially with respect to asynchronous features, the event loop, and the microtask queue. You will learn so much from the Codesmith faculty as well as from your peers, because pair-programming is a huge part of it. 

Still lost? Don't worry, I was too. But believe me, the effort this place puts in guiding you through the core pillars of software engineering is one-of-a-kind.

Now onto the program. It's phenomenal in every sense of the word. Bright engineers from the residents you'll be building amazing open source projects with, the stellar fellows who will stay late in the night to help you debug, to the instructors who have an incredible track record of molding you into the model mid-level / senior engineer you will soon become. 

So again. If you're thinking about heading down this route, do yourself a favor and attend a workshop. You've got nothing to lose.

Thank you, Codesmith!

The level of this curriculum far surpasses the rigor and standard of any educational curriculum I have experienced. Even as a Neurosci graduate of the number 1 ranked public school in the US, I found this core curriculum more challenging and more intensive than the premedical courses I was taking back then.   There definitely is very little hand-holding that occurs in this curriculum because of course, if you are to accelerate your career in a matter of three months (+some preparation prior to Codesmith) and learn everything you need to truly become a software engineer, you have to truly push yourself and get beyond just the typical Javascript knowledge bestowed upon normal graduates. However, while hand-holding is not part of the curriculum, there is a huge support system among your classmates as well as the staff who will help you out if you ever feel like you are drowning. The support from the staff is truly incredible and will truly help you out if you are ever in dire need. They are always monitoring your progress throughout the curriculum and will make sure you are getting what you desire from the program.   While the curriculum can be quite difficult, what you get out if is a true insight into what a software engineering life is like:

• To be constantly presented with a large number of technologies but learning to become comfortable with the unknown
• To not be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of knowledge because you develop the confidence of diving deep into a technology you have no idea about
• To break down any overwhelmingly difficult code, documentation or challenge one by one showing you that you are capable.

  What you get from Codesmith is really just another level. I honestly came into Codesmith expecting just a curriculum where I would breeze through (because I studied Javascript for an entire year before coming here) and learn this/that technology, but...definitely not. The level of learning that I was doing on a self-study basis was nowhere near the immersive, intensive studies that Codesmith gets you on.    I really wish I could talk to anyone reading this, in person, on how real the outcomes this program is producing because it really is a hidden gem. To convince whoever is on the fence of undertaking this thing to give it a real chance and avoid the biases of a “coding bootcamp”. This organization is just way way better than that, but just seriously don’t knock it until you try it.

I can honestly say that the amount of improvement I've seen in my development journey has increased dramatically as a direct result of the supportive, and encouraging community at Codesmith. I went from someone who could just copy + paste code while following video tutorials, to be able to create fullstack web applications with ease. The best part about Codesmith is the community, the amount of attention they give to the students are insane.

If you come here, you will be put into the most intensive, stressful, wonderful, and fun time you will ever have in your coding journey. It will all have been worth it when you realize how far you've come, how many amazing people you've met, and how much you can do when you just push yourself.

 

Cs prep helped strengthen the weaker areas and gaps in my software engineering knowledge and helped me feel more confident in applying for the full-time Codesmith program. The instructor did a fantastic job of covering each topic in a way that was engaging and inspiring. He also was open to answering questions and made sure that some of the more challenging concepts were understood at a foundational level. This was helpful because the people within my cohort all varied in their level of experience. Cs prep also put a strong emphasis on pair programming as a learning tool and I couldn't agree more with how beneficial it has been to my overall growth. The program ends with the building and presentation of a group project. During this time, you get the opportunity to apply what you learned to something more tangible and although it is challenging, it is really nice to see it all come together in the end into something you and you group can feel proud of. I would definitely recommend Cs prep to those who are serious about applying to Codesmith but are still on the fence about their technical communication and foundational software engineering skills. I am happy to say that after I attended cs prep I got accepted into the December 17 cohort and I am really looking forward to all that is to come. 

I chose to enroll in CS Prep because I had started to learn to code on my own, but with no prior experience or community of fellow programmers I felt stuck. I was drawn to the part time schedule and short time frame, along with small group size of CS Prep, and the syllabus seemed thorough in covering the fundamentals of Javascript.

I appreciated that there were students of all different experience levels, and the instructor (Ryan) was incredibly encouraging while still pushing everyone to extend their individual knowledge. The class was structured around empathetic learning which helped everyone feel at ease, and encouraged all of us to really care for the learning of others, not just ourselves.

  By far the most effective part of the course for me was pair programming. Since I had only learned to program on my own, it was amazing what working with one other person could do for the growth of my learning, and it especially enhanced my technical communication. I think it was important to pair program in the context of this course because we were easily able to check in with the instructor or other classmates if we had questions or clarifications.   I learned so much in two weeks that I decided to take the course again and learned so much more because I had created a solid foundation to build on. I highly recommend this course to anyone who is starting to learn Javascript or needs to brush up on fundamentals.