Makers Academy

Had an overall great experience with Makers and would definitely recommend to anyone thinking about switching careers!

Pros:
- Coaches are excellent support and always try to make themselves available despite difficulties of lockdown and remote working
- Good experience of pair programming and supporting/mentoring others
- Access to an industry and like minded people that you would not get self-teaching

Cons:
- Remote working made it harder and coaches less accessible. Harder to justify the cost of the course as can sometimes feel a bit isolating

I have been keeping an eye on Makers Academy for a few years, I subscribed to their newsletter, went to demo days and events at their office. Unfortunately, I could not afford to give up my job and enrol in the full-time course so when the opportunity came to be part of the first part-time cohort, I had to take it! 

The application process was easy, I had a phone call interview followed by a pair-progamming session with the future coach, and I was told on the spot that I am in. My cohort was a small one, there were only 5 of us but it worked to our advantage. We were all employed full-time and doing the course for 3 hours in the evening Mon-Thursday, a longer session of 5 hours on Sunday and individual study on Fri-Sat when we usually had projects to finish. It was intense, not only because of the curriculum but because of the schedule as well, we didn't have a lot of time to ourselves and that's why the support that Makers offered was so important. We had wellbeing workshops and our coaches were highly empathic and patient. There were also meditation and yoga sessions that some of my colleagues who were working from home attended regularly - unfortunately, not my case as I had to commute.

The curriculum is interesting, I enjoyed all the projects that I worked on. You get to learn a little bit of everything but the experience is not your usual conventional education. There is a big emphasis on teaching you how to learn for yourself. We were encouraged to do our own research, to learn through practice. If someone wanted to learn another programming language or a different technology, they could do so during the individual learning days. If someone felt like they needed more challenging tasks or exercises to practice outside of our sessions, our coaches were able to provide that. But we could also reach out to them for emotional support.

A month after finishing the course, I have already had an interview and the future looks good! Makers offers job support after finishing the course and I know that if I have any questions, there is someone who can help me. I can honestly say that this experience has changed my life and I am sooo glad that I chose Makers.

Pros:- The people you meet on the course are fantastic and social life was great- Teaches modern software development practices from the ground up such as TDD and Agile- The working environment encouraged the fast learning required to change career- There was a strong focus on how to do well in tech interviews and loads of practice resources
Cons:- Quite expensive, but office location was prime and after course support and business connections were invaluable
Note: I completed the course onsite pre-corona

Coming straight out of a uni course I didn't want to do professionally, I felt lost. I joined onto Makers after a sizable investment, with little idea what to expect beyond having been interviewed by a course coach. I was nervous for the first week, but during the first weekend I came to the conclusion that I was really, seriously learning. The course does a fantastic job of getting you up to speed with not only the tools required to succeed in a tech environment, but also teaching you to learn and motivate yourself. I came out of Makers with my skepticism completely gone and a great developer skillset.

There is a huge amount of support for your money, however, you must actively seek the support out. This is an issue I had with the latter end of the course, as once the teaching had finished I felt that I had, somewhat, been left to figure things out for myself. With no exposure to the professional world of tech, I was unsure of the differences between job descriptions and role requirements. I found what I wanted after much self-motivated research, but I would love to see more structure around the jobseeking portion of the Makers course.

That being said, there is a huge amount provided in both learning and mental health support. I had been told the course would be intense and while it was fast and covered a huge amount, I found that the wellness support provided by the Makers staff went above and beyond in making me feel confident and comfortable.

Makers helped set me on a path and they are very worthy of all praise. As I move into the Makers Alumni part of my experience, I hope that the fantastic support they've shown throughout continues.

Note: I was a part of a remote cohort due to COVID-19.

Pros: 
- The community at Makers is truly amazing and people always go out of their ways to help each other.
- Job support after graduation is great, there are plenty of workshops for people who are at applying stage or interviewing stage. Sometimes coaches take a while to respond, but I had a positive experience most of the time. I got help with my CV, cover letters and advice on preparing to different kinds of interviews.
- Almost all of the jobs from the partner scheme were very high quality vacancies that you would want to apply to.
- This bootcamp puts a lot of focus on industry best practices, such as TDD and Agile - employers value this a lot!
- At Makers, you learn how to learn. By the time of our final project, I was confident that I could pick up any technology that I need. Some teams even managed to build their final projects in completely new languages and frameworks. 
Cons:
- The curriculum has some important areas left uncovered, the most obvious one is working with the cloud. I acknowledge that the course is quite intense anyway, but there is a lot of value in going over the basic stuff, as AWS or Azure are listed in every job description nowadays. 
- Makers has little learning material of its own, which makes the value for money of the remote course questionable. I think that you are paying for a platform that connects you with like-minded people (your cohort) and job support, which are probably the most important things if you're a motivated career-switcher. However, 99% of the technical information we used is available online for free. I would appreciate if there were more learning materials, especially about explaining different tools and how to set them up. When youre doing the course remotely, it becomes a lot more difficult to reach out to someone next to you and solve a problem quickly, like you would on-campus.
- For the majority of the course, you get to work in pairs every day. I really liked pair programming, but I also think that it could be structured in a better way. We would have one big task for the week, but you switch partners every day. If your new pair partner had done less work, you start where they ended. While there are some positive aspects to it, such as consolidating your knowledge by doing something several times, if you're a technically strong student, it will eventually be a frustrating experience repeating the tasks for 8 weeks and never getting far. Personally, I would've liked it better if you had one pair partner per week - this would have made the experience a lot less chaotic, while still getting to work with many different people over the course. For the projects, your team is fixed for the week or two and everyone I talked to liked it that way.

Signing up to do Makers was one of the best decisions I have made in my life. I got stranded in the UK because of coronavirus and lost my job because I couldn't return to China. After some months without work I decided I need to do something, so signed up to start Makers in August. Now 6 months later, and just 2 months after finishing the course, I am about to start the job of my dreams with great pay and an amazing career outlook, I couldn't be happier.

The course was intense, and at times difficult, but the staff are all fantastic people who provided an unmatched level of support. They are all genuinely knowledgable and caring individuals. Both during the course, and after in my job search I have felt totally supported. I would 100% recommend signing up if you are looking for a change.

Overall this was one of the best things I have ever done. I met some amazing people, learned some amazing things, and now just starting my new job as a front-end dev. Short-sighted me sometimes wondered why I was learning a less in-demand language than other Bootcamps,  but now I am working I totally get it. Makers don't teach you syntax, they teach you how to learn and succeed working environment.
I came into this Bootcamp thinking I would learn how to code and then try and find a job, instead, I learned the importance of testing your code, how to work properly within a team, how to plan effectively, how to transfer my knowledge of one language to another and the list goes on. Whilst I can't recommend this bootcamp enough one thing to note is its very hard work, luckily Makers take a holistic approach to this and care about your mental health.

TLDR: Go for it, it's the best thing I have ever done.

Pros: 
- Women and Gender Minorities Discount to promote diversity
- A holistic approach learning process meaning that I have to be very clear with my learning goal in order to progress
- Emotional curriculum that ensures the progress of inner development
- Great post bootcamp career support with helpful workshops for interview methods and job application methods
- Great alumni community to network, ask questions and learn new trending technology
- Dedicated and caring coaches 
Cons:
- The curriculum could be very intense for a learner who has no prior coding experience
- Some parts of the curriculum are outdated, it would be great to have constant updates

It was a very intense journey for me during the pandemic and having a three-year-old running around at home. However, looking back at it, I am glad that I made it. I didn't only learn about new technologies, but also the process to learn a new thing, the process to work in an agile team and most importantly -- the process to understand myself. I also got the chance to meet a world of people and professions that I wouldn't have come across from my old job, and gained some long-lasting friendships. 

Learning a new thing is hard, but it is only because it is NEW. So go ahead, start now :) We all can do it!

Deciding to change career and start my tech journey at Makers was by far the best decision I have ever made and the friend of mine who convinced me to go with Makers said the exact same thing. It is not a coincidence.

Despite joining in April 2020 at the begining of the pandemic and the course moving remotely, I still feel that I learnt all that was needed to become a successful software developer. 

The curriculum is spot on for the types of roles/companies that you want to be working for when applying for your first job. The senior coaches are experts in their field and always on hand to answer any questions you may have, even months after you have finished the course. And the learning environment is unique. Makers is a special place and if you do decide to join you will quickly appreciate the "we're all in this together" ethos that is developed among your colleagues in your cohort.

It's not a quick fix by all means and it is not easy, but if you are willing to put in the hours and completely dedicate the next 4+ months of your life to the cause, look no further - Makers is the place for you! 

Good luck!