Darwin and business plans, coding schools learning to adapt or die

Coding schools are everywhere

Ask one person about them and you’ll hear all about how they’re all the rage and an excellent way for someone who has no previous experience to get their foot in the door. Ask someone else, and you might get a scoff and a lecture about bootcamp graduates being of lesser-caliber and ill-equipped for the big-kids-world of engineering.

Those who’ve graduated from coding schools and those in pursuit of attending one are on a tightrope walk between the stigma of bootcamps and being able to compete in a dog-eat-dog job market.

Coding Dojo

We’ve written previously about the over saturation of coding schools after the recent closure of two major national institutions, and while isn’t enough evidence to support a growing trend, it does bring to light discussion regarding the legitimacy of the claims of the schools.

Coding Dojo is offering a new curriculum that proclaims is one of the broadest available in order to match the fast-evolving developer job market.

Dojo recently dropped their Ruby on Rails program (in certain locations) which is slated to retire at the end of 2017, and added a full-stack Java course. Coding Dojo also offers all the stacks for Python/Django, MEAN, Ruby on Rails (again, in some locations), LAMP, iOS/Swift and C#/ASP.NET Core, plus short curriculum material covering React, Amazon Alexa, and other technologies.

Respect the grind

While some coding schools are shutting their doors forever, others like Coding Dojo are hustling to stay current and relevant to the current job market.
That sounds fine and dandy, but it can be difficult to put a price tag on something that’s constantly changing that can be done for less or even for free. That said, does this invalidate the education someone received at a coding school? Would a self-taught coder or someone with a four-year degree in Computer Science be regarded more highly in comparison?

Much of the resentment of coding schools comes from the idea that “you get what you pay for.”

Some schools may be up to snuff with new and relevant course material while others might be your usual for-profit “diploma mill,” leaving many students feeling sold something they couldn’t use. And if you were one of the current students or graduated of Dev Bootcamp or The Iron Yard, how does that name look on your resume in the eyes of recruiters? Should job seekers be fearful of adding what was once an accomplishment but now considered a stamp of shame to their resumes?

Can and should aren’t the same

There’s been an initiative in recent years with the rallying cry “everyone should learn to code,” but should they? Motivation is a huge factor, and if you’re just going through the motions and following along the steps to create an app, I’m afraid you’ll be floundering in a real world scenario if your hearts just not into it.

Coding takes a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to truly understand and write on one’s own, and it’s both a language and an art that needs constant refining and following.

You’ve got to keep up. A certificate can look great on paper, but ultimately your success will amount to the time and energy that you put into your work, and how badly you want something. Employers want to see what you can do.

Head down, work hard

Code schools are not for everyone, but if it’s what you’re after, be like Rudy: you may get rejection letters here and there, but that means you need to keep learning and pushing yourself until someone notices.

You’ll do fine.

#Coding