Seeking feedback on the jobs pipeline for computer programming in Boston.

[Katie Gradowski]

Hi folks!   It's Katie from Parts and Crafts.

We are hoping to get some introductory coding classes up and running at the Somerville Fab Lab and have been in conversation with the First Source Jobs program about putting together some starter classes for people who are interested in exploring computer programming as a possible career track

Our hope is to design a simple starter course for people who want to do a coding bootcamp but first want to suss out if it's worth the investment.  

My sense is that it takes 3-4 years of dedicated effort to go from "no coding knowledge" to "employable," but that programming remains one of the cheapest ways to bootstrap yourself into a good job without paying a lot of money upfront. That said, my expertise is in education, not the Boston coding scene!  Before we put together and pitch a class, I was hoping to get some feedback from programmers on this list on how to make this type of offering most effective. 

Here are some content-specific questions I have.

• Are coding bootcamps effective?  (vs. say academic programs)
• Are there pay-for programs that you would recommend to others?
• What platforms or languages should we focus on to prepare people for this type of course?
• What type of informal networking needs to be in place to make this type of class successful?
• What resources exist in Cambridge / Somerville beyond the Fab Lab to help support people who want to get into programming?

Basic efficacy questions include:

• What is a reasonable "class-to-successful-job-application" trajectory for someone with previous coding experience who needs to brush up?
• Is there a reasonable trajectory for someone who has no coding experience whatsoever?

Any advice is much appreciated.  Thanks!

Katie

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www.partsandcrafts.org

[Jeffrey Warren]

HI!! Just wanted to chime in that at Public Lab, our software onboarding and outreach efforts seem (as far as we can assess) to be dovetailing with the increasing number of people coming out of coding bootcamps worldwide. We help several new people per week to make their first open source coding contribution, and it's really satisfying in addition to helping them to build skills. 

We particularly seek to support and welcome folks from groups under-represented in software development, and we offer friendly, encouraging support for newcomers to try to ensure their first experience in open source coding is a good one. 

We'd love to work with anyone you teach, if they're interested -- our Welcome page is here:

https://publiclab.github.io/community-toolbox/

Thanks!

J

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[Leon Noel]

Hi Katie + everyone,

I help run a program called Resilient Coders. We train people of color from Boston, Cambridge, Somerville and a few surrounding areas for high growth careers as software engineers. We run a free 14-week bootcamp where students actually get paid a stipend to learn and then place them into jobs and internships throughout the Boston area. We've had some really great success taking individuals from simply a GED and making minimum wage to 60-80k/y jobs. 

Happy to talk shop and share what we've learned! Also, I've taught at General Assembly for the past 5 years - so happy to explain things from the corporate paid route as well :) Best email: le...@resilientcoders.org

Cheers!,

Leon

[Adam Baratz]

I’m a hiring manager of software engineers. I’ve interviewed and hired people who have gone through boot camps.

My sense is that it takes 3-4 years of dedicated effort to go from "no coding knowledge" to "employable," but that programming remains one of the cheapest ways to bootstrap yourself into a good job without paying a lot of money upfront.

This is essentially correct, though a lot depends on the kind of role you’re training for. Focusing on frontend roles can be more effective. That skillset is technical without requiring the amount of foundational knowledge that you usually need for backend roles.

Depending on someone’s past experience, it can be very important to coach on interview/related skills. The unfortunate reality is that people going through boot camps are going to be interviewing for the same roles as people who are finishing a four-year CS program and might have at least one internship on their résumés. These people are more likely to have exposure to the communication style of an office environment and how you sell your accomplishments there.

The four-year degree, to be fair, probably doesn’t guarantee that many practical skills. Many people in this camp haven’t done projects outside of coursework. Industry projects require a lot of collaboration and a different sense of ownership. It can take a couple years of work experience with regular mentoring to become relatively self-sufficient on basic projects. Most of what the degree gives you are the conceptual underpinnings that allow you to work through things without constant handholding from your tech lead or manager.

Happy to answer more questions here or offline. My employer runs an internal boot camp for entry-level hires. I could probably connect you with the person who runs it. Since people who go through boot camps still usually have to go through hers, she could probably give you some more data points.

Thanks,

Adam