If you have yet to hear about the bootcamps which are shaking up the world of education then I’m not sure where you’ve been all this time, but you should know that they’re one of the single fastest ways to retrain for a great career in technology.
There are bootcamps in a number of major U.S. cities and all across the world, covering everything from web development data science. If you’re stuck in an unrewarding job and want to do something challenging and lucrative, you should definitely consider attending a coding bootcamp.
Today we’re going to compare two of the better-known programs: Thinkful vs. App Academy.
Curriculum and Course Offerings
Thinkful is pretty hard to pin down in terms of standard curriculum, daily schedule, etc. It’s an entirely online program that pairs attendees with mentors for 1-on-1 training. This means you can basically work as much or as little as you want to, completing it in as few as two to three months or as many as six. Everything I cite in this article will be for their engineering immersive, which I suspect is both one of their more common programs and also similar enough to Thinkful’s other offerings to give you the information you need to get started.
Thinkful has tracks for full stack web development, data science, UX/UI Design, and product design. The engineering immersive is full time, requiring at least 40 hours a week, and generally takes 17 weeks. It covers Javascript, Python, and Ruby, web development languages like HTML/CSS, and tools like Github. Some projects you’ll complete on your own, some you’ll work on with other students. All will prepare you for what actually working as an engineer is like.
App Academy is far less unusual. It’s a 12-week bootcamp that focuses on CSS/HTML, Javascript, database languages like PostgreSQL, and Ruby. It too features individual and pair work, through which you’ll build a stellar portfolio to display to potential employers.
Program Cost and Tuition Model
Here again Thinkful is a little unusual, in that their payment structure is monthly and varies by program. The engineering immersive we’ve been talking about costs $3,520 a month. The product design track will only set you back $1,590 a month, and the Data Science Flex track, $1,495 a month. Thinkful offers deferred tuition and loans through Ascent Funding, as well as scholarships for veterans and women.
App Academy has a few different tuition-payment options. You can pay $17,000 upfront, or defer payments until you find a job making at least $50,000, at which point you’ll start making payments which will eventually total $28,000. Though this is a lot more money than you’d pay with the upfront option, you get to spread the cost out and you don’t owe anything if you don’t get hired. There’s also a hybrid plan which has you splitting the difference by making a sizeable upfront payment and paying the rest after being placed somewhere.
Outcomes and Reviews
Over 71% of Thinkful’s engineering immersive graduates have jobs within half a year and earn a median salary of $65,000. App Academy claims that 98% of their graduates ‘eventually’ find work (we don’t know how long this takes) and they’re earning an average salary of $105,000 in San Francisco and $92,000 in New York City.
Based on their many positive reviews and positive alumni outcomes, I’d say that both Thinkful and App Academy are quality programs that are promising avenues to getting where you want to be.
About us: Career Karma is a platform designed to help job seekers find, research, and connect with job training programs to advance their careers. Learn about the CK publication.
