Flatiron School Retrospect
I love coding. Flatiron School has really solidified my interest in coding as a true passion. I really appreciate every instructor and personnel for their genuine kindness they have for others and ability to drive me forward without discouragement. That extra touch beyond the curriculum made me feel welcomed in a foreign environment.
I came to Flatiron School in the online, self-paced program not knowing what to expect and without experience in the field of tech. Though I had a strong interest in tech with my background in professional gaming and hardware enthusiast, I never was able to bridge the gap beyond having a conversation with my employers IT guy. Flatiron School has already changed my life.
Having a sense of community is great. Feels pretty easy to accomplish on a campus surrounded by like minded people. That becomes a little more difficult to obtain when you’re online. Even more so when you’re in a self-paced program online. However, Flatiron School has still managed to accomplish that feat through their check-ins, representatives, and the use of online tools such as Slack. It’s super easy to feel like you belong. (:
The curriculum felt like a perfect blend of a walkthrough and exploration. I often read that it is easy to get stuck in tutorial hell when it comes to learning how to code. Likewise, it is also very easy to become overwhelmed without guidance and feel like you’re drowning. Flatiron School’s curriculum melds the benefits of each perfectly. Having a gradual progression of complexity while mixing and interchanging ‘code alongs’ with ‘labs’ gave me the confidence to use past knowledge and taught me ‘how to learn’ when my past knowledge only gets me so far.
In one lab, I might know everything I need to know and can pass it with flying colors. In the next lab, I might get stuck and have to look up documentation on a specific topic in order to get pass. If I were to ever get SUPER stuck, I would be able to reach out to an instructor and they will walk me through my thought process and help me come to an answer rather than just giving me an answer, which I really appreciate because it helps train me to think for myself.
The assessments were also an amazing opportunity to build up my own experience and take off my training wheels. I was able to learn a lot of things I never thought about and was able to explore my own creativity too. Building out projects is very rewarding.
When it comes to the assessment review, the instructors were all incredibly friendly. They let me talk about my project and showed genuine interest in what I found interesting, noted things that were well done, and also noted things that they would recommend tweaking to polish it up or for expandability (giving me goals that I can come back to and reach on my own time). I was set up for success with all of my projects, thanks to the extensive list of the project requirements provided by Flatiron School. With the live coding bits, I always came in not feeling ready, but once the live coding challenge was presented, I realized that I knew a lot more than I initially thought.
I am now in the process of job searching, but as for the curriculum, faculty, and overall experience from Flatiron School… it would be hard not to recommend it to anyone who is interested in starting a career in tech. (:
