Coding Bootcamps in Portland
Oregon’s tech industry is booming. More companies in the state are planning to increase tech-related hiring according to a survey conducted in 2013 by the Technology Councils of North America. The findings were promising, however, the same survey noted (as reported by Portland Business Journal) that there is a tech talent shortage in the state, despite an average annual wage of $94,000, which is more than double the state average.
But things are looking up in Oregon. A 2015 survey conducted by Course Report found that Portland, Oregon as the fourth city with most coding bootcamps in the US and Canada; with San Francisco, New York, and Seattle the only cities ahead of Portland.
Coding bootcamps continue to provide the tech industry with competent talents; churning out highly-skilled tech graduates in about 3-4 months. Bootcamps are accelerated learning programs that can be an alternative way to get a developer job without a computer science degree. And perhaps, bootcamps can help solve Oregon’s tech talent shortage, some of which are considered the best not just in the state, but in the entire country.
If you’re interested to find job as a programmer but you need training to do so, here’s the list of coding bootcamps in Oregon (mainly in Portland) that can help you land a developer job. Remember that aside from the cost and time you can commit to these bootcamps, you should also consider some things bootcamps don’t usually tell you about
List of Coding Bootcamps in Portland
PDX Code Guild
PDX Code Guild offer two levels of courses depending on a student’s level of commitment and readiness: immersive developer bootcamps (offered in day-time or evening sessions) and weekend introductory courses on a variety of topics. The school and all of its courses are licensed by Oregon’s Higher Education Coordinating Commission and their Python-based Developer Bootcamp have short and interactive lectures, but is known to be intensive nonetheless.
The workspace is open to alumni allowing both students and graduates to connect with peers and continue the learning process.
- Cost: $8,000, provides state grants
- Experience required: Beginner with some experience
- Technologies covered: HTML/CSS, Python
- Duration: Full-time: 12 weeks; 6-8 hours per week. Part-time: 16-weeks; 3-6 hours per week
- Job placement: Provides job assistance
The Tech Academy
Though Tech Academy is headquartered in Portland, students can choose to take the bootcamp on-site or remotely as the entire bootcamp is available online and can be accessed from anywhere in the world. Students living outside the area who choose to take the bootcamp online can enrol anytime and study at their own pace.
Tech Academy’s Software Developer Bootcamp has a total of 13 courses where students can learn almost 10 programming languages, designed to produce well-rounded, entry-level software developers at the end of the bootcamp. A job placement course is also part of the curriculum to help students find jobs after they graduate.
- Cost: $6,980–10,000, optional payment plan, offers discounts
- Experience required: Beginner
- Technologies covered: Python, JavaScript, PHP, HTML/CSS, C#, ASP.net
- Duration: 15–20 weeks; 40 hours per week
- Job placement: Provides job assistance, connected with tech companies
Code Fellows
Ranked third on Switchup.org’s list of Best Coding Bootcamps of 2015, one of the most attractive features of Code Fellows is their Job-Offer Guarantee, providing sure jobs to students after 9 months. However, since February this year, the bootcamp has discontinued the guarantee due to varying licensing rules in different states, and instead offers a dedicated professional development training and job-search assistance for consistency of the program in every state.
Code Fellows has 4 courses, Code 101, 201, 301, and 401. All are intensive courses (which gets more intense the higher the course number gets), except for Code 101, which is a one-day workshop. But for each course, key speakers are invited every week, and teachers also act as 1-on-1 mentors who give students the assistance they need.
- Cost: Depends on which course ($99, $3,500, $4,500, $12,000). Offers scholarships, student loans, and payment plans
- Experience required: Has courses for beginners, intermediate, and advanced devs
- Technologies covered: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, Angular, React, Node.js, SQL, MVC
- Duration: Ranges from 1-day course, to full 8-week to 20-week courses
- Job placement: Offers professional development training
Epicodus
Epicodus takes a collaborative learning approach with pair programming, where two people work on a project together using only one computer. The bootcamp also brings weekly speakers from tech companies, and weekly code reviews.
Full-time or part-time (evening classes) students can choose which technology they want to learn in Level 2. But all Level 2 students are automatically enrolled to Level 1: Intro to Programming, which means beginner or not, every student will take a programming crash course before Level 2. This is handy for both absolute programming beginners, and those with some experience but could use a refresher course. After Level 2, students can choose to take the more advanced Level 3, after completion of which will make students eligible for a 7-week internship course at local companies that range from a one-person startup to a Fortune 100 company to a non-profit organization. All full-time courses are 5 weeks long.
Epicodus also offers job assistance, pay plans, refunds, and convenient evening class options.
- Cost: $3,400–5,150, offers payment plans
- Experience required: Beginner
- Technologies covered: JavaScript, Ruby on Rails, PHP, Drupal, HTML/CSS, SQL, AngularJS
- Duration: 15 weeks, 40+ hours a week
- Job placement: Provides job assistance
Conclusion
As the demand for programmers and tech practitioners in the state grows, coding bootcamps in Portland are just some of the institutions that could help fill the gap in the state’s talent pool for skilled programmers. More opportunities for learning and training software developers could be expected in the state to help boost the local economy and help the people grow their careers.
Make sure the coding bootcamp you choose will fit your goals, budget, and schedule. And to make the experience more rewarding, there are personal growth hacks you can do to once you’ve enrolled in one of these bootcamps.
Feel free to add more coding bootcamps around Oregon, or share your experiences about these coding bootcamps in the comments section below.
