Earlier this week I found out out I got into Hackbright! (I start in the Jan 2017 cohort.) I’m pretty excited - this has been somewhat of a long endeavor for me. I originally made a commitment to learn how to code last September. It honestly didn’t have to take me this long to get to this point and sometimes I wish I had tried to apply earlier, but I had some job and personal commitments that I wanted to work around.

Before Hackbright I applied to only one other school, the Viking Code School (online). I didn’t pass the technical interview there, but also based on my interview I wasn’t getting the warm fuzzies. Viking’s program might be great, but after interviewing I decided that I actually wanted an in-person program instead.

Before applying I also went to several different schools locally to check out their space (either via a meetup or info session) including Dev Bootcamp, General Assembly, Makersquare, Hack Reactor, and Hackbright. I thought it was extremely helpful to get a feel for the environment that I would be potentially spending three months straight in, and this also helped me narrow out some choices.

Ultimately I ended up choosing Hackbright as a first-choice for a couple main reasons:

  • Community and support: It’s a tight-knit community, and I definitely got this sense when I met Hackbrighters. I reached out to a HB alumnae and for not having even been through the program, she was very willing to help guide me in the right direction toward applying and reaching my career goals. I may be drinking the juice already, but my sense is that Hackbrighters genuinely want to help others (especially women) find their way into tech.
  • Connections and Mentorship: They pair you with professionals based on your industry interests, from big companies such as Google, Uber, etc. It doesn’t mean you’ll get a job with them, but having a dedicated mentor to support you through your career is pretty unique to HB.

Now, if you’ve combed through the internet like I have with a fine-tooth comb, you’ll discover some of the negativity that was raised against Hackbright. Yeah, I agree that those comments are somewhat concerning. I went back-and-forth about it for a while and ultimately decided to stick with my choice. Part of my decision is based on the reasons above for why I am chosing Hackbright, and part of it is because there are actually a lot of great success stories that you can find as well. Everyone I have talked to personally from Hackbright had only good experiences to share. I think no one, from any bootcamp, is going to feel automatically ready to conquer the world as a developer, especially being in the Bay Area where the average level of intelligence is downright crazy high. People who graduated from Makersquare and Hackbright also turned in around 100 applications and had multiple rejections before they found their jobs. So I know it isn’t easy. The real question for me is: is Hackbright going to be challenging enough and will it best prepare me for a good job after I graduate? It’s extremely difficult to compare curriculums from one school to another (especially with different languages being used). At this point I’m looking at the curriculum and I’m thinking that I am familiar with maybe the 85% of the first 4 weeks, but that may be an overestimate. I think for the most part it will still be challenging, and the quality of education I receive may depend on my cohort. I know at Hack Reactor and Makersquare, there is a minimum coding challenge and requirement level that is needed to be accepted. There is a coding challenge for Hackbright, but I don’t think getting in is as challenging technically. Hackbright seems to care a lot more about why you want to become a software developer.

Regardless of my concerns, I know for sure one thing - it’s going to be a long and arduous journey ahead and I know I’m going to have to work for it. I’m also hoping to blog here about my journey to keep track of my pre- and post thoughts of the program.