3 ms·

Many of the things you said sound pretty representative of new CS graduates as well. It'll take them at least a year, and a lot of mentoring, to learn the best

by whack 7y ago

Many of the things you said sound pretty representative of new CS graduates as well. It'll take them at least a year, and a lot of mentoring, to learn the best practices and get their hands dirty. I get the impression the problem at your company isn't with bootcamp-vs-CS-graduates. I suspect the problem is that your company is hiring too many inexperienced developers at once (to save money), and isn't doing a good job of hiring the best bootcamp graduates (probably also to save money). I might be biased since I have an engineering degree, but no CS degree. Self-taught myself a bunch of stuff, made the switch to software, and have now worked for 2 of the FAANGs. My very first software employer certainly had to mentor me quite a bit for the first 4 months, but I certainly justified the investment over the following year.

jayd16 7y ago
A self motivated person can break into CS but that's not what he's talking about. A 16 week class isn't enough to prepare a dispassionate person looking for anything. The problem with these camps is they help those who don't need it.
hermitdev 7y ago
I think part of the problem is people assuming CS degrees teaching software development and best practices. They don't. They teach theory and on the side as either a lab or project, you write some code. Best practices? Nope. SCM? Nope, unless you have an external influence. Like you, I learned a lot of beat practices on the job. SCM? Was SourceSafe (Yeah. I know, cringe, but also 2000). But also practices about how to release, when, notification of releases, post mortem of incidents, none of that was mentioned in school. All on the job. I landed in finance, and any single fuck up can land you on the wrong side of the door. But if you accept you screwed up, most people I've worked with will give you a second chance as long as you don't repeat your mistake.
wolco 7y ago
Self taught is the key skill. If you can learn on your own you have a good chance of facing a developers life. Bootcamps are the opposite. Quick compressed learning certified by a brand. Good for experienced developers learning a new language but lacking for the type who haven't used a computer before.

by whack 7y ago

jayd16 7y ago

A self motivated person can break into CS but that's not what he's talking about. A 16 week class isn't enough to prepare a dispassionate person looking for anything. The problem with these camps is they help those who don't need it.

hermitdev 7y ago

I think part of the problem is people assuming CS degrees teaching software development and best practices. They don't. They teach theory and on the side as either a lab or project, you write some code. Best practices? Nope. SCM? Nope, unless you have an external influence. Like you, I learned a lot of beat practices on the job. SCM? Was SourceSafe (Yeah. I know, cringe, but also 2000). But also practices about how to release, when, notification of releases, post mortem of incidents, none of that was mentioned in school. All on the job. I landed in finance, and any single fuck up can land you on the wrong side of the door. But if you accept you screwed up, most people I've worked with will give you a second chance as long as you don't repeat your mistake.

wolco 7y ago

Self taught is the key skill. If you can learn on your own you have a good chance of facing a developers life. Bootcamps are the opposite. Quick compressed learning certified by a brand. Good for experienced developers learning a new language but lacking for the type who haven't used a computer before.