If you’ve dabbled in web or mobile development, you’re a few short months away from becoming a professional software developer and increasing your career (and earning) potential.
Maybe you’ve:
- created a mobile app on your own
- learned some programming on the job
- always been the one that your friends call on when they need technical help
- taken programming classes in college
- hacked together basic web apps with PHP and jQuery
- or worked as a developer and want to modernize your skill set
Now is the time to solidify and advance your skills in Code 401!
What is Code 401?
At Code Fellows, we’ve developed a three-tiered curriculum to train software developers:
- Code 201 trains novice coders, but don’t let that fool you—the students who start as total beginners are creating impressive web sites in HTML, CSS, and vanilla JavaScript by the end of four weeks.
- Code 301 introduces more programming concepts such as APIs and responsive web design, while continuing to teach more advanced concepts and techniques in JavaScript, CSS, and data storage.
- Code 401 is the deep-dive into professional software development. You’ll choose a speciality (iOS, Python, or full-stack JavaScript), build professional-grade apps, learn language-specific frameworks and tools, build solutions to common development problems, and hone your skills to become a well-rounded developer.
If you’re ready for focused training in a specific language and all of the supporting tools, best practices, possibilities, frameworks, and industry standards, then Code 401 is for you.
What’s Covered in Code 401: Full-Stack JavaScript »
What’s Covered in Code 401: Python »
What’s Covered in Code 401: iOS »
Why Enroll in This Class?
If you have some experience as a software developer, you may be wondering why you’d bother with an intensive 10-week class.
I already have enough skills. What I learned last year is keeping me going.
We all know technology moves fast—it’s a blessing and curse. It’s a wonderful world of fun and exciting new ways to grow your brain. There are always new frameworks and updated best practices to push you to be your best, and you’ll never stop learning. It’s an amazing way to spend a career.
But if you don’t keep up, you risk falling behind the curve. That could limit your opportunities, and keep your resume from standing out in the stack.
I can learn this on my own. There are so many tutorials on the web!
Yes, you could. And we can point you to the best resources out there. But we’re constantly hearing from students that they enrolled in our program after trying to learn on their own. They realized it was better to spend 10 weeks—not a year—getting up to speed.
The accelerated learning environment at Code Fellows means never wasting hours alone Googling an unfamiliar error, or having to wait days for Stack Overflow responses. You’ll have an experienced instructor and fellow students nearby to help you stay on the right track.
Plus, our classes are built around a learning style that’s more akin to playing in the sandbox, rather than following step-by-step instructions from a tutorial. This is what rapidly increases your ability to absorb huge amounts of new info.
It’s too expensive for me—I’m not making a senior developer’s salary yet.
Our modular program lets intermediate and experienced developers test directly into Code 401, which means you’re not only saving money because you’re able to skip ahead—you’re also going to gain skills that will help you land a higher salary once you graduate. By enrolling in an immersive Code 401, you’re investing in a skill set that will pay dividends throughout your career.
We also have new financing and scholarship options available, which means it’s never been easier to get into a course.
I don’t have time because I’m working.
We recognize that not everyone can quit their job to take a 10-week course, which is why we introduced our Nights & Weekends track and have an advanced full-stack JavaScript night course starting up in November. It’s built to fit in with your 40-hour work week, and delivers the same high-quality learning environment and curriculum spread out over a longer time frame. Think of it like an “Executive MBA” for coders.
Convinced? Get in Touch »
How to Apply
We have Admissions Advisors who are ready to help you through the application, but if you’re curious about the process now, here’s everything you’ll need to know.
1. It’s Commitment-Free
If you’re just starting to explore coding bootcamps or trying to figure out the best pathway and bang for your buck, we’re here to help. Our main focus is helping you reach your goals—whether it’s at Code Fellows or not. When we say we’re here to help, we mean it!
2. You’ll Need Some Programming Experience to Test In
Every course at Code Fellows focuses on modern development best practices and concepts, and our students are constantly building professional skills that they’ll use on the job. If you understand how web apps are built and know how to build them—both from scratch and by incorporating frameworks and build tools—then you’re ready to learn how to craft professional-grade software in Code 401.
A great way to test your knowledge is by reviewing the topics covered in our Code 201 and Code 301 courses. If you have first-hand experience with the majority of these topics, then Code 401 is the next step.
3. We’re Here to Help
There are many paths (some long, some short) to become a software developer, and you may not have been exposed to all of the topics we cover in Code 201 and Code 301. If that’s the case, we’ll provide you with material to help you get up to speed before your Code 401 course starts.
Ok, So How Do I Test In?
Because each Code 401 course covers a different programming stack, each entrance test varies slightly. Your Admissions Advisor will be able to walk you through the specific entrance test for the course you’re applying for. In general, to be prepared for and test into Code 401, you’ll need a usable, interactive, client-side web app that you’ve created by hand and from scratch. It should be live on the web, access data from an external API, and use AJAX to pull in data without a page refresh.
Wait, what? Ok, maybe I should start in Code 301 »
We’ll also want to see the actual code you’ve written, so be prepared to provide a GitHub or Bitbucket repository link.
The entrance exam also includes multiple choice questions to show that you understand the programming concepts needed to excel in Code 401. Depending on your experience level, we may ask you to do the Code 301 entrance exam as well, to ensure that you are testing into the best course for your ability.
If your curiosity is piqued and you’d like to hear more, get in touch! We have Admissions Advisors who are ready to help you apply today.
In 10 weeks, you’ll graduate with a fresh, updated set of technical skills, a portfolio and resume to help you nail job interviews, and a new network of software developers in the industry.
