Juno College of Technology

I wanted to take a full-time bootcamp, but didn't have any prior coding/development experience. The staff at HackerYou was honest and helpful in pointing me in the best possible direction, which was to learn the basics in the part-time course. 

Having worked in eduction and written curriculum in a previous life, I have been impressed with the thoughtful and strategic development and implementation of the course of study. The instructors and mentors are incredibly sharp; the project work is challenging yet interesting; the environment is serious yet relaxed and fun; and the learning space is beautiful and conducive to study. But the highlight has been the community that lasts beyond the completion of a course.

The part-time course gave me the skills to get into the full-time bootcamp (which is a registered Private Career College course), and I (as well as anyone who took P/T) got a significant scholarship off the F/T course fee. 

I took the web development immersive course upon recommendations of multiple people I knew. My goal for this course was to gain technical competency in front-end web development as a focus, with a background in interaction design. The bootcamp exceeded my expectations and offers not only a great technical curriculum to arm you with skillsets and toolkits for a successful entry into front-end development, but it challenges and prepares you culturally as well.

Advancing my career in development, was posed multiple challenges, but with the help of the HackerYou community and so many extra-curricular activities such as partnering with alumni working in the industry, extra topic-based sessions with volunteer alumni, industry days and demo day, I gained the confidence and the mindset to be able to fully become a front-end developer within a matter of 8 weeks, breaking into a new industry that was completely foreign to me before.

What stood out most was the dedication and the energy that the instructors brought to class. Everyday was engaging, and every question I had was met with utmost patience. I have HackerYou's team to thank for a career-changing experience and would highly recommend this course to those who are dedicated in advancing their career in front-end development. Thank you!

I stumbled upon HackerYou as a friend of mine was in the full-time Bootcamp for the Spring 2017 cohort. The way she described the HackerYou community, mentors and instructors, and the sheer amount of knowledge she gathered sparked my interest.

As I am finishing up the part-time both fundamental and advance web-dev 2017 course, I have to say it was one of the best decisions I've taken in 2017. From the start of the application process, to the first day of the class to my last class, my mentors and my instructor were AMAZING. They are always full of energy, and their love of teaching and code oozes every single class. It makes learning super enjoyable, and easy to understand. Instructors and mentors understand each students needs and their way of learning. I've made some amazing friends with different backgrounds and experiences.

I recommend HackerYou as a great learning institution, but also as a community that makes non technical, but technical people feel welcomed and challenged. I am embarking on a new challenge (UX fundamental and advance class in Feb 2018) and I am beyond excited to continue on this journey!

I am two days away from finishing the part-time Web Development (Fall 2017) course and cannot say enough fantastic things about HackerYou. The folks coordinating admissions we always quick to reply to any questions I had prior to the course and were available throughout the course to land a hand. 

The space is clean and organized and very bright; a perfect work environment regardless of the time of day.

As for the course itself, I was going in as a complete beginner. I can honestly say that this course taught me so much and has prepared me for the Bootcamp and beyond. I'll be leaving this course with enough knowledge to feel very confident in my skills in html5, css3 and jQuery fundamentals. The instructors and mentors were unbelievably helpful and knowledgeable. Despite the amount of information I learned, they were patient and made sure we were all confident before moving on. 

I can (and happily have) recommended this course to others.

When I started researching courses earlier this year I was actually skeptical of all the glowing five-star reviews online, but now I'm one of those people saying that this place is really something special - I really can't praise HackerYou highly enough! The staff and instructors go above and beyond to create a cooperative environment in which everyone can safely be pushed to the furthest reach of their ability, and it's incredible to see how fast your class progresses regardless of experience level at the outset.

I recently completed the full-time Web Development Immersive, but the support doesn't end on the last day of Bootcamp. There is an active and knowledgeable Alumni community to participate in, and Heather provides a structured system of guidance through the job-hunting process making the transitory period feel more like an extended learning opportunity. Access to these resources alone would be worth the cost, and with that structure behind me I've never felt more confident in the ability to continue self-directing my own growth.

If you're on the fence about applying for a course, take the advice of a stranger on the internet and go for it - maybe I'll see you soon in the Slack channel! :)

I just finished the part time Intro/Advanced course on Saturdays. I liked the combination of lectures, online notes and practice exercises. At the end of the course I feel confident that I have the knowledge to create a basic website. I always have help from the TAs when I need it, even outside of class time, on Slack. It's great! I have the knowledge to understand more advanced techniques online. My instructor, Jordan, is super awesome! She is the most optimistic person ever and she makes the classes super fun.

I attended the HackerYou Part Time Web Development class on Saturdays in Toronto which occured from 10am-4pm. I do not have any prior experience with HTML or CSS programming, but was very comfortable learning the material given the quality of instruction, friendly environment to ask questions and interactive exercises. For those that are interested in taking an introductory course, I believe HackerYou does an excellent job. 

Our instructors were Jordan, Jenny and Meaghan who were all amazing throughout the entire class. They are patient and easy going individuals willing to help you out at every step. I can't compare my experience to other courses, but I would definitely recommend this program to anyone. 

Going to HackerYou for both the part-time course and the full-time bootcamp was one of the best decisions I've ever made. HackerYou is filled with great people and a helping hand is always around the corner. Not only will you acquire the skills needed to start a career in web development, you will also gain access to a network of hundreds of other developers to collaborate and share experiences with. I would recommend HackerYou to anyone, whether starting a new career or looking to sharpen up your skills.

In the beginning of 2016 I attended both part time courses; Intro to Web Development & Advanced Web development, leading right into the 9-week Web Development Bootcamp.

Prior to attending HackerYou, my only foundation on any sort of coding was from a couple months spent on codeacademy.com and codeschool.com.

I was coming from a totally unrelated work environment, but decided to take the lunge on this exciting opportunity to be employed after such a short program.

In summary:

- HackerYou was an amazing experience

- The Community is like no other, mentors/instructors are extremely helpful and patient

- The learning space is a beautiful open concept area right downtown Toronto

- Job search support from course completion to employment is grade A

I became employed within 1 month of finishing the 9-week bootcamp and have been employed as a developer ever since. HackerYou has a great networking environment, many grads are working all over this city and a ton of great employers have become familiar with the the program. I highly recommend attending HackerYou if you are looking for a career change, or for a career with many opportunities. This program can not only provide the right knowledge to jumpstart a career in coding, but also a supporting community and a never ending amount of opportunities in the tech industry.

I took the part-time course in April 2017 and attended the summer Bootcamp after finishing the part-time course. Both of them are great and memorable experiences. Instructors are more than great. Kristen, Simon and Sylvia, they are very helpful, patient, funny, friendly and inspiring. The course curriculum is also designed thoughtfully and reasonable. 

Especially the CEO of HackerYou, Heather, the job hunting skills and experiences she taught us is life-long valuable. What's more, as an international student with imperfect English writing skills, she also helped me fix all the language problems of my cover letter, resume and other job hunting materials. I appreciate her help and encouragement from the bottom of my heart, and I also want to say Kristen is my favorite teacher in Canada!

I have successfully completed both the part-time Intro to HTML/CSS and full-time Bootcamp program in HackerYou. You're reading this review because you might be on the verge of taking a part-time program (maybe even the full-time program). 

Well, here's the short of it: JUST DO IT.

If you were looking for something more, well..

I decided to make a career change from the fitness industry to something else. With a bit of research and "googling", I came to find out about HackerYou. Before fully committing to the Bootcamp program, I decided to take the Intro program first to see if coding was for me. With HackerYou's amazing space and style of teaching, I immediately wanted in into the full-time program.

Community: 

One thing I loved about HackerYou was the community and the amount of collaboration there was among the students (and even the instructors!). HackerYou has created an environment that allows you to reach your maximum potential when it comes to learning. Everyone just wants to help you out - and you eventually want to start helping everyone out. It's a "we're all in this together" vibe.

Instructors:

Heather, the CEO, has been able to acquire the most helpful, caring, and dedicated instructors I've ever met. These group of people just want everything to do with your successes! They are extremely patient and always try to enhance your problem solving skills rather than just giving you the answers.

Space: 

For the 3 months that I've been there full-time, it just felt like home. HackerYou is super cosy and has all the furniture to get you coding with comfort. Since my cohort, HackerYou has expanded and they're only getting bigger!

Overall experience:

It is without a doubt that HackerYou has successfully helped me transition to a new career. Their hands-on approach and 10:1 students to instructor ratio has allowed me to learn enjoyably at ease. 

I would highly recommend going to HackerYou to anyone that's looking to advance in their career, learn something new, or even make a career change. They'll take care of you from day 1 of school to your day 1 in your new job!

I attended Hackeryou in Winter 2016. At first I was a bit apprehensive about the program with claims like, all attendees walk away with a job / the overwhelming amount of information that was going to be taught to us in such a short period of time. But by the end of it, and almost two years later, I think this was one of the best decisions I've made. HackerYou, its community, the teachers and the staff are incredibly generous with their time and resources-- something that was an alien concept for me, coming from a visual arts non profit background. They are selective about who they let in to their program, and only take on people that are absolutely dedidcated to their craft. Here are some things that I think one should be aware of when it comes to the program: 

-- You are basically trained to fit into a corporate mold, something I struggled with during my time there and afterwards. Once I graduated, I took  the corporate advice that was given to me and did what I wanted to do, but always kept that in the back of my head. It's actually helped me alot. and everyone at HackerYou I found has been extremely encouraging of me taking my own path. 

-- Literally all of the teachers, everyone in the staff are THE NICEST people you will ever meet, its almost a bit frightening at first, but you really start to like it. 

-- still TWO years later, with me probably being the oddest oddball out thats attended HackerYou, I reached out to Heather, the CEO of HackerYou to help me negotiate the contract that was offered to me at my new job last week, and she responded very quickly as always with just the right points to make and how to go about doing it the most efficient way. I have the utmost amount of respect for this woman. She is terrifiying in all the right ways and will give you the cut throat tough love that you need to save your professional career. 

Overall. I think if you enjoy coding, if you enjoy spending a lot of time doing really detailed work, this is ultimately the best program for that, and you will grow to really love and respect the community thats handed to you on a silver platter. 

HackerYou is the reason why I have a fulfilling career today. From the day I quit my job in administration to my first day as a junior developer - happened all in 6 months! 

I started out with the Part-Time Web Dev course in winter 2016 and my instructor was Anne. An instructor can make or break your experience, and I found she projected her voice well and she had great flow and timing with the in-class exercises. Lessons are well-structured with the most current technologies, and sprinkled with appropriate GIFs and analogies to help you conceptualize your learning. Every class gets students engaged with code-alongs and mentors are always willing to help you get through anything that's blocking you.

Examples of projects included: Single-page responsive website, "code a PSD" (review a design for a website, and bring it to life with code!), and build a portfolio website.

I then completed the Full-Time Bootcamp in Spring 2016 and had a blast. I learned to make websites responsive, picked up JavaScript on the way, and learned to create custom Wordpress themes from scratch and deploy like a boss! Every skill I learned, I apply every day to my current job as a Front-End Developer.

Example of projects included: Responsive multi-page website, custom Wordpress theme, single-page web app using RESTful APIs, creating a quiz using JavaScript, jQuery and HTML5.

What I like most about HackerYou is that there are no tests or grades, just projects-based learning. You are given a challenge, just like you would in a real developer job, and you deliver. Instructors provide thorough feedback and suggestions to help you improve, and empower you to become resourceful later on when you don't have access to the formal mentoring/help. 

While the cost is steep, it's the cream of the crop when it comes to Front End Development education. The community and connections available at HackerYou are top-notch. I did not just gain skills for a new career; I got an attitude change by meeting so many awesome humans who also got a new lease on life. It sounds cheesy, but it's true.

I built so much confidence from my time there. Truly, it is a place where you are encouraged to put in the work to be the best version of yourself.

Overall, I've attended 3 courses with HackerYou, in about a year and a half. I started with the Intro to Web Development course, then took the bootcamp in Winter 2016, the Intro to Full Stack course in Fall 2016 and am now in the Full Stack Masterclass.

HackerYou has exceeded my expectations with each course.

Before HackerYou, I was a web content coordinator with a non-profit. I enjoyed working with the web and dabbling in code, but in my organization I had reached the height of my career path. I found HackerYou through Ladies Learning Code and was impressed with their inclusive attitude as well as their friendly staff. I very much wanted to be a part of the next bootcamp and kickstart my career shift, so I applied.

When interviewing with Heather I realized I didn't know as much about coding as I thought I did - and she suggested I take the part time Intro to web dev class and then I would be prepared for bootcamp. Honestly, I was disappointed because my initial thought was that they wanted more money. But, I was very much wanting to switch careers, and I had heard very good things, so I went into the Intro class cautiously. 

The intro class ended up being the right decision. Within a few weeks, I was quickly learning about new concepts that made way more sense then the outdated web practices that my job used, and learned much more than I had learned on my own. It gave me a great base, and I went into the bootcamp more prepared than I would have been. I look back now and know that I would have struggled every step of the way in the bootcamp if HY didn't make that recommendation for my learning plan. The bootcamp was very challenging, but the environment was so supportive, the instructors were available for questions, and once they went home, the alumni helped us bootcampers constantly.

The job hunt support after bootcamp was great, as job hunting can be demoralizing. Heather and the team were extremely helpful in job seeker meetings, pep talks and once the time came to accept an offer, in contract negotiation. In addition to the technical skills, I learned how to conduct an efficient job hunt, something I had never considered as a life skill before. I got a job as a front-end developer 8 weeks from my last day of the bootcamp, and I was one of the last of my classmates. I loved learning at HackerYou so much, that I continued my learning in their full stack intro course and full stack masterclass. 

The speed of my learning was incredible, but I haven't even mentioned the best part. HackerYou is also a community that teaches and mentors each other well past the end of bootcamp, they are amazing people and part of that is due to the screening that the HY team does before accepting students. I've made great friends in my two years in the community.