Kenzie Academy

I am a student of the se July 2019 cohort and i think the way they challenge you to learn is fun and rewarding.

They don't just give you all the answers, they challenge you to do the research necesary to accomplish the task at hand and figure out problems you encounter, and if you have trouble or get stuck they have an amazing support group of staff that is always willing to help. We call our cohort family because that's what it is like. Everyone is willing to help evryone else to achive the same goal. Team work makes the dream work!!!! 

I HIGHLY recomend attending Kenzie Academy if you are interesnted in learnig up to date web development technologies.

And with their ISA program anyone can afford to get the education they need to succeed!

GO KENZIE!!!!!!!

 

 

 

I have been to a top tier university and several other good programs.  I graduated from one of those with dean's list honors.  Here's the key, at Kenzie you learn real-world skills that are marketable to employers right out of the gate. You get skills that can be used immediately in the job market.  Other schools do not teach things that way, everything is theoretical.  Another thing that struck me about the place is that people actually treat you humanely, not like an indentured servant, like I felt at other schools. 

I am currently a student at Kenzie and started their Software Engineering track a month ago.  When I decided to change career paths from customer service to information technology, I wanted a program that would teach me more than just one programming language and give me tools to succeed in software development.  I found that at Kenzie.

I decided on Kenzie because of they offered a full stack program in a small amount of time but the content was robust.  Having a dual certificate from Butler University and Kenzie for the software engineering portion is also a nice bonus.  The main reason I like Kenzie is because of the people and environment at the campus.  From the first day that I took a tour everyone I met was kind and knowledgeable.  We are forming a great relationship with our cohort and with the larger academy community, so when changing careers like I am, you don't have to go it alone.

I am a remote student for the Full Stack Developer course with Kenzie Academy (my sixth week in!). I have a multidisciplinary background that spans both civilian and military venues. Starting as a private in the military, becoming a manufacturing specialist,  manager,  pallet shop forearm, hauling 31 tons of beer up a mountain, to a nationally certified instructor in the civilian world. I have always wanted to work with computer software and development but I never had the opportunity as I was always traveling with work. I became disabled, through a rare medical condition, a little over a year ago and needed something to do with my time. I checked the internet for different careers I would be interested in. The Software Engineer certification offered by Kenzie academy would allow me to work remotely. I looked into several different computer-related boot camps. Almost every one of the boot camps wanted an exorbitant amount of money upfront while offering minimal training and no assistance with job placement. Kenzie filled the niche for my requirements and the potential career I was looking for due to my current medical condition. My plans are to stay with Kenzie academy through the entire two year program and get the job-ready training that they provide. With their connections and assistance with job placement, I know that I will have a viable career thanks for Kenzie Academy and their staff! If I can do it, you can also!

I'm a SE student here at Kenzie Academy. I've been here for 8 months now and my experience here has been amazing. It's literally a dream come true that an opportunity like this would open up right here in the heart of Indy. Indy is my hometown but when I found out about Kenzie I was in Bloomington, IN trying to get back into school. To do that it would have taken me 2 years to transfer into the school I wanted to. After a year of trying that option out I started to look for other options. I knew from my college experience before and from my own research that coding and software development was a growing field so I looked up coding bootcamps in Indiana. Little did I know 4 months before that Kenzie Academy was starting up. Let's get this clear Kenzie is NOT a bootcamp and it's unlike any other school I've been to (I attended 2 other schools in Indiana before attending here). This school ended up being the answer to what I needed in life at that time. I needed a community of intelligent hardworking people, I needed a jump start to my career, I needed something close to home and lastly I needed another chance in life. This school gave me all of that and so much more. So far I have gained a Front-end SE certificate from this school and I'm on my way to getting the full stack cert next. The school is growing I highly recommend you join the new force in tech right here at home in the midwest! And for anyone not in able to attend on campus they have a bolstering online pathway as well. I just want to say thank you to Kenzie Academy for helping me achieve my dreams. It really means a lot to me. 

Coming in with no experience in any type of web design, or development, it goes without saying that it seems intimidating up front. However, a very informative and in-depth curriculum, dedicated on-site instructors, and amazing learning environment make for an enjoyable, not to mention practical, learning experience. 

The program cultivates creativity, community, and a judgement-free zone, no matter your level of experience with web development, designed to make sure that you personally thrive and are ready for the work force. 

10/10 would recommend. 

Kenzie Academy is a great place to be and great place to learn, prior to attending Kenzie I was a Paramedic with 6 years in the public safety industry.  Traditional college was not an option for me.  Kenzie Academy's education track puts you in the right direction for a blossoming career in the tech industry.  The curriculum is tough but the instructors and staff are available around the clock and extremely informative. The staff at Kenzie has many years in the industry with lots of connections for guest speakers and potential job opportunities in the future.  Do not pass this opportunity up!

Kenzie Academy is a great place for learning in a non-traditional environment. The staff and other students are readily available to assist with any issues. The school is structured to ensure the success of every student.  If you are looking for an opportunity in the Tech field, I highly recommend Kenzie Academy.  There are many opportunities to communicate with industry leaders and a vast network of contacts within the industry to expand learning beyond the in-house staff.  The school is also flexible, allowing students to work remotely.

If I could do it all over again I would've not gone to Kenzie. 

During the first few months, everything is fine, the instructors lie to you and tell you you don't need a degree in UX to be successful (coming from people that went to top universities or have their master's degree) and that everything is fine. You'll be successful having just a certificate in UX. What they don't tell you is that the job market is not only hard but really competitive. Over half a year later I'm still struggling to find a job in UX. If you're in the UX cohort or plan on finding a job immediately afterward, don't bank on it unless you have a bachelor's degree in something.

They're also very unorganized. If you need help with something they'll just send you to the next person without giving you any help or answers. Before I joined I had the impression I was going to do the UX program for 6 months and a UX engineering program for 9 months. They got rid of the UX engineering program and moved everyone that was signed up for that to the software engineering program without even saying anything. Luckily I got to opt out of what I didn't sign up for.

They tell you you get a personal career advisor and coach. When my cohort graduated, they left us in the dust and didn't mention anything about a career advisor. We were rushed to do our portfolios and the time management was poor. They cramped everything in the last two weeks before graduation without any mention of a career coach, something we were supposed to get before graduating. When I emailed someone at Kenzie about a career coach, she was confused and didn't even know what I was talking about. A few sassy emails later from her she sent me links to small group sessions. Upon attending the small group sessions I found my career coach. As of now all she does is send me links to jobs not related to ux but jobs that pay $40k a year because they want me to pay off my loan. This brings me to the ISA agreement.

They tell you you don't have to make your first payment until you are making over $40,000 a year at a UX job. While having no job (I am a full-time college student) their loan officers send me payments of over $600 a month. This happened on three occasions. Whenever I contacted the loan company about not being able to make payments and they're amid that I need to support a W-2 to make some type of payment. They tell me to contact Kenzie if it's really true that the agreement is I don't need to pay until I make over $40k a year. It's weird that they don't know this right? Considering they're working together? Every time I talked to someone at Kenzie they told me to call back the loan company and every time I talked to the loan company they told me to contact someone at Kenzie. It's back and forth with no answers until I put my foot down and let them know this was not the agreement I signed upon.

Moral of the story Kenzie is unprofessional and overpriced. I feel like I was lied to and taken advantage of and I would give anything to go back and NOT go to this school. $11,000 is not worth a certificate that most employers don't view as valuable unless you have a degree or are in college.

If I could give job assistance no stars I would.

5 Instructor stars for: Sharmin Kent and Angela Knezevich


I attended Kenzie Academy for the Digital Marketing (DM) Program. If you look on their website, the DM program is no where to be found. I'd list this is the #1 red flag. There are no student testimonials from the DM program. of which there were 4 cohorts.

The first instructor, Sharmin, was excellent. She gave lots of time to teaching and encouraging students despite any challenges outside of the course they might be facing. 

It was soon revealed that only Sharmin cared about students' wellbeing, job placement, and career advancement. The second block ruined the entire program. We were chastised for not using cameras and were threatened with being kicked out of the program. We were told Kenzie is not a democracy; Kenzie was simulating a work environment for our benefit. Guess what? At my job I have never been told to turn my camera on - this includes during the pandemic.

I am stuck paying back 13% of my income for 24 months. There was zero job support. What do I mean? 

I used strategies from a $200 course to land my first DM job - not Kenzie Academy. The portfolio of projects was never looked at by any interviewer even if I brought the assignments with me. 

We were given no instruction how to to interview. By this I mean, what kinds of questions for DM would be asked? How would be prove our job related skills? Most employers don't want to hear about coursework, they want to know how you're using Google Analytics, PPC, SEO, and content strategy to give % return to a business. We had no such use cases.

One Kenzie employee (yes, only one) sent job postings to our Slack channel. Those jobs were high level, not suitable for a 6 month boot camp graduate. I worked an 8-5 and then had Kenzie 6-9...then filled out job applications for weeks. Hundreds. With no guidance.

I am not the only Kenzie student with this experience.

To this day I cannot verify how many DM students were successfully placed in DM jobs. Supposedly there is a partner network, I have yet to hear of any DM student being hired by said partner program.

Although the DM program is defunct, I can assure you Buyer Beware.