[python-uk] Coding "Bootcamps"

[Nicholas H.Tollervey]

As someone with a background in Philosophy I can see where your friend
is coming from. ;-)

As far as I can tell, the bootcamps are not worth the money for the
following reasons:

* They're expensive for what you get.
* They're all about cramming facts.
* They teach specific technologies rather than software engineering.

Having said that, some may be quite good but your mileage might vary.

What I would do is find a university that does evening classes (such as
Birkbeck College, University of London) or sign up to the OU for a
taster, and take an introductory course in programming. I'd also
encourage your friend to think of a problem they're interested in and
use that as the basis / inspiration for learning things. If they want to
learn Python, bring them to the London Python Code Dojo and get them to
engage with the community. Finally, if they want to jump in with both
feet, they could sign up for a "conversion" MSc in Computing (for people
with undergraduate degrees in non-computing subjects). That's what I did.

Hope this helps,

N.

On 18/05/16 10:59, John via python-uk wrote:
> Hi all,
> 
> A philosopher friend of mine wants to transition into working as a
> software developer (paying work in philosophy being a bit rare). He
> lives in London, and is considering signing up for one of the Coding
> "Bootcamps" that various organisations run. I wondered if any of you
> have any recommendations you could make, and indeed whether any of these
> bootcamps teach Python?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> John
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> python-uk mailing list
> python-uk at python.org
> https://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-uk
> 


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