Hi, I’m Brian, a former senior software engineer and now industry mentor at Pathrise. I have worked with hundreds of web developers and software engineers to help them land their dream jobs in tech. Check out my review of Awesome Inc.
- What does Awesome Inc do?
- Who is Awesome Inc for?
- What does Awesome Inc cost? How much work is involved?
- Ratings and reviews
- Alternatives to Awesome Inc
- How does Awesome Inc compare to Pathrise?
What does Awesome Inc do?
Awesome Inc is a coding bootcamp that teaches people the skills they need to launch a career as a web developer. Classes feature a mix of in-person and online instruction, with lots of 1-on-1 support and a 10:1 student-to-teacher ratio. All bootcamp grads get a 6-month job guarantee, so if they don’t land a job within 6 months of graduation, they get a full refund. The current job placement rate is 86% with an average starting salary of $45,000.
Their flagship bootcamp is full-time and runs for 18 weeks. Classes meet Monday-Friday from 8am to 5pm EST in Lexington, Kentucky and online. The first 4 weeks of the program are totally remote and cover the fundamentals of web development. Starting at week 5, students learn in-person and continue to meet on campus until graduation. The course’s 500+ hours of material is designed to simulate the on-the-job experience of a junior developer, with a hands-on curriculum that includes 10+ projects students can add to their portfolios.
Students in the flagship bootcamp learn to build polished web apps. The first 4 weeks of the curriculum cover the basics of HTML, CSS, and Git as students get their first taste of web development. The curriculum then turns more hands-on as students work with JavaScript, PHP, SQL, Laravel, React, Agile methodologies, and even Google Cloud while building 10+ polished projects. Students also practice for interviews, review their online profiles with experts, and meet with potential employers. The program continues to provide job support for up to 6 months after graduation. If grads don’t land a job in 6 months, they get a full refund.
For students seeking a more flexible learning experience, a 9-week part-time course on web dev fundamentals is also available. Classes meet in Lexington on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:30pm to 8:30pm EST. While the curriculum only covers HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, the experience is still very hands-on. This course is designed for students to sample Awesome Inc and see if the full bootcamp is right for them. Since it’s an introductory course, no job guarantee or career services are included.
Who is Awesome Inc for?
People with little to no coding experience who are looking to launch a career as a web developer could benefit from Awesome Inc. Their full-stack bootcamps are especially helpful for beginners seeking a hands-on learning experience that simulates the on-the-job experience. People based in Kentucky who want an in-person bootcamp with lots of 1-on-1 support could also be a good match.
What does Awesome Inc cost? How much work is involved?
Tuition for the flagship bootcamp is $13,500. In addition to a job guarantee, students get access to an income share agreement (ISA) so they can pay with a percentage of their income after they land a tech job that pays more than $40,000.
While upfront tuition for the part-time web dev course is $1,200, it can go towards paying for the full flagship bootcamp if students enroll. Part-time web dev students who register with a friend get half off tuition. Early registration also comes with a $300 discount. The part-time course has no formal admissions process and is open to anyone who wants to try out the program.
The bootcamp admissions process begins with an online application. Candidates then complete some short challenges and meet for a 30-minute behavioral interview. Successful applicants move on to a final FIO (figure-it-out) coding challenge. While coding experience is technically not required, candidates may want to brush up on web development fundamentals to prepare for the FIO coding challenge.
Ratings and reviews
Awesome Inc has mixed to positive reviews. They hold a 4.67/5 star rating on Course Report where grads praised the practical curriculum and small supportive classes. While one grad described the full-time bootcamp as difficult, he felt the “very knowledgeable and capable” instructors supported students through the challenging program. The job guarantee and income share agreement (ISA) were also big hits. While another student said that they “came out of the camp with a lot of holes in my knowledge”, they were confident that the hands-on practical curriculum was more than enough for grads to “flourish on the job.”
The bootcamp also holds a 4.5/5 star rating on Switchup based on only 2 reviews. While the first grad raved about the supportive staff and hands-on curriculum, the second felt the program could be intensive and warned that students should be ready to put their “social life on hold.” Although this grad only rated the job support 3/5 stars, overall he was very satisfied with the course. The program is rated 4/5 stars on Career Karma, where grads praised the “small class sizes” that include “lots of 1:1 instruction” and “helpful job placement services given until you’re finally hired.” Overall, most grads seem very satisfied with the practical curriculum and the job guarantee, though some may have preferred a more relaxed pace to make sure students didn’t have any gaps in their coding knowledge.
Alternatives to Awesome Inc
If you decide not to enroll in Awesome Inc, there are a number of alternative bootcamps and resources to help aspiring web developers launch their careers.
- Another intense full-time tech bootcamp with an ISA option is Kenzie Academy. They teach in-person and online courses in 2 tracks full-stack software engineering & UX design and front-end engineering. Students who choose their income share agreement (ISA) pay nothing until they land a tech job that pays at least $40,000 per year. Learn more about Kenzie Academy in our review.
- The popular bootcamp General Assembly runs full-time, part-time, and 1-day courses on a variety of topics including software engineering and web development. Their program includes a hands-on curriculum, 19,000+ hiring partners, and a 91.4% job placement. Learn more about General Assembly in our review.
- Similarly, BrainStation offers courses in full-stack web development and many other tech topics. Like Awesome Inc, BrainStation focuses on project-based learning and lots of personalized support. Their hiring partners include Facebook, Google, and more.
- Another well-known tech bootcamp is Fullstack Academy. They teach full-time and part-time software programs for aspiring software engineers. Like Awesome Inc, Fullstack Academy courses are usually intensive and hands-on.
- Aspiring web developers can also check out CodeX Academy, a self-paced coding bootcamp with 1-on-1 mentorship opportunities. Read more about CodeX Academy in our program review.
- Bloc is another flexible online platform that hosts courses in web development and web design, with lots of instructor feedback, a project-based curriculum, and 1-on-1 mentorship.
- Students seeking self-paced courses with mentoring can check out Springboard. Their online program helps people launch a career in a wide variety of tech fields, including software development. Students in their career tracks build 14+ portfolio projects with weekly mentorship meetings. Like Awesome Inc, they offer a 6-month job guarantee. Learn more about Springboard in our review.
- People looking for affordable self-paced learning with 1-on-1 mentoring can look into Udacity. They offer full intro courses for free and paid “nanodegree” programs for a more intense experience with greater support. Nanodegree students meet 1-on-1 with both a technical mentor and a career coach as they build projects they add to their portfolios. Read more about Udacity in our review.
- The popular Codecademy program offers full hands-on coding courses completely free. Students can learn web development, dozens of programming languages, and even data science. Optional $20-40 monthly memberships are available for expanded course options and support. Find out if Codecademy is right for your career goals in our review.
- Another low-cost platform with self-paced courses is Udemy. They host thousands of video courses on web development that only cost about $10 each and come with lifetime access.
- Students seeking affordable university courses can check out edX. Their online platform hosts thousands of self-paced university courses from top schools like Harvard and MIT, and even top tech companies like Microsoft. Students can choose to learn the fundamentals or take a deep dive into specific topics, like web dev. Learn more about edX in our review.
How does Awesome Inc compare to Pathrise?
Awesome Inc is a bootcamp for people interested in starting a new career as a web developer. It is designed for complete beginners because they spend time at the beginning teaching the fundamentals. Pathrise job-seekers should already have a background in their chosen field so they can get the most out of our technical interviewing curriculum.
Pathrise is a career accelerator that helps people find their first, or next, job in tech. Our mentors have already helped 1,000+ fellows land great jobs by working through all phases of the job search including resume and portfolio optimization, reverse recruiting, cold emailing, technical and behavioral interviewing, and salary negotiation.
Awesome Inc’s bootcamp is full-time, intense, and fast-paced. On the other hand, the Pathrise program is flexible. Fellows in our program have just 2-4 hours of group sessions per week and 1-on-1 sessions that can be scheduled as needed. Like Awesome Inc, Pathrise offers an income share agreement (ISA). Fellows in our program pay 9% of their first-year salary once they begin working at a job they love. We never require deposits or upfront payments. Plus, fellows in our program make on average $90k for junior roles and $150k for senior roles.
Pathrise optimizes the job search through 1-on-1 mentorship and personalized training. Fellows in our program see their interview scores double and their application responses triple, landing a job in only 3-5 months on average. If you are interested in working with our mentors to land your dream job faster, join Pathrise.
Apply today.
