Hi, I’m Brian, a former senior software engineer and now software engineering mentor at Pathrise. I have worked with hundreds of software engineers to help them land their dream job. Check out my review of Tech Elevator.
- What does Tech Elevator do?
- Who is Tech Elevator for?
- What does Tech Elevator cost?
- Ratings and reviews of Tech Elevator
- Alternatives to Tech Elevator
- How does Tech Elevator compare to Pathrise?
What does Tech Elevator do?
Tech Elevator is a bootcamp that teaches people the necessary skills to land a job as a software engineer. They offer courses onsite in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Philadelphia, and Pittsburgh, as well as a live remote option.
People who enroll in the 14-week bootcamp focus on full stack development and choose from two tracks: Java or .NET (C#) languages. The curriculum teaches server-side programming, design patterns, and SQL. In addition, students learn client-side programming tools, including HTML/CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, Bootstrap, XML, and JSON. Students meet Monday-Friday from 9am-4:30pm and participate in lectures, workshops, hands-on projects, and pair programming assignments. Some afternoons are dedicated to career talks and mentoring opportunities.
During the course, students meet 1-on-1 with career coaches who provide guidance on resumes building, interview prep, LinkedIn optimization, and more. In addition, they also have the opportunity to network with some of the bootcamp’s 380+ hiring partners, which include tech companies like Uber, startups, and Fortune 500 companies.
Who is Tech Elevator for?
People with no background in coding can benefit from Tech Elevator. Moreover, the program is a good option for people looking to launch a software engineering career in the cities where Tech Elevator offers onsite programs.
What does Tech Elevator cost? How much work is involved?
Tuition for Tech Elevator is $15,500. Some students make a one-time payment via credit card, check, or PayPal. However, others work with the Tech Elevator financial aid office to set up a custom payment plan. Many students start with a $125 deposit to hold their spot. Then, they make two payments of $7,750, on weeks 1 and 8 of the bootcamp.
Students are welcome to finance their bootcamp tuition by taking out low-interest loans through Sallie Mae or Skills Fund. Loan terms depend on an applicant’s previous credit history.
Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania residents may be able to fund their bootcamp tuition through the Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act (WIOA), which provides funding for employment retraining programs. To be considered for WIOA funding, prospective students need to confirm eligibility with their home state.
Veterans may be able to fund their tuition using their GI Bill benefits.
Before applying, candidates must take the Tech Elevator aptitude test to determine if they are a good fit. After completing the aptitude test, prospective students fill out an online application and participate in an interview.
Ratings and reviews
In general, online reviews of Tech Elevator are positive.
People on CourseReport enjoyed the bootcamp’s curriculum, job-seeking guidance, and instructors. According to one reviewer, “With their course being a full stack program, I was finally able to understand how the different pieces (server side/client side, backend/frontend) all worked together, whereas before Tech Elevator I was only understanding bits and pieces.” The reviewer also said that the bootcamp “really prepped us with technical mock interviews with real professionals in various development/engineering industries.” Another student praised the bootcamp’s instructors for ensuring “that we would receive the same experience and benefits as if we were still meeting face to face” during the pandemic.
One Quora reviewer benefited from the bootcamp’s “varied employer networking”. They noted that “most of the prominent software companies and IT shops are in Tech Elevator’s network. Students have opportunities to network with representatives throughout the program and receive assistance if they are interested in a company outside the network.”
On SwitchUp, reviewers felt that the bootcamp was a good option for changing careers and landing a job as a software engineer. According to one student, “I felt very prepared when looking for jobs and received a job offer two weeks after graduation.” As another student observed, “Over three quarters of my class including me were placed with jobs before the bootcamp had even ended, and after four months in my new career I’m still having a great time.”
Responding to a Reddit thread, the admissions coordinator at the Pittsburgh campus recommended that prospective Tech Elevator students study HTML, CSS, and JavaScript before attending the bootcamp. She notes, “you could dive into a freeCodeCamp [course].”
Alternatives to Tech Elevator
If Tech Elevator does not suit your learning goals or career objectives, there are a number of other bootcamps and online resources that can help you launch your software engineering career.
- One of the most well known bootcamps is General Assembly, which offers full-time, part-time, and 1-day courses on a variety of topics like software engineering, data science, UX design, digital marketing, product management, and more. Read more about General Assembly in our review.
- Aspiring software engineers who are looking for a full-time bootcamp can also consider Kenzie Academy. Learn more about Kenzie Academy in our program review.
- Similarly, Thinkful and Flatiron School are tech bootcamps with tracks in software engineering, as well as UX design and data science.
- Other options are Hack Reactor, Actualize, Redwood Code Academy, Epicodus, and The Software Guild. These software engineering bootcamps have live online and in-person options.
- People who are interested in a self-paced, online software engineering or web dev bootcamp can check out Covalence or Launch School.
- Aspiring software engineers and web developers can also consider CodeX Academy, a self-paced coding bootcamp with mentorship opportunities. Learn more about CodeX Academy in our review.
- Or, consider Kal Academy, which works with women and underrepresented groups on software engineering, web dev, and data.
- You can also check out Bubble no-code bootcamps to learn how to make products without coding. Learn more about Bubble in our review.
More alternatives
- Likewise, Nucamp is a software engineering and web dev bootcamp with in-person and online options. Like Tech Elevator, they have campuses in Detroit, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia.
- Udacity and Springboard are online learning platforms with courses in web development, software engineering, data science, and more. Learn more about Udacity and Springboard by reading our program reviews.
- Similarly, people can use online learning tools such as Coursera, Udemy, and Pluralsight to brush up on the basics or advance their current skills.
- In addition, Codecademy is one of the most popular coding programs online. They provide free courses on many different programming languages. They also offer membership options ranging from $20 to $40. Learn more about Codecademy in our review.
- Finally, edX is one of the largest online learning platforms. They have courses from top universities like Harvard and MIT as well as big tech companies like Microsoft. Learn more about edX in our review.
How does Tech Elevator compare to Pathrise?
Tech Elevator is a bootcamp for people who are interested in learning the necessary skills to land a job as a software engineer from scratch. However, at Pathrise, job-seekers should already have some background in their field so that they can participate fully in our industry workshops, pair programming sessions, and 1-on-1s, which prepare students for the questions they will see in their technical interviews.
Pathrise is a full-service organization that helps software engineers land the best job possible. Our mentors have years of experience on both sides of the hiring table and provide 1-on-1 assistance on every component of the job search. Besides placing a great deal of emphasis on technical interview preparation, we provide guidance on resume & portfolio building, cold emailing & reverse recruiting strategies, behavioral interview preparation, salary negotiation, and more. Fellows learn skills that can benefit them in future software engineering job searches as well.
Our program is flexible. There only 2-4 hours of group sessions per week and fellows can schedule 1-on-1 sessions as needed We personalize our curriculum to match each fellow’s specific needs.
Pathrise is a career accelerator that helps people land their dream job in tech through 1-on-1 mentorship. If you are interested in working with any of our mentors to get help with your technical and behavioral interviews or any other aspect of the job search, join Pathrise.
Apply today.
