When the right arrangement of learning brings coding into concert

From IT Specialist to Front End Developer, ITCON Services

"The Nucamp bootcamp was everything I hoped for and more! The mentorship was huge and I had an incredible instructor."

This is Katherine Parker, a Nucamp Full Stack Bootcamp graduate and now a a React Native Developer at ITCON Services.

Live music is Katherine's favorite form of entertainment and she loves to attend concerts in her spare time.

On days when she wasn't listening to her favorite artists or working as an IT specialist, Katherine started teaching herself coding.

Katherine had been dancing around the idea of becoming a developer for some time and became increasingly interested in the field as she started playing with CSS and having to fiddle with a command-line interface at work for a number of tasks.

Coding made regular backstage appearances in her work and it frustrated her not having the skills to program in any meaningful way.

Also, she could feel the divide between support roles such as hers and developers; they spoke entirely different languages.

Wanting to fully commit to becoming a developer she knew she was going to need help to get the show on the road.

Katherine understood her learning style would benefit from a structured course paired with the mentorship of an instructor.

She was looking for a venue where she could ask questions, be around people who inspired her, and learn from those who were eager to share their knowledge.

This is where Nucamp became a headliner for her.

Her ideal learning lineup included affordability, live sessions, and a Full Stack curriculum; Nucamp had the perfect setlist.

With a Nucamp coding bootcamp she moved her learning to center stage and never looked back.

She thrived in the bootcamp environment and couldn't emphasize enough how beneficial it was having the support of a like-minded community and having access to invaluable instructors.

She sang high praises of all her instructors and felt the bootcamp was the right pace for her.

"It was a big decision to go fully into coding. Receiving the legitimate, beginning-to-end bootcamp made me feel more confident."

Describe your job search process.

Katherine started applying to job openings during her bootcamp, specifically after the React course.

She felt it was the perfect timing for tackling technical interviews since she was already coding 4-5 hours a day.

To her the interviews during that time felt like another tech challenge or assignment and she felt prepared given her daily practice.

Describing her job search process as "aggressive", Katherine used the dynamic spreadsheet she received during her bootcamp to regularly send 2-3 applications a day over two weeks.

These yielded her multiple second and third round interviews.

She also reached out to potential employers via LinkedIn and through friend referrals.

The gig she ended up securing came through an inside tip by a past coworker, so she applied directly through the company's website.

What advice do you have for people who are thinking about attending a bootcamp, but haven't yet registered?

"Choose Nucamp because you get a valuable experience without paying $15k. Be aware of the time commitment; you get out what you put in. I was totally focused on the bootcamp while I kept my full-time job. I spent a few hours minimum each night just building. Also, it gets better and MORE FUN the more you code. This path is for you if you get stoked about problem solving, the design, and by creating something from nothing."

What advice do you have for people who have already started the bootcamp and they are just about to finish Bootstrap?

"Embrace the full speed ahead mentality that comes with the React section: speak up, ask questions, and talk to your classmates. If you're up for it, ask your instructor for more challenges. Each of them had things on hand to challenge people that wanted it, and these were super helpful."