Is it a good idea to go to a coding bootcamp and shell out thousands of dollars? How about a college? I know some devs think it’s best to self learn and pay no one. I’m currently trying to make a big decision and looking for pointers.

I'm self taught and I and currently putting myself through college so I can do more in the software world. In my experience self taught has been fine for working on web stuff, interfaces, and anything that doesn't need math beyond Add/Subtract/Multiply/Divide. Also getting a job with competitive pay has been difficult since every time there's a pay negotiation the managers always point to my lack of degree as to why I will not be receiving the same amount of pay as my colleagues.

In the end it all comes down to networking. Learning code is only one part of the problem. The other part is getting hired. I put a ton of work into making professional contacts through meetups and local coding clubs. I have still yet to get a job through just submitting a resume and cover letter. You gotta know someone.

My sage advice would be to go to college and explore different types of coding worlds, build professional friendship with peers in every major, and try hard to go beyond the material taught

I’m joining a coding bootcamp which seems to be employing people within a few months after graduation learning 3 full stacks being mean, python, and Ruby on Rails. The tuition is only 9425. I have family members as recruiters for big tech companies so I figure that’s nice to have in my pocket but I’m trying to figure out if this investment will pay for itself down the road. I intend to work hard so assume I pass with great grades and projects for portfolio. What’s the need for full stack devs. I’m kinda scared to make this move due to finance but I also know hard work in the field can pay back. And I want to stay as cheap as I can and continue school at a real college assuming I get a job as a full stack after the bootcamp(vocational school).

That’s a plenty I decided to carry on with the school for a few reasons. I have done studying before hand for 6 months but I enjoy the atmosphere and I’m still learning things I otherwise wouldn’t not have learned. Sure I learned code but I never thought to study a bunch of algorithms. -_-