As a self-proclaimed nerd who spent countless hours on the computer, learning, coding, debugging, and diving deep into the labyrinth of code, I can tell you that my time at Skill Distillery was transformative. However, as enriching as the learning environment was, it pales in comparison to the invaluable resource that is Skill Distillery’s alumni …
Chana’s Career ChangeLearn how Chana was able to change her career to programming, and as a result have a better work life balance. Chana’s StoryHi my name is Chana. I was working in a stressful job where I had long hours. The pay was adequate. There wasn’t really any future for me there, but it …
Bootcamp Comparison ChartChoosing a coding bootcamp is hard. There are hundreds to choose from, and it is difficult to see the differences between them. Below are what we consider some of the most important factors in choosing a bootcamp such as location, technologies taught, bootcamp length, bootcamp cost, and more. We selected Flatirons School, General Assembly, Hack …
Is a Coding Bootcamp Worth it?Coding bootcamps are not easy and are expensive.Should you attend one? Is it worth it? The answer is yes.To keep up with the demand for programmers, the coding bootcamp market is growing exponentially every year. There are over 110 full-time coding bootcamps in the United States, and the market has …
There has been never a better time than now to think about your career and economic security. In the Great Recession, programmers fared much better than most other professions. “…Diverse skill sets are so important in the tech sector. A dev who is already comfortable with a variety of platforms and languages has an immediate …
Is now the time to attend an online coding bootcamp? Read More »
By Alex Wagner Skill Distillery Alumni I had just been laid off; I was going nowhere, and I needed a career change. My brother-in-law tapped me about attending a coding bootcamp to become a programmer – we’re putting computers in everything from phones to backpacks, so the need for developers is not going to go …
There Are Lots of Coding Bootcamps – Which One is Right For You? Read More »
How to Prepare for a Coding BootcampEmbarking on a coding bootcamp journey can be a transformative experience for aspiring software developers. With the tech industry evolving rapidly, coding bootcamps offer an intensive, focused pathway to gain the skills needed for a thriving career in technology. This article delves into the essential steps and considerations for …
What You Need to Consider Before Taking on a Coding Bootcamp A coding bootcamp is an accelerated way to change careers or boost your marketability. Today it is important to stand-out to employers looking for a particular skill set. Teaching in-demand skills in a short period of time can seem daunting, but it has also proven …
An Interview with Java Developer Steve Nagle Keeping in touch with graduates is important to us. Java developer Steve Nagle shares his thoughts and experiences in the program and how he feels now that he is employed with one of the largest health insurance companies in the nation… Skill Distillery: Describe where you were in …
Java Bootcamp case study reviews from actual students Java Bootcamp student review from Angel Rivera – Veteran Why did you enroll? I enrolled because I wanted to learn how to code. There were plenty of job offers for developers, and I wanted a good paying job. Once I started coding, I fell in love with …
Each person has their own ideal learning style and lifestyle. Having chosen to embark on the difficult challenges of an intensive, immersive, coding bootcamp, you have many ways to maximize your chances of success and the value of your experience. Before Class Starts 1. Do the pre-study Start working on your assigned pre-study as soon …
Student Spotlight: Patrick Gaston: At Skill Distillery, we have the privilege of teaching some of the brightest new programming talent in the tech industry. It is consistently fascinating to learn about their paths and what drew them to come to our school. Each month, we spotlight one of our students and share details of his …
This article originally appeared in Stars & Stripes Magazine Veterans turn to computer coding bootcamps as GI BillⓇ benefits become available to specialized schools. By Gordon Bronson Computer programming schools, specialized, accelerated programs designed to teach high-tech skills in short time periods are popping up all over the United States. But until recently, these programs …
Student Spotlight: Rod Hammond Several times a month, we spotlight one of our students, sharing details of his or her story. This gives us a chance to talk about our diverse student population, how they discovered Skill Distillery and where they’re taking their newfound skill sets. We want to give prospective students a sense of …
This blog about a career in coding originally appeared on cobizmag.com The economy is evolving quite quickly. Five years ago, hardly anyone was talking about wearable technology, and now you can’t walk down the sidewalk without seeing a Fitbit or Apple watch. About a decade ago, social media was in its infancy; now it’s a …
Several times a month, we spotlight one of our coding student from our class and share his or her story. This gives us a chance to talk about our diverse student population, how they discovered Skill Distillery and where they’re taking their newfound skill sets . We want to give prospective students a sense of …
What would compel a Navy veteran, working for a U.S. Senator, to dramatically alter the course of his life, quit his job, and use his GI Bill® to attend a coding boot camp?
“I didn’t want to silo myself. I saw the way the economy was moving and I realized that I wanted become more literate in high-tech,” said Aaron Torres, a recent graduate of Skill Distillery and the co-founder of First Cloud Consulting.
Torres grew up in Denver and joined the Navy at 17 years old, just after 9/11. He served for eight years, and used his GI Bill® to attend Hawaii-Pacific University, and later earned his bachelors in Criminal Justice from the University of Colorado Denver. Torres dreamed of becoming a lawyer, and when the opportunity presented itself to be a veterans’ advocate for U.S. Senator Michael Bennet, he jumped at the chance. Passionate about supporting veterans, he saw this as an opportunity to continue serving, while working on issues that would give him insight into a future legal career.
While he worked for Sen. Bennet, he reconnected with an old friend from childhood. A fellow Navy veteran, Chris Coleman had a knack for programming at an early age and was starting to build his own cloud-consulting firm. He and Torres started to talk about what a future working together might look like. “I had a great network, but Chris had all the technical skills and that was something I lacked,” Torres said. So he began to look into coding schools in the Denver area, and attended an event hosted by Skill Distillery at the Innovation Pavilion, in Greenwood Village, focused on vets transitioning into careers in high-tech. That night, he heard a panel discussion with leaders from Skill Distillery, Comcast and Patriot Bootcamp, a startup accelerator for veteran-owned tech companies. Gaining awareness of the organizations geared toward helping former military members find meaningful work, and learning that Skill Distillery was able to accept the last remaining 6 months of his GI Bill®, Torres made the leap. He gave notice to Sen. Bennet, and launched his new career.
For Torres, the transition made sense: “I was looking around at the legal profession and saw how hard it was to get a job. At the same time, tech is exploding, especially in Denver.”
His story isn’t unique, but his range of experience, from the military, to government work, to discovering a coding school and becoming a tech entrepreneur, is noteworthy enough that the White House featured Torres on their blog as a TechHire success story.
While in the program, he and Coleman worked together to launch First Cloud Consulting. Between his business savvy and newly acquired technical skills, Torres is thrilled that he forwent law school to learn how to program in Java. Now, only a few weeks post-graduation, the duo’s new venture is thriving, with almost a dozen clients and no sign of slowing down.
There is a single, shared reason why individuals attend coding school – They are each attempting to land a new job, and start fresh in a high-tech career. With this in mind, we wanted to build a program that would actually teach our students real-world skills that would help them find and secure competitive roles at …
Colorado TechHire About a year ago, we began working with Speaker Pro Tem Dan Pabon in the Colorado State House of Representatives on a new national initiative called TechHire. TechHire was founded by the White House in partnership with cities and states across the U.S. aimed at supporting coding schools like ours and helping …
Across the U.S., people are learning new skills in computer programming by completing accelerated learning programs. Called coding school – or bootcamps – are a crash course in the requisite technical proficiencies to enter into the IT market. Coding schools have become popular and necessary in recent years, as there are too many job openings …
