Everything You Need to Know About Hack Reactor’s Updated Beginner Bootcamp

Starting a software engineering career with Hack Reactor’s Beginner Bootcamp requires no coding or pre-course to get started! Nicole Amonette (Software Engineering Program Lead) and Daniel Billotte (Director of Curriculum & Classroom Infrastructure) break down what students can expect to learn in the newly updated curriculum. They offer their advice on how to be successful in this intensive bootcamp, and how Hack Reactor prepares students for entry-level developer roles with instructional support and career services.

Meet Our Experts: Nicole Amonette and Daniel Billotte

• Nicole Amonette is the Software Engineering Program Lead for coding bootcamps at Hack Reactor, overseeing the instructors and advisors who run the day-to-day bootcamp operations. Nicole supports high-level strategic student oversight and ensures that students have the best possible journeys and outcomes.

• Daniel Billotte is the Director of Curriculum & Classroom Infrastructure and focuses on the quality of the curriculum for all of the consumer-facing programs, including creating content for new programs and updating older programs. Daniel has been a software engineer since the mid-90s and understands the evolution of being a software engineer today. 

Is there an ideal student for the Beginner Program at Hack Reactor?

Nicole: Having seen hundreds of students go through this program already, the ones that are the most successful come into the admissions process with a clear goal and understanding of what they want to achieve from the bootcamp. Their goal could be anything, but it's something that drives them and that they keep in mind as they go through the hardest parts of the program. 

We also see that our most successful students have a strong growth mindset, grit, a lot of curiosity, and a willingness to ask questions. The way that we teach the program encourages students to learn how to learn. It takes a growth mindset to be willing to work through and overcome obstacles and it's on each individual to do that. 

Do you require applicants to the Beginner Program to have some coding knowledge?

Daniel: No because it’s for total beginners. They only need skills in basic computer literacy and arithmetic. No work needs to be done before the course starts. Everything starts on day one of the bootcamp. 

Is the Beginner Program for career changers, upskillers, or both?

Nicole: We see it all! Students arrive at Hack Reactor straight out of high school, after a different career, or to upskill in their current careers. We see that mixture in every cohort and our instructors pay close attention to meeting students where they are, and also having individualized approaches to address where all these students are coming from. 

What kinds of tech roles will Beginner Program graduates be eligible for?

Daniel: The primary target is an entry-level web developer job. 

What can students expect to learn in the Beginner Program?

Daniel: Our tech stack includes Python for the back end and JavaScript for the front end. The curriculum also covers FastAPI as our web framework on the back end, React on the front end, and a Postgres database. 

We teach them fundamental programming skills, but problem-solving skills are what makes a software engineer an engineer. Our updated bootcamp emphasizes core problem-solving skills. We're teaching students enough to get that first tech job, but more importantly, enough for them to continue learning so they can grow in that profession and get the promotions and raises that come with that. 

Nicole: Our students also learn collaboration and teamwork through pair programming. We teach students how to code individually and then work in pairs and groups to replicate the experience of being on a development team.

Has AI entered the curriculum or is it solely focused on software engineering?

Daniel: As a software engineer, I've been keeping an eye on AI. Currently, students use GitHub Copilot during the latter part of the program with their capstone projects, but we ask them to stay away from AI tools at the beginning of the bootcamp because there's nothing like hands-on practice for learning software! 

We put a lot of energy into helping students understand how to use AI tools and how not to use them during the education process. We distinguish the difference between using AI on the job and relying on AI to do the work for you while you’re still learning. 

How does your team ensure the curriculum is up-to-date with what employers are seeking in new hires?

Daniel: Our instructors and curriculum writers are software engineers themselves and keep up with their projects and updated technology. As a team of engineers, we pay attention to current technologies, what other bootcamps are doing, and the feedback that we’ve been given. We make our decisions from there. 

What is the teaching style like for the Beginner Program?

Daniel: We use a flipped classroom design, where we allow students to first explore material on their own in the evenings. When they come into class the next day they participate in a discussion, share challenges they’ve encountered, and discuss how the learning applies to the job. We do as many hands-on exercises as we can. What might be a lecture in other programs is, for us, a check-in to answer questions and then jump right into exercises. The days are designed to be exercise-oriented with the instructors acting more like guides. 

Do the instructors have experience as software engineers? 

Daniel: All of our Hack Reactor instructors are experienced software engineers. Some of our instructors are bootcamp graduates from Hack Reactor, Tech Elevator, and other bootcamps, but they all have experience in the field before beginning to teach. 

If a student is struggling with an assignment or concept, what kinds of support can they expect? 

Nicole: In addition to the instructors, we have technical staff and program advisors who follow and discuss each student's progress and needs. We make sure their progress is in alignment throughout the program. If a student is not meeting those expectations, we have a series of remediations, resources, and accommodations that we provide to them. We ensure our performance improvement plans are personalized to each student because we want everyone to succeed! 

What types of projects will students work on in the Beginner Program?

Daniel: The whole program is very hands-on and each chunk of learning is bookended with a project that validates the students’ mastery of those materials. Students need to successfully complete each project in order to move into the next phase of the course. 

Overall, students will build lots of full stack web applications. Projects include different domain types, from to-do applications to blog-like applications, and they are always full stack web applications with a database, a web server in the back end, and JavaScript and React front end. 

Most of the projects are relatively prescribed because of the fast pace of the program, but the final project is open-ended. Students are put in groups and get to choose whatever they want for that final project. We encourage them to get creative because that's the portfolio project they will want to promote to prospective employers. 

Do students participate in a Demo Day?

Nicole: For our Demo Day, we invite everyone who has been a part of the process leading up to the final capstone presentations. We also showcase many of those final projects in events featuring our alumni and hiring partners. 

What time commitment should incoming students be prepared to dedicate to the Beginner Program?

Nicole: It depends on where students are in the program. Overall, this is a full-time program that requires a full-time commitment. At the beginning of the program, students are taking in a lot of information so we recommend that students spend an extra 5-10 hours a week outside of class studying.  

Does Hack Reactor offer an intro course or workshop for coding beginners interested in the bootcamp?

Daniel: There's no pre-course for the Beginner Program because there are no coding-related requirements to getting started on day 1. That said, we hope to implement a beginner-level, no-commitment pre-course soon!

What do the career services look like in the Beginner Program?

Nicole: We integrate career services from day one at Hack Reactor! We make sure students know that we're there to support them, and help them to build their portfolio, skill sets, and ability to conduct technical and behavioral interviews. Career services days are scheduled throughout the program, interspersed between technical content. At the end of the program, we wrap up with an intensive career services session where our career services managers guide students through searching for and applying for jobs, conducting mock interviews, and networking. Career services continue to follow up with our graduates six months after graduation to provide additional support.

What is your advice to incoming students on making the most of their time in the Beginner Program?

Nicole: 

• Do your research, be intentional, and know what you’re getting into. We notice students who have been intentional about choosing this particular bootcamp make the most of the experience.  

• Don't be afraid to fail! From the beginning, don't be afraid to make mistakes. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Don't be afraid to look “stupid.” Learning software engineering is a humbling experience. We've seen many of our former employees go through the program, and they have described how challenging it was. You have to break your old learning patterns to get to a place where you're learning how to learn this material. 

Daniel:

• Be tenacious! Showing up is the biggest thing. Be on time and be present in the classroom. I think about some of the conversations I've had with struggling students, and if they were showing up on time and being present and active in everything that's going on around them, it would make the biggest difference.

• Have a solid plan for accommodating your external commitments. For example, If you have kids, have a caretaking plan. It’s nearly impossible to be dedicated if you’re swamped with distractions. Take the time to ensure those are taken care of so you can be successful in the program.

Find out more and read Hack Reactor reviews on Course Report. This article was produced by the Course Report team in partnership with Hack Reactor.