General Assembly

I move to London for the UXDI Course and it's been one of my best decisions so far. The course was everything I needed and expected. I wanted to shift from Visual Design tu UX Design and GA gave me the skills and knowledge I needed. The 10 weeks are divided into different projects in groups and individualy. You have to work hard but at the same time you enjoy every single second that goes by. The Instructional team was very professional, supportive and engaging all the way through. You meet very creative fun and interesting people that by the end of the course become your 'GA Family', your friends. 

Doing this course changed my life. After I finished the course I got the TA position for the following course and the Outcomes team was very supportive in helping us find a job. Before I finished the TA role I had done more than 8 interviews and had 2 job offers. I started my current job a week after which was my main goal of moving to London and I have to thank GA for that. 

Have in mind that GA gives you the structure, tools, team and techniques you need to pursue your dream but you must work hard too. I'd recommend GA to everybody who wants to learn in an innovative environment surrounded by amazing people and creative minds. 

This place is a joke...they rob you of your money and run!!  I took the wdi course and it was a waste of money and time.  Do not go here, they will teach you nothing!!  if you struggle, all  they do is push you aside, instead of helping you figure out why you are.  The student services and outcome sucks too!! [NAME REDACTED] is not a good person and very rude!! as well as her coworker, [NAME REDACTED] they are too self-involved with their reputation then trying to help you out.  Do not fall into their scam....it is a waste of money.  they will tell you to quit your job to take the program and when you struggle they will try and convince you to drop the class.  They don't care about you, only about your money!!!

The content was relevent, prepared in advance and presented in a simple, easy to read way. The teachers were extremely knowledgable in their area of expertise and no question was a silly question. Not only were the teachers available during the course of the day but were happy to stay back after class each day to answer any questions.

Coming in from a low level degree of knowledge in digital marketing, I feel like I learned quite a bit and it's given me motivation to explore it and apply it to my career.

I took the UXDI course in London early last year. My background had nothing to do with it, I was working in a warehouse moving boxes here and there and working on weekends.

Right after the course I got hired as a Teaching Assistant at GA London for the next UXDI, which was an amazing experience, and nicely paid, which was great because I was broke :)

I finished teaching on a Friday. The next Tuesday I started my first UX job at an agency in London. Now I just got offered another job, with a great pay rise and better conditions. I went from 23K to 40K in year and a half. Pretty sweet. And no more lifting heavy boxes or working weekends.

One thing though: The course is just the beginning, you need to work hard during and after the course. Read books, go to meet ups, roll in courses, online and offline, keep learning. GA can teach you the way, but you have to walk it.

General Assmbly was amazing. I went in knowing a bit a bit HTML and CSS having tried to teach myself for a few months so found the first week pretty straight forward. After that, it was incredibly full on and we got stuck in with the more difficult concepts of web development. 

Starting with basic JavaScript, we learnt the fundamentals of programming and quickly progressed to fullstack languages and frameworks.

I learned more in the first week and a half at GA than I did after 3 months of teaching myself. They really push you but are their to support you when you get stuck. 

We covered a huge amount of languages and tools and I would massively reccommend doing it, but you've got to fully commit to it and definitely keep up the learning pace after you finish. 

The outcomes team don't get you a job, but they really help with feedback and get you as prepared as possible for the job search so we really helpful! Definitely a case of work hard, play hard!

Hand on my heart, I would recommend(with bright lovely colours)WDI to anyone who asks me. 

Environment: 

The London campus is full of support, laughter, and fantastic vibes, all of which mix very well for a perfect 12 week course. The front of house staff are exceptional, and they maintain the campus to the highest standard. London hold superb events to which I have made a great deal of fantastic contacts from. The campus is in the heart of Aldgate and is surrounded by yummy food places and cheeky 'drink' places to kick back in. 

Instructors/ Staff

The instuctors at GA are on another level. Their complete expertese, patience and support really help you feel like you can smash the course (with hard work). They are not only supportive, but they are honest too if you're not pulling your weight during the course which for me, is vital. The outcomes team who help you through the course with your job search are outstanding. They go above and beyond to help you find that first job after the course. The patience they have for each and every student is one of the reasons I would reccomend the course and the London campus. 

Curriculum

GA's curriculum was a part of the course I was completely blown away with. We were all told from day one that the course would be full on and that basically you wouldn't have a life but the way they structured the course was perfect. I understand now that the WDI course will be moving to React as part of the curriculum which for me is the absoloute right direction. 

Overview

Overall I would give GA 9 out of 10. Anyone who is looking to step into the exciting pond of development would be utterly over the moon with this course. Putting the price of the course aside, this for me was a complete investment. 

So much love for GA 

A friend recommended this course and found it really great. However, there were only 16 people in their class - there were 30 in mine. I felt sorry for the tutors having to deal with a large group of students with such a diverse range of skill and needs - They were actually quite good, but getting their attention was difficult. The pace of the classes was greatly affected by the wide range of skill levels and the number of students. With regards to our projects, there were a few times where tutors would take over and basically do our code.

I felt mislead by this course. Firstly, because the website implies that there's a daily structure - a period of time designated to labs etc. Secondly, that there would be pair programming. We didn't have many opportunities to do any labs and experiment and speaking to graduates from Makers, pair programming really helped them progress and learn.

I would only recommend this course if you have a solid foundation in coding already, or have a STEM background. Before joining I was led to believe that you didn't need much experience and that everything will eventually click into place. 4 months on and I'm still waiting for things to fall into place. I can now see why Founders and Coders are very strict with their entrance requirements - as it pays to be prepared as you can before an intensive 3 months of learning. 

General Assembly was an overall great experience. I came into the course with previous experience programming, particularly with Java, and that was definitely a great help. I feel that the course gave me an excellent, solid foundation with Android fundamentals. I was also able to put together a decent portfolio of projects that I'll be able to continue to develop as I learn new skills.

As far as career assistance goes, General Assembly put me in a good place to help myself get a job. I have a personal portfolio website hosted by github, a complete Linkedin page, and an up to date resume. I also maintain access to the carreer assistance program for as long as I need, so long as I am actively applying for jobs and regularly attending networking events.

I am currently actively looking for jobs, and there are certainly a lot of options in the New York City area. The only issue is that most postings ask for 2+ years of professional development experience, with at least a year of Android development. This is a tough requirement for any recent graduate of a program that teaches a new skill, but can be particularly tough for someone who is switching careers from a non-technical background.

TL;DR: I recommend the program. Previous programming experience is not required, but helps. Career assistance helps you help yourself.

Course iteself was actually well run and provided good information about the grwoing field.  My issues with it are more related to how it is looked upon or treated by the school itself.  It seems too stand aone within the curriculum and unfortunately the course and the students seem to be treaetd as the cliched red headed step children of General Assembly. 

After finishing the course it felt like I was just providing tuition to the school and thats all they cared about.

Just my thoughts. Thanks anyway.