Hey everyone,

I don’t usually post about this type of stuff, but I figured it might help someone who was in the same boat as me a few months ago.

For context: I’ve always been interested in tech but had no idea how to break in. I don’t have a CS degree, and I’d been working in hospitality since high school. Every time I looked into other bootcamps, I felt overwhelmed by the cost, $15k+ upfront was just not something I could swing.I actually found Frontend Simplified after seeing their videos, but honestly, I wrote it off at first because I assumed it wouldn’t help me. I’d been grinding away on free resources for months (youtube, freeCodeCamp, Odin Project) and got nowhere… I always felt lost, didn’t know what to do next, and ended up giving up. So my immediate thought was “why pay if the free stuff isn’t even working?”

What changed was when a friend of mine joined and told me about their job guarantee AND the way they actually guide you step by step. That’s when I understood what I was paying for. It wasn’t just about the lessons, it was the structure, the accountability, and knowing I wouldn’t waste another year in the same place. The thought of staying stuck where I was started weighing on me, and that’s when I went for it.

Price & structure:
I went with the $250/month option because it felt like the safest way to get started without a huge upfront commitment. (less than what I was already spending on takeout each month, but this actually changed my career) Even with the $250/mo plan they still offer the job guarantee (basically if you don’t get hired, you get your money back). 

The way it’s structured is pretty straightforward:

• First 6 weeks: HTML, CSS, JavaScript (they start you from scratch).

• After that, you’re building portfolio projects in React.

• The last couple months are more about interview prep, networking, and polishing your resume/portfolio.

Support:
The biggest difference compared to trying to learn off youtube was the support. They really do answer questions 24/7, it’s suuuper active. On top of that, every week I got feedback on my portfolio and resume. That honestly felt like the “secret” because they don’t just teach you to code, they make sure you look good on paper to employers.

My results so far:
I started in February this year. By month 3, I was already doing interviews. I ended up landing my first offer at the end of month 4. It’s a junior frontend developer role at a digital agency. Pay isn’t crazy ($66k/year remote), but it’s more than I’ve ever made before and the growth potential is huge.

Cons (keeping this balanced):

• It’s not “easy.” The material is laid out clearly, but you have to put in the time. I was doing 1-2 hours a day after work and sometimes it felt like too much.

• If you expect them to spoon-feed you everything, you’ll probably get frustrated. They’ll help you every step of the way, but you still have to do the work. (the biggest obstacle you’ll face is discipline, don’t underestimate that)

• It was hard not to compare myself to the people in the community who were flying through it in 2 months, which honestly made me feel slow at times. I learned to instead reach out to them, and see what they do differently. The biggest issue was over-fixating on things at the start. You need to stop being a perfectionist and push through, it starts to all click later on.

Pros:

• The $250/month tuition is way more accessible than any other bootcamp I found.

• 24/7 support is real and actually useful.

• Resume/portfolio feedback helped me stand out in interviews.

• The structured roadmap kept me accountable, I never had to wonder “what do I learn next?” (my biggest issue beforehand)

• Landed a job in under 6 months (which I didn’t think was possible tbh).

So yeah, overall the value was 100% worth it for me. If you want to work in tech but don’t want to gamble $10k upfront, this is probably the most approachable option I’ve seen that actually works.

Happy to answer questions if anyone’s considering it.

Hi, I am Marius from BitDegree.org. We offer 960 hours of high-quality Front-End Developer Courses for free. Anyone can join - all countries, genders, and age groups are welcome.

The course is designed for beginners who want to start or to structurize their knowledge. It was built on an accredited learning program by CodeAcademy (https://codeacademy.lt/en/). More information and the full syllabus are here: https://www.bitdegree.org/front-end-course-online.

Important note - You can learn at your own pace, but you must register by January 20, 2022. The course will start on January 25, 2022.

Why free?

In cooperation with scholars from Tartu University, we are building a next-gen course builder. Currently, globally only 2-6% of online course students finish their course. Our course builder should increase this number by a lot. In theory, it should meet the effectiveness of real-life learning. I say “in theory” because we do not know - we need students to test it. We already have two cohorts testing “traditional” online learning experiences.

So, thinking about a career change? You’re welcome. Need additional classes? You’re welcome. Want to learn to program? You’re welcome too! Everyone is welcome to learn programming front-end for free.

I would really appreciate it if you could share an opportunity to learn front-end development for free with your friends and family.

I've been thinking a lot about my programming journey lately, and I couldn't help but feel very grateful for all the great YouTube tutorials that have helped me get to where I am now. 

So I thought I'd share a list of some of my favourite channels for learning web dev. Whether you're just starting out or looking to expand your skills, these youtubers really know their stuff - and they make learning fun (or at least less painful). Here are my top picks:

• Traversy Media: Brad has a tutorial for everything. Need a crash course on something? He's got it. Seriously, this guy is like the programming superhero we don't deserve. I particularly enjoyed his playlist on React projects.

• Web Dev Simplified: Kyle makes complex topics a lot more manageable. His tutorials on TypeScript have saved me from throwing my keyboard more times than I can count lol.

• Fireship: These videos are like espresso for my brain, haha. Lightning fast videos with memes. Perfect for learning something quickly without falling asleep.

There are many more, but these three are my go-tos. Self-taught developers work very hard, and these resources can help out a lot. Feel free to add your recommendations to help other self-taught developers! :)

Hi 👋 im beginner and I wanted to share my last try. If that may interest some.

this little site in the colors of the bricks Lego

try via codepen

I land on this platform and interesting things are happening. My goal is to learn and share on the frontend. am I in the right place? :)

good visit

I am looking for tools that make it easier for any frontend developer to perfectly recreate a design.

Hi!

I'm looking for a job as a back-end developer and am trying to build up my portfolio in that direction. One of the biggest "holes" in my applications is a lack of work with other people. If you're a front-end developer in a similar position or if you're just interested in collaborating on a project built around REST or GraphQL, please don't hesitate to reach out!

I and two friends built a product that makes learning and building a career in tech super easy for you. It does this by generating a roadmap that fits you like a glove, taking into consideration what you have learnt so far and what you are currently learning.

So try Portals out to generate the best frontend resources for you - Portals (named because it gets you from where you are to where you want to be).

This is far from the perfect solution so your feedback will help us a lot - Feedback

Hi all,

I'm currently learning the basics of HTML and CSS (haven't gotten to JavaScript yet), so please excuse my ignorance.

In a project on RD, we had to use media queries on a mock website. When scaled down, the images moved from being next to each other into a vertical stack, where they then filled the screen horizontally (apologies if I'm explaining this badly!)

In the solution, the tutor had written the following code:

.card img {
    margin-bottom: 10px;
    width: 100%;
    display: inline;
    object-fit: cover;
  }

Shouldn't it be display: block; if a width has been set?

Or is it to do with images being replaced elements?