Ask HN: Are bootcamp devs still hireable?

It’s a challenging economic cycle to enter software development. There are tons of skilled software engineers on the market right now. I see bootcamp/entry-level devs being least desirable currently. I work at a company that isn’t considered to be a top-tier tech company, but even we are getting some great, experienced candidates applying to open positions.

AI is making it easier for candidates to spray-apply to jobs with customized resumes and CVs. Recruitment teams have to filter out the noise. I’d have to imagine filtering for verifiable computer science degrees is one way to remove some noise.

Most aren't. Majority of them get into it because of the rut they are in and wanna break into tech. Nothing wrong with that but the issue is that most of these people have never done anything on their own and lack the fundamentals and are found out in an interview because they were never taught how to submit an HTML form but surely know how to code a React Component. They are not curious and havr no actual interest in programming.

The very few that do make it out of bootcamp are usually self starters, already have done projects on their own using Google/youtube and actually enjoy and eant to learn programming.

Right now, fresh college grads aren't getting tech work.

Unless your coming to the table with a background in design, usability, or product management as well your not getting a job near anything technical with just "boot camp".

The only thing anyone gives a shit about at the moment is AI/ML. Thats some capital intensive work to do at scale, so masters and PHD's are all the rage.

Star developers, proven by their projects, open-source contributions, and work experience, are always hireable.

Getting a job with no relevant degree and only a bootcamp for coding cred - that's going to be tough. (Although like most things, it's possible with great personality and networking.)

The issue isn't whether they are hireable or not. The issue is if they can make it through the filtering process. At the end of the day nearly all of the core "requirements" on a job posting are just to distill down a relatively managable set of resumes, that then get filtered again by humans (or possible AI the days). If you're in the position of being a bootcamp grab instead of a degree holder, I suggest you find a means of standing out. Contribute to something open source and visible, or make a point of creating strong business savvy naratives around your deliverable history.

I'd like to push back against the hate that bootcamp grads get. I did a BootCamp in 2017, before that I was learning to program for 2 years on my own. The BootCamp class I was in had people who studied mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, one guy was a member of Mensa and another woman was the salutatorian of Dartmouth. This isn't to say that all BootCamp grads are geniuses, but the notion that they are a bunch of lazy "get rich quick" schemers is itself intellectually lazy. Most had to take jobs in non-brand name companies and spent about 2 years there.The ones who enjoyed the job and were motivated frequently ended up at FAANG. I myself have been at AWS for four years after having spent 2 years at a small company.

I understand being frustrated if you spent $120k on a degree and you see someone spend a 5th of that and get the same job but stigmatizing them will make you pass over qualified candidates.

That being said yes the job market is awful right now and I wouldn't advise anyone to join a BootCamp today.

Both the best and worst dev I’ve ever hired were non-tech background bootcampers.

Are there some diamonds in the rough that will become all stars? I think so.

The question is: Can you tell the difference during screening process? I doubt it.

I would rather go with Claude 3 Opus than hiring a bootcamp dev.

I know that eventually the industry will have a problem because it will run out of experienced developers, and beginners must be hired to become experienced later, but I would rather hire an engineer or someone with an interesting background in a useful field if it’s about long term training.