I've gained the attitude of constantly looking for better ways to do things, understanding my tools more deeply and working to become a better developer

I finished my time as a student at Launch School in the summer of 2017 and went on to become a full-time web developer at a really great web development consultancy in my area. My time at Launch School was a fantastic experience that gave me an awesome foundation as a developer. If you're interested in becoming a professional web developer, I'd strongly recommend checking out Launch School's program. I learned so much about quality web development, and I gained the skills and knowledge I needed for a solid start in my career as a developer.

I was with Launch School for about 1.5 years. Prior to that, I studied web development for a couple of years using various online resources such as Treehouse, Code School, The Odin Project and others. Those resources were really valuable and I learned a lot from them, but I feel like my growth and learning as a developer accelerated dramatically when I joined Launch School.

One of Launch School's maxims is "fundamentals first, fundamentals throughout." Another is "learn to understand problems, not solutions". These principles, along with the other elements of their teaching philosophy, are very powerful. Their goal is not for you to learn a particular tech stack or set of tools (though you will certainly pick up those things), but, instead, to help you gain a bedrock of timeless, universal skills that you will continually apply throughout your career to do great development work. They strive to teach you skills needed to dissect problems and craft quality solutions to those problems. Their goal is to make sure you have what you need to prepare you for a long, successful career in development. And they definitely deliver on these goals.

The team behind Launch School has crafted a high quality, well thought out curriculum that teaches you what you need to know to become a great developer. Their focus on fundamental skills that don’t change and their emphasis on taking the time to learn deeply is really effective. Their approach can be slow and time-consuming, but that’s a big part of why it works so well. As I look back, I'm impressed at how much my experience at Launch School has taught me.

Because Launch School helped me become so solid on the fundamentals, I'm able to analyze and understand problems, business requirements, feature requests, etc. and effectively build out solutions for those things. When I hit a roadblock, I know I can work through it.

I've gained the attitude of constantly looking for better ways to do things, understanding my tools more deeply and working to become a better developer.

Furthermore, learning new tools doesn't indimidate me much at all. There's always a learning curve to picking up something new, but I feel confident that I can apply the skills I've learned and apply them to a new language or framework in order to get up to speed quickly.

Launch School isn’t for everybody, of course, and there are certainly things to be improved. But overall, it’s a fantastic way to learn development. It worked exceptionally well for me, and I’m incredibly grateful for the time I spent there.

For those considering joining the program, I hope you give it a serious look. It’s an exceptional place to become a professional developer.