Capstone took everything to the next level. The program transformed me from someone who could solve coding problems into a real engineer. As a result, even in today’s tough job market, I was able to land a role I never even dreamed of getting, as a Software Engineer at Stripe!

Prior to Launch School, I could have never imagined myself as a Software Engineer. I was a Product Designer who had taken Master’s level React.js courses and passed with flying colours. I was so excited to keep coding, but I realized I was just paying for an extremely overpriced, “accredited” tutorial on how to make one thing. I wasn’t learning enough to move on and build whatever I wanted to, and I also couldn’t identify the foundational gaps that I needed to fill.

I thought for the longest time that this was because engineering was not for me. I thought that if engineering was really for me, I would be able to get past this hurdle myself. I also never saw people that looked like me in these roles, and thought software engineers were very specific nerds or savants. I knew I was intelligent, but I knew I wasn’t a savant.

Launch School changed all of that for me, even before I started the curriculum. I read the pedagogy on their website and I knew that day that I would be going all in on this. From their resources, I realized all the ways that conventional education had failed me, and how I had internalized all of it as my personal failings. The Core Curriculum and mastery-based learning completely changed my life. Instead of memorizing frameworks or following tutorials, I was learning how things actually worked. And because I had the fundamentals, I could quickly pick up any framework.

Capstone took everything to the next level. The program transformed me from someone who could solve coding problems into a real engineer. As a result, even in today's tough job market, I was able to land a role I never even dreamed of getting, as a Software Engineer at Stripe! Thanks to my interview performance, Stripe even offered me an L2 Mid to Senior position with a starting salary of $180k! I credit all of this to the Core Curriculum assessments, which provided me with the resources to practice technical proficiency and communication from day one.

Launch School is the best career decision I've ever made. Yes, it takes time. Yes, it's challenging. But that's exactly why it works. If you're serious about building a real engineering career and willing to put in the work, Launch School will get you there. More importantly though, you’ll learn how to really learn, which is a skill you’ll take with you anywhere you go.