Careerist is an online career training platform that aims to help individuals with little to no previous experience transition into careers in tech.
The platform’s programs are conducted on a part-time basis, making it easy for working adults to complete coursework around their busy schedules. Unlike many other career training platforms, Careerist’s programs include built-in internship opportunities to give students practical experience before they begin their job hunts.
With excellent job support services, flexible schedules, and affordable tuition prices, Careerist is a solid choice for anybody interested in pursuing a new career in tech.
Careerist Overview Table
| Website | https://www.careerist.com/ |
| Courses Offered | Manual QA QA Automation Sales Engineering Systems Engineering Tech Support UX Design |
| Course Delivery Method | Online training, one-on-one mentoring, internship opportunities |
| Length of Courses | 10-26 weeks |
| Time Commitment | 6-10 hours per week |
| Tuition Policy | Careerist requires students to pay for their tuition either upfront or in split payments. The platform also offers bundles that give students access to additional training materials. Students who qualify for the job guarantee may receive 100% of their tuition as a refund if they are unable to find a job within one year of graduation. |
| Tuition | Manual QA: $3,500 QA Automation: $3,500 Sales Engineering: $3,500 Systems Engineering: $3,500 Tech Support: $2,950 UX Design: $2,950 |
| Job Placement | Careerist offers a job guarantee, one-on-one mentorship, resume-building support, and interview prep services |
| Certificates Offered | None |
How Signing Up For a Bootcamp With Careerist Works
Getting started with Careerist is as simple as choosing a program that interests you and submitting a preliminary application, which asks you to provide your full name, email address, and phone number.
After submitting your contact information, a career advisor will get in touch with you to discuss your career goals, interests, and experience so that they can match you with the best program. When talking to your advisor, you can request a free class to determine whether or not a specific course suits your interests.
Compared to other bootcamp providers, Careerist has a very open and easy admissions process. Nearly all applicants are accepted, and you don’t need any prior experience to qualify for any of the programs offered on the platform.
After completing this brief admissions process, you can begin attending online classes and working to complete the program.
Careerist Tuition Overview
Careerist is very affordable compared to many other major bootcamp providers. While other bootcamps often cost between $15,000 and $20,000, Careerists’ most expensive programs are only $3,799 when paid for upfront.
Students at Careerist may also choose a split payment plan, which requires them to pay half of their tuition upfront and the other half two weeks later. This option is slightly more expensive as paying for all of your tuition upfront qualifies you for a tuition discount.
Careerist also offers a 100% money-back guarantee for students who aren’t able to land a job within one year of graduation. To be eligible for this, students need to complete all training modules on time, submit all projects and assignments by the deadline, and follow Careerist’s job search instructions.
Although Careerist is more affordable than many other bootcamp providers, it also offers less flexible payment plans. With Careerist, students do not have the option to defer their tuition until they find a job. This may make other platforms more desirable for students who can’t afford to pay for their tuition upfront.
Bootcamp Courses Available
Manual QA
$3,500 | Online | Part Time | 6-8 hours per week | 15 weeks | Start dates vary
Careerist’s Manual QA program is a part-time program that prepares students to become quality assurance engineers in as little as 15 weeks. The program only requires students to commit to six to eight hours per week, and students will learn from expert instructors with experience working at top tech companies like Meta, Google, and Intel. The curriculum covers valuable skills like web testing, mobile testing, bug report compilation, and version control. At the end of the program, students receive career coaching to help them find their first job.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? None; program is designed for complete beginners
QA Automation
$3,500 | Online | Part Time | 6-8 hours per week | 15 weeks | Start dates vary
QA Automation is a career training program for students who have already completed Careerist’s Manual QA bootcamp. This program builds upon the Manual QA course to help students advance their careers and move into higher-earning positions. Students in this program will learn user interface testing with Selenium and Behave, how to build their own algorithms from scratch, and how to use Python. The course consists of online lessons, interactive training, one-on-one mentorship, and job prep services.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? Manual QA program completion
Sales Engineering
$3,500 | Online | Part Time | 6-8 hours per week | 10 weeks | Start dates vary
Careerist’s Sales Engineering program helps complete beginners break into the tech industry without needing to learn how to code. The course consists of six weeks of intensive studying followed by a four-week internship, which allows students to gain practical experience before they start their job search. Students will learn soft skills like networking, troubleshooting, and public speaking as well as hard skills like AWS cloud computing, IT security, and product research.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? None; program is designed for complete beginners
Systems Engineering
$3,500 | Online | Part Time | 6-8 hours per week | 6 months | Start dates vary
Students in Careerist’s Systems Engineering career training program can expect to learn a variety of in-demand skills and technologies like Linux system administration, service management, shell programming, and information security management. The course consists of a combination of live webinars, one-on-one technical mentorship, prerecorded lessons, career coaching, and internship opportunities. The Systems Engineering program is also eligible for Careerist’s job guarantee.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? Basic computer science
Tech Support
$2,950 | Online | Part Time | 6-8 hours per week | 13 weeks | Start dates vary
Careerist’s Tech Support bootcamp is a 13-week program that consists of training, an internship, and one-on-one mentorship that gives students plenty of practical experience to develop their soft and hard tech support skills. Students will attend live classes or watch prerecorded lectures twice per week for seven weeks before starting their internships. Students will learn core concepts like application management, virtual machine configuration, how to troubleshoot IT issues, and how to identify and diagnose issues with hardware components.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? None; program is designed for complete beginners
UX Design
$2,950 | Online | Part Time | 8-10 hours per week | 14 weeks | Start dates vary
The UX Design program at Careerist is a great choice for students with no previous experience who want to break into tech. Students will learn a wide range of necessary skills and tools, including UX research techniques, prototyping in Figma, responsive design, case study presentation, and how to prioritize and implement UX features. Throughout the program, students will work on projects that they can add to their professional portfolios, making it easier for them to find jobs after graduation.
- Placement Test Required? No
- Interview Required? Yes
- Skill Level Required? None; program is designed for complete beginners
A Typical Week at Careerist
All of Careerist’s programs are designed to be flexible and accessible to working adults. As such, these programs only require you to commit to up to 10 hours per week, making it easy to balance your coursework with your job and other obligations.
During a typical week, students can expect to participate in live lessons or watch prerecorded lessons twice per week. Depending on the program you choose, you may also spend time working on portfolio projects to enhance your skills and improve your hireability. Throughout the week, you’ll also be expected to complete homework assignments, quizzes, and interactive assignments.
After several weeks, you’ll move on to the internship phase of the program. Each program finishes with an internship, which provides real-world experience and opportunities to apply your new skills. All internships are 100% remote and part time, allowing students to continue working at their normal jobs while completing the internship phase.
Finally, students will move on to the career coaching phase, during which they’ll work directly with an advisor to improve their interview skills, build their resumes, and establish their online brands. During this phase, students can expect to spend a few hours per week meeting with their career coaches to apply for jobs, discuss their career goals, and polish their portfolios.
Additional Features
Job application service
Careerist offers students access to its job application service (JAS). JAS compiles job listings from sites like LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Indeed to make it easier to find and apply to relevant job openings.
Graduates will also receive a daily list of recommended job openings based on the program they completed, and the JAS browser extension automatically fills out job applications on your behalf. Students retain access to this system for as long as it takes them to find a job.
Job interview prep
Improving your interview skills is a key step in landing a new job — especially when you don’t have previous professional experience in the industry.
Careerist helps students prepare for interviews by guiding them through mock interviews with their mentors. They’ll practice answering common questions and receive feedback to help them improve their interviewing skills.
Experienced instructors
The best bootcamps offer comprehensive curricula and courses taught by expert instructors.
Careerist’s programs feature instructors from top tech companies like Google, Meta, Intel, Apple, and Bank of America. Students can be sure they are learning from individuals with experience and that they are learning relevant skills and technologies.
What We Like About Careerist
Careerist offers built-in internships, a job guarantee, and flexible program schedules, making it a great option for working professionals interested in pivoting into a new career.
Built-in internships
When changing careers, it’s important to gain practical experience to demonstrate to potential employers that you know what you’re doing.
Although most bootcamps fall short on this front, Careerist offers internships as part of its programs, giving students the chance to hone their skills while gaining real-world experience and improving their resumes.
Job guarantee
The idea of investing thousands of dollars into a program only to be unable to find a job turns many people away from career training bootcamps.
Careerist offers a 100% money-back guarantee to students who meet certain eligibility requirements but aren’t able to find a job within a year of graduation.
Flexible program schedules
Pursuing an education and changing careers can be very difficult for working adults with busy schedules. Not everyone can commit to 20 to 40 hours per week while working a full-time job.
Careerist’s online bootcamps only require students to commit six to 10 hours per week, making it easier for busy professionals to learn new skills and pursue careers in tech.
What We Don’t Like About Careerist
Although Careerist is one of the leading career training platforms owing to the factors listed above, there are a few downsides that individuals should consider before enrolling in one of these programs.
Limited payment options
Compared to other bootcamp providers, Careerist doesn’t offer very flexible payment options to accommodate students who can’t pay for their tuition upfront.
Whereas other platforms offer income share agreements, deferred tuition models, monthly payment plans, and scholarships, students at Careerist must choose to either pay their tuition upfront or split it into two payments.
Poor transparency regarding student outcomes
Reputable bootcamp providers like Flatiron School often publish their students’ outcomes to show potential applicants how likely they are to find a job after graduation. This added transparency makes it easier for individuals to determine whether or not a bootcamp is right for them.
Although Careerist does publish general information about its graduates’ median salaries, it is not transparent about how many of its graduates are successfully able to find a job after completing a course in their program.
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