The San Francisco Bay Area has the largest concentration of high-tech companies in the United states. Silicon Valley, located in the South San Francisco Bay Area, is a global center of technological innovation. CBRE’s 2021 Scoring Tech Talent report saw San Francisco retain its first place ranking among all North American tech markets for its ability to attract and develop talent. Silicon Valley serves as a global center for innovation and high technology. Located in the Santa Clara Valley, Silicon Valley got its nickname from journalist Don Hoefler in a 1971 Electronica article that chronicled the region’s newfound preeminence in semiconductors, for which silicon is a primary ingredient. The San Jose Metropolitan area has the third largest GDP per capita in the world after Zurich, Switzerland and Oslo, Norway. Silicon Valley is also one of the wealthiest regions in the world, and one of the hottest real-estate markets. As of June 2021, San Jose has the highest percentage of homes valued over 1 million in the United States.
It’s no surprise that the San Francisco Bay area is one of the most affluent in the nation due to its status as the top grossing tech hub with famous companies’ primary offices stationed there. Some of the world’s largest tech corporations, including the headquarters of more than 30 businesses in Fortune 1000, and thousands of startup companies, call Silicon Valley home. This region accounts for one-third of all the venture capital investment in the United States which has helped it to become a leading hub and startup ecosystem for high tech innovation. Among the most notable technological advancements were started in Silicon Valley such as the integrated circuit, the microprocessor, and the microcomputer. As of 2021, San Francisco employed around half million information technology workers.
Silicon Valley in San Fran has so far been the preeminent hub for tech innovation, worldwide the past couple decades. Beyond its role in the history of semiconductor chips and computers, the area has a remarkable concentration of hardworking talented tech employees, high-tech research universities, corporate R&D labs, and the largest concentration of venture capital funding in the United States.
So why is Silicon Valley so ideal for technology companies? That’s due to many reasons, Silicon Valley has the necessary infrastructure, talented resources, and an ever growing market for manufacturers. It is a paradise for startups because they can easily host systems in the area because it has everything they need to stay connected to the tech community. Apple, Google, HP, Intel, Adobe, eBay, and several more tech giants have established their headquarters in Silicon Valley. All startups, if they hope to be a big player company one day, need to get a footprint in Silicon Valley. Startup companies know that success breeds success and that there are benefits of networking and specialization. Innovation, collaboration, and risk taking is the motivation for tech startups and it’s helpful to be in a place with so many other tech companies with the same goals they have. Many startups are founded by previous employees of tech giant companies. When you are already in Silicon Valley, it is easy to connect with experienced and supportive mentors that are in the same field.
With San Francisco at the forefront of the nation’s most active start up scene, the coding bootcamps offered in this area are top-tier and prepare students for a full-time job in tech upon completion. After graduation, San Francisco boot camp students can easily find a job anywhere. Since San Francisco is the American tech hub, students can easily attend tech meetups while attending a bootcamp.
Everyone knows San Francisco’s Silicon Valley is the technical hub of the world. San Frans tech jobs have the second-highest growth rate globally, so there is no where better to start your tech career.Whether you want to work on the next iPhone or create the next most popular social media app, San Francisco is the place to be and these 10 boot camps below will help launch your career in tech in the most famous tech city in America.
Best Coding Bootcamps in San Francisco
Kenize Academy
Cost: $0.00-$24,000
Courses: User Experince Online (12 months), Software Engineering In Person (12 Months), Front-End Web Developer Track
Time-Commitment: Full-Time
Kenzie Academy is a full-time boot camp offered to San Francisco residents online in software engineering, digital marketing, and user experience (UX) engineering. Kenzie Academy also offers its students a part-time technical support job while they are completing their program for a year. This job is a work from home position, so location is not an issue for most students. Kenzie Academy is a big supporter of reducing financial burden to student while getting an education so this part-time job program, along with income share agreements help student reduce the relief of tuition. Students work on real world projects and graduate with a diverse portfolio. Along with their own projects, you work with companies to gain valuable real-world experience. Kenzie Academy also caps their classes at 18 students. All of their instructors have years of teaching and development experince.
Hackreactor
Cost: $17,780
Courses: 12-week Online Immersive (Full-Time), 36 Week Online Immersive (Part-Time), 19 Week Online Immersive (Full-Time) Coding Boot Camps
Time-Commitment: Full-time and Part-Time
Hackreactor is one of the best coding boot camps in all of San Francisco. Since 2012, Hack Reactor has developed over 8,000 plus jobs for software engineers who have been hired by companies around the world. Thousands of software engineers are now working for 2,500 plus companies from major corporations to startups and nonprofits. Some notable companies Hack Reactor grads work at now are Google, PayPal, Apple, Amazon, and Microsoft. Hack Reactors main campus is in San Francisco, but has other locations in Austin, Los Angeles, and New York. If you are not near one of those locations, online learning is available. Students learn by short lectures followed by immediate student hands-on learning.
Nucamp
Cost: $349-$1,880
Courses: Front-End Web Development and Mobile Development, Full-Stack Web and Mobile Application Development, Web Development Fundamentals
Time Commitment: Part-Time
Nucamp is a coding Bootcamp with part-time and hybrid courses available. The mission of the boot camp is to make coding more available to any student who wants to learn, that is why it is one of the most popular boot camps in the famous tech city, San Francisco. Nucamp offers online part-time programs that include the following list of topics: Back End, SQL, DevOps with Python (16 weeks), Front End Web and Mobile Development (17 weeks), and Full Stack Web and Mobile Development (22 weeks). Nucamps 4-week introduction bootcamp covers the fundamentals of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Nucamp makes quality education accessible and affordable to all students at all levels with its online boot camps. The online boot camp includes both self-paced and actively mentored study with a small classroom size of 15 people per one instructor. Admissions to Nucamp are offered to all students who are 18 years and older with some states requiring a High School graduation or GED. Nucamp offers 1 on 1 career coaching services to all of its students as well as exclusive access to its very own nationwide job board tailored to Nucamp graduates. All graduates are prepared to enter entry-level, junior web developer jobs. To enroll in Nucamp, complete its online registration form.
Thinkful
Cost: Starts at $7,990 and qualified students are eligible for Thinkfuls ISA program and pay nothing until they get a job.
Courses: Software Engineering, Data Analytics, UX/UI Design, Data Science, Technical Project Management, Digital Marketing.
Time-Commitment: Part-Time and Full-Time over 5-6 months
Thinkful is a career accelerator that helps build high-growth careers in data science, web development and design with multiple locations across the Bay area. Thinkful students don’t learn in a classroom but rather learn via one-on-one mentorship gaining more individualized learning experience and access to a national professional network resulting in a guaranteed job in tech or your tuition back. Some of the languages and frameworks Thinkful offers are JavaScript, React, Node, Data Science, Python, SQL, UX and UI Design.
Rithm School
Cost: $0.00-$24,000
Courses: Web Development Program
Time-Commitment: Full-Time
Rithm School in San Francisco has the best job placement statistics in the area compared to other coding bootcamps. The school boasts a thorough curriculum in software engineering and features a team of experienced instructors and career placement staff. Rithm school has a reputation for excellence in the tech industry, especially in San Francisco. Graduates from Rithm School earn an average salary of $115,000 in the area along with a excellent student success rate. Throughout the course, students build a portfolio and learn many valuable coding languages. This is a full-time and in-person program, but Rithm offers free online courses for people to get started in coding without a major investment. Rithm School offers income-sharing agreements which mean students pay 17% of their monthly income for just two years after graduation. Also, students are not required to pay unless they land a tech job and earn more than $60,000.
General Assembly
Cost: Full-Time $15,950, Part-Time: $2,800-14,950, On-Demand $950
Courses: Data Science, Digital Marketing, Product Management, Python Program, Web Development.
Time Commitment: Full-Time, Part-Time, and On Demand
General Assembly has 15 campuses across 4 continents and has multiple locations near San Francisco including San Jose and Sacramento. Students learn new skills and technologies and are pushed to get hired immediately upon graduation. General Assembly helps provide students access to new skills and career paths in tech that can rival any university degree. Some of the languages and frameworks the San FRancisco class learns are JavaScript, CSS, Ruby on Rails, and Node.js. General Assembly is known for their great techniques and approaches. They are known for making everyday different, from group interactive labs and collaboration from presentations to solo work.Completing a bootcamp with General Assembly can rival a university degree and its wide range of tech courses can be adjusted for a flexible schedule for a full-time worker. Due to each individual students’ time commitment and price, the course catalog varies at the General Assembly. Individual students get expert-led training in coding, data, design, digital marketing, and more. General Assembly also offers programs to companies to get their employees up-to-date in the new tech world.
Berkeley Boot Camps
Cost: $9,995- $14,995
Courses: Data Analytics, UX/UI, Cybersecurity,
Financial Technology & part-time Digital Marketing and Technology Project Management Courses
Time-Commitment: Full-Time (12-weeks) and Part-time ( 18-24-weeks)
Applicants do not need prior experince to enroll into any Berkely Boot Camps. Once admitted, students will complete a pre-course tutorial. Berkeley Bootcamps are designed for working professionals and individuals actively pursuing a career change or advancement. The full-stack source curriculum includes HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, Bootstrap, Express.js, databases, MongoDB, MySQL and Git. The data curriculum includes programming in Excel, Python, R programming, JavaScript chartining, HTML/CSS, API interactions, SQL, Tableau, fundamental statistics and much more. Students also enjoy collaboration with other working professionals, networking opportunities while receiving hands-on experience. At the end of the boot camp, students benefit from wide range of career services positioned for success through graduation and beyond.
Coding Dojo
Cost: Full-time: $15,995, Part-Time: $ 4,995-$7,995
Courses: Software Development, Data Science
Time Commitment: Part-Time and Full-Time
Coding Dojos campus in Silicon Valley is one of San Franciscos top coding boot camps. 83.8% of 2020 graduates from Coding Dojo found a relevant job within 180 days of graduation. 91.1% of 2020 graduates found a job within a year of graduation. Coding Dojo has had over 8,000 graduates since 2012 and 83.8% of 2020 graduates found relevant jobs within 180 days of graduation. 91.1% of 2020 graduates found a relevant job within a year of graduation. The median salary for all Coding Dojo alumni in December 2020 was $69,478.
The Flatiron School
Cost: $15,000
Courses: Software Engineering, Data Science, Product Design, Cybersecurity Engineering,
Time-Commitment: Full-time, 15 weeks long, Part-time, 40 weeks long
The Flatiron school campus in San Francisco is just a short walk away from Twitter HQ. Founded in 2012 and acquired by WeWork in 2017, Flatiron school is a coding bootcamp providing software engineering and data science courses. At Flatiron school, students have the choice of either part-time or full-time courses. The full-time program has a fast-track schedule and requires lots of accountability from their students and are expected to treat their boot camp as a top priority. The full-time program is 15 weeks long and is best for students who want to lean into and participate in live lectures, a structured schedule, and learning in a community with other students. The part-time program values schedule flexibility and lets students set their own schedule. This part-time program is 40 weeks long and allows students to set their own hours with mostly recorded lectures, optional live weekly lectures, office hours, weekly check-ins with instructors and ability to chat with classmates and instructors via slack. This program is best for working professionals that need to fit the course into their already busy schedule and is available online only.
App Academy
Cost: $17,000- $28,000
Courses: Full-time software engineering program
Time-Commitment: Full-time and in-person over the course of 16 weeks
App Academy is a San Francisco based coding bootcamp founded in 2012. This full-time boot camp is a 2 minute walk from Union Square and is led by industry experts who have already landed a job at a prominent tech company who supply real-world guidance. App Academy has trained over 17,000 students in software development and does not require a payment until a graduate has landed their dream job in tech. Students can pick from one of their beautiful campuses located in either San Francisco or New York. The placement rate of 2019 Campus Software Engineering Program graduates was 95% in New York and 93% in San Francisco. A few of the 2,000 plus companies where App Academy graduates work for are: Facebook, Wayfair, Slack, Uber and more. At this program, you can become a fully-working software engineer in 16 weeks.
Always Remember
No matter what coding bootcamp you choose in San Francisco, all of these recommended bootcamps above cover a wide selection of coding courses to help start your tech career in Silicon Valley.
At the end of one of these bootcamps, you can learn everything you need to do with coding in just a short few months. Through these intense courses, students leave with skills worth years of training and experience, but boot camps are hard work. They require 70 plus hour weeks over the course of a couple of months, yet the skills students learn at a bootcamp is well worth the effort.
Unlike University degrees or other more structured courses, bootcamps are flexible. Because they only run for a few months, course instructors are constantly updating content and materials to stay up to date in the fast-paced tech world.
Moreover, San Francisco is the heart of these developments in new code, so no better place to learn.
Apply to one of these coding bootcamps above today to start your career in tech.