Learning to code remotely: Dennis’ story

Hello, my name is Dennis Neumann, I’m 38 years old and I’m originally from Germany. Currently, I’m working full-time while completing the Le Wagon Web Development course in the part-time remote format.

I’m an aviation enthusiast, having a background working in the field as well. I hold a private pilot license, so in my spare time I fly as much as possible. Nothing beats flying above the clouds. On the other hand, I’m very passionate about technology, and more recently, coding.

I’m currently doing the bootcamp on the side, so I’m still working full-time as the Director of Engineering within the aviation field. The company that I work for does refurbishments and modifications of cabins in private jets. There, I’m responsible for the certification department. Along with the team that I lead, we certify all of the modification that our company does, ensuring that we’re in compliance with aviation law and regulations.

Before joining Le Wagon, I had done some coding, but I wouldn’t say that I was very knowledgable in the field. I had done some courses online for about two weeks, but nothing was really sticking. That’s when I decided that this was not something that I could learn on my own, and the rest is history.

I did these online course about two years ago. After that I got a little off track, but last year I read a news article about a woman who did a bootcamp. I found this extremely interesting as I had always thought that coding was only available in university courses. After having done some further research, I decided to go forward with Le Wagon, as for me, it had the best option with regards to content and the course format.

Currently, I’m in week 16 out of 24 so I’m very much looking forward to our project weeks. With this being said, so far, the best part for me has been the challenges. Although they can be quite difficult and frustrating at times, it’s such a great feeling as you really practice your skills and try to tackle those challenges. It’s like solving a puzzle where you lose track of time, and truly enjoy the process. For me this is the sign that it’s time well spent. We work with a ‘buddy system’ which is a really great process. You get to exchange knowledge and work together, sort of learning off of each other.

Of course, throughout the bootcamp there are ups and downs. Sometimes there are topics that you don’t really understand at first, but eventually it clicks. I also really like the teaching process, where the teachers and TAs don’t give you the answer, but guide you, pushing you to solve the problems in the end. This is a really rewarding process and you learn something new and truly understand why the outcomes are what they are.

I actually had the option to do the bootcamp remotely or in person as I live in Berlin, but I really enjoy the remote format. It’s a great experience to be able to connect with people from a variety of different countries. I have 24 classmates and some of which are from Norway, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and London!

In terms of a typical week, I watch the lecture on Monday after work and complete my flashcards where I review the content on Wednesdays. Then on Tuesday and Thursday evenings we dive into the challenges which is the process in which we work with our buddies. Finally, on Saturday, everything comes together as we have a full day to learn, going from A to Z.

I chose to do the remote option as this saves me a great amount of time. You have to be punctual with these courses, so removing the aspect of commuting to campus was a bonus for me. This allows me to better balance by work and learning life.

I’m very happy with having chosen the remote option and definitely don’t have any regrets! So far, I don’t feel like learning remotely has any affect on my learning experience or makes me feel as though I’m missing something.

Honestly, for me, in the short-term, it’s really important to keep practicing and stay sharp with my new skill set. On the other hand, in the long-term, I’m looking into how I can utilize my new skills in my current role. I’m also looking into developing some ideas and testing out whether or not I can make them come to life. I’m looking into merging my two passions: coding and aviation and eventually, I may even start my own company!

Don’t think about it for too long, just do it. This learning experience will open up so many different doors for you. Looking into my current classmates, many of them do not have any experience coding, and that hasn’t stoped them from getting the same outcome as someone who had this previous knowledge. They’re still enjoying the ride.

Everyone who joins Le Wagon is in the same boat, so they all have an immense amount of compassion. This sense of community follows through to the alumni side of things. There’s this huge community that you can tap into as well as additional resources. The bootcamp is therefore an easy way to get started in the industry.

I really like my experience at Le Wagon and I’m very happy that I joined the bootcamp. The outcomes are already paying off, you get instant rewards starting from day one.