As the tech sector continues to grow, bootcamps are becoming an increasingly common alternative to the traditional four-year degree. Bootcamps offer students an intensive, hands-on approach to learning the essential skills and knowledge that employers look for in a candidate.

However, that isn’t to say that a bootcamp is just a quick way to pad your resume. Bootcamps provide a deep dive into the fundamentals of their areas of study. And this is accomplished with a fast-paced and intuitive format that prepares students for real-world careers in whichever fields they choose.

In this article, we’ll talk about what you’ll learn in a web development bootcamp. We’ll also go over some of the ideal qualities you should look for when choosing a web development bootcamp.

What to Expect from a Web Development Bootcamp

Programming Languages

JavaScript – If you are familiar with the field of web development, it shouldn’t be a surprise that JavaScript is at the top of this list. JavaScript is one of the core programming languages used in front-end web development. As of 2022, it was estimated that around 98% of websites used JavaScript for their front-end user interface.

JavaScript is a text-based, object-centered programming language used by web developers to create interactive websites with an enjoyable user interface. JavaScript can be used to produce dynamic content (content that updates according to the user’s needs and input), animations, games, and pretty much anything else you can think of.

Due to its functionality and ability to incorporate third-party libraries, JavaScript is the most important programming language of the internet. As such, JavaScript will be one of the most important tools in your stack.

In your web development bootcamp, you can expect to learn about how JavaScript is used to create intuitive and user-friendly GUIs (graphical user interfaces), all of the latest tools integrated into the JavaScript language, and how to run JavaScript code in multiple execution environments.

In addition to JavaScript, you will also learn about subsequent frameworks that utilize JavaScript to build other important applications:

• React.js – Rect.js, also known as React, is a library first developed by Facebook in 2011 that has become one of the most favored frameworks for building user interfaces. React’s framework utilizes individual components that can be reused and are housed within a larger component.

Because React employs distinct components that are able to carry out their own function independently of the component where they are housed, web developers have the ability to quickly and effortlessly create applications made up of the components stored in the developer’s library.

• Node.js – Although JavaScript is primarily used for creating front-end interfaces, a new back-end JS environment has been developed in recent years. More specifically, Node is a server environment that runs Javascript code.

What this means is that instead of running in a web browser, Node runs on a computer or server, giving it direct access to the machine’s files and operating system.

HTML5 – HTML, short for Hypertext Markup Language, is a standardized coding language used to determine the structure and presentation of a webpage. It is the final iteration of HTML and includes several improvements in its capabilities.

CSS3 – Cascading style sheets, or style sheets for short, is a programming language used in conjunction with HTML to construct and configure content frameworks. CSS is used to determine the appearance and style of many web page elements, including fonts, colors, tables, images, etc.

Data Structures

Data structures provide a format for developers to arrange data so that it can be retrieved and utilized quickly and efficiently. Data structures can also incorporate different logical steps to determine what kind of data should be retrieved and how it should be displayed.

Some common types of data structures include:

• Arrays – An array is a data structure that houses similar types of data together in adjacent locations that can then be referenced by providing a unique identifier to specify what kind of data needs to be retrieved from the set.

Arrays allow developers to house a data set without writing a new line of code for each piece of data. Instead, they can simply create an array and plug in their entire data set with one line.

• Linked Lists – A linked list is a data structure made up of nodes. In the case of a singly linked list, each node contains two pieces of data. The first piece of data is the information being stored within the linked list. The second piece is the address of the next node in the list.

Each node is accessed in sequential order when using this data structure. However, unlike an array, nodes do not have to be stored contiguously to be accessed in the correct order.

• Stacks – Stacks are linear data structures that operate on a basic form of logic known as LIFO or FILO (last in/first out or first in/last out).

Stacks can operate in two different ways. They can work through contiguous memory, in the form of an array. Or they can work through non-contiguous memory, in the form of a linked list. These types of data structures are often used in scenarios where the order of operations is important. This is because a stack can not move on to the next step until the previous one has been completed.

Algorithms, Databases, and Command Line Interface

Algorithms – Since the emergence of the internet, algorithms have become a part of our daily lives. Algorithms are essentially a list of operations that employ logic and calculations to process data in a specific order.

With algorithms, web developers can create systems for performing a variety of individual tasks or groups of tasks. This means that algorithms give developers the ability to create much more complex and customized pages to meet specific needs. Learning how to plan out and write algorithms is a vital tool for every developer’s toolbox

PostgreSQL – PostgreSQL, more commonly known as Postgres, is the world’s most sophisticated open-source relational database. SQL stands for “structured query language,” and it is used for storing data in an archive and retrieving it when needed.

Postgres is an important tool for web developers because it allows them to build complex applications, capable of interacting with data sets to run administrative tasks.

Next time you log in to a website and are instantly able to see your personal details and browsing activity, remember that the site’s server is most likely using Postgres to access and display that information.

Postgres is a popular choice among many businesses and startups because it is open-source and does not require expensive license fees. However, free does not always mean lower quality. Postgres was first created at the University of California, Berkeley and has been under development for nearly thirty years.

Command Line – The command line interface provides a means of communicating directly with programs and functions stored on the computer. This is accomplished by entering lines of code into the interface and executing the functions specified within the code. The computer will then respond by returning lines of code to display the results of the command it carried out.

Operations are often carried out within the command line interface in server environments, since these types of environments often do not come equipped with a GUI in order to save resources for processing power.

As a web developer, you will most likely use command lines regularly in many aspects of your work. Communicating with the computer through command lines is extremely efficient, as it gives you the ability to run large commands capable of performing detailed tasks.

Git and GitHub

Git, which is the foundation for GitHub, is a distributed version control system used by developers to track changes in a file set. As a web developer, you will often see it used for collaboration during development projects.

GitHub is an organization that provides a hosting environment for collaborators to edit and track changes to their projects. Because these projects are hosted on GitHub’s server, developers will have access to integrated tools that they can use throughout the development process.

For example, let’s say you have an operational website that is currently in use, but you want to edit a portion of the website’s code to add a new function. Rather than editing the website’s actual code and risk damaging the overall integrity of the site, developers can use GitHub to duplicate a portion of the code and work on it in a segregated environment.

This allows developers to edit the code until it is working properly. It can then be safely reintegrated into the rest of the code.

This is just one aspect of what you can accomplish with GitHub. To put it in simple terms, Git is essentially a development project management system, and GitHub is the environment or server where it functions.

What to Look for in a Web Development Bootcamp

You want to be sure you are signing up for a course that is structured around the students when choosing a web development bootcamp.

So what should you look for in a web development bootcamp?

• Experienced instructors – Your web development bootcamp course should be taught by actual developers who are experienced in programming front- and back-end JavaScript applications. Your web development bootcamp should also provide you with direct access to instructors who can answer your questions and guide you through your studies.

• Good student-teacher balance – Having too many people in the class creates difficulties for both instructors and students. Instructors are unable to recognize and address the individual needs of all the students, and students experience difficulty getting their questions answered.

Make sure you inquire about this aspect of your web development bootcamp before signing up, especially if you think you may need extra help with the material.

• Curriculum based on in-demand skills – While attending a university to earn a four-year degree ensures you will have a well-rounded and thorough education, web development bootcamps provide you with the training and skills that employers are looking for now.

Web development bootcamps are focused on teaching practical skills that you can put to immediate use in the real world.

• Employment-focused lesson plans – The best web development bootcamps care about equipping their students with the right skills to land great jobs, which is why they develop their curriculum in collaboration with employers.

By identifying the needs of employers and creating their lessons accordingly, web development bootcamps produce students who are career-ready.

• Large employer network – It’s worth repeating, so we’ll say it again! The right web development bootcamp will do everything they can to help you land a great job after graduating.

One of the best ways they can do this is by putting you in touch with their extensive network of employers. Employers love to hire students from the best web development bootcamps because they know that the curriculum is designed with their needs in mind.

• Comprehensive career services – Great web development bootcamps take the employment aspect of their programs very seriously, and they will continue to assist students until they find the right position.

Attending a Web Development Bootcamp at LearningFuze

LearningFuze offers a 14 week in-class web development bootcamp with a full-stack curriculum. This in-depth course covers the most applicable and critical aspects of web development, which means that students will be ready to start their new careers from the day they graduate.

Our curriculum is project-oriented, meaning that students can put their training to use and gain hands-on experience throughout their studies. This provides students with a significant portfolio to share with potential employers before they even start their first job.

LearningFuze also has the largest employer network of any web development bootcamp, and most of our students find a job related to their field of study within a few months of completing the course!

LearningFuze is preparing web developers for their dream careers right now! Contact LearningFuze to find out how you can get started!