Accredited Coding Bootcamps in the United States and Canada
As an alternative to traditional higher education, coding bootcamps don’t usually play by the same rules as colleges and universities, which have to undergo an accreditation process to be authorized to award degrees. Accredited coding bootcamps are different. While they do not confer degrees, they do voluntarily submit their programs to rigorous oversight.
Accredited coding bootcamps are a relatively new phenomenon. Accreditation gives bootcamps a path outside of the Council on Integrity in Results Reporting (CIRR) to prove the quality of their educational product. But are accredited bootcamps better than CIRR coding bootcamps? This article breaks down the bootcamps that are accredited, including accredited online coding bootcamps, and explores the advantages of the various forms of program validation.
Are Coding Bootcamps Accredited?
The vast majority of coding bootcamps are not accredited, and until recently, no bootcamps held accreditation. The six bootcamps that are accredited under the United States or Canadian higher education system have done so to bring their programs into closer alignment with more heavily regulated destinations for postsecondary study, such as four-year universities.
The traditional purpose of accreditation is to ensure that all programs of the same type are following a trusted and standardized set of guidelines. While accredited coding bootcamps are rare, it is important to note that being unaccredited is not the same as being unregulated. To a large degree, bootcamps regulate themselves by publishing student success data, which is a valuable measure of quality in its own right.
6 Accredited Coding Bootcamps: At a Glance
| Accredited Coding Bootcamp | Year Accredited | Accreditation Source | Accreditation Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Codeup | 2022 | Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS) | Accredited for non-degree, career-oriented tech programs at the post-high school level |
| Coding Dojo | 2023 | Higher Learning Commission (HLC) | Accredited by way of Colorado Technical University, which acquired Coding Dojo in 2023 |
| Juno College of Technology | 2016 | Private Career Colleges Act | Accredited in Ontario, Canada as a career college, based on legislation passed in 2005 |
| Kenzie Academy | 2021 | New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE) | Accredited by way of Southern New Hampshire University, which acquired Kenzie Academy in 2021 |
| NYC Data Science Academy | 2021 | Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET) | First data science bootcamp to be federally accredited by an agency recognized by the US Department of Education |
| Turing School of Software & Design | 2020 | Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET) | First coding bootcamp to be federally accredited by an agency recognized by the US Department of Education |
6 Accredited Bootcamps: A Closer Look
The coding bootcamps that are accredited include Codeup, Coding Dojo, Juno College, Kenzie Academy, NYC Data Science Academy, and Turing School. Further information about each of these accredited bootcamps and the agencies that accredited them is provided below.
Codeup | MSA-CESS
- Headquarters: San Antonio, TX
- Program Location(s): San Antonio, Dallas, Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Web Development, Data Science, Cloud Administration
Texas-based Codeup frames itself as a career accelerator for aspiring web developers, data scientists, and cloud administrators. It only offers full-time programs, which last between 15 to 20 weeks. The Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools (MSA-CESS) is one of seven agencies responsible for accrediting US higher education institutions at the regional level.
Coding Dojo | HLC
- Headquarters: Bellevue, WA
- Program Location(s): Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Software Development, Data Science, Cyber Security
Coding Dojo is best known for its three-stack full stack development program, which trains future software developers in Python, JavaScript, and their choice of Java or C#/.NET. Available formats include a full-time 16-week program and two part-time options. Its accreditation status is linked to its parent school Colorado Technical University, which acquired Coding Dojo in 2023.
Juno College of Technology | Private Career Colleges Act
- Headquarters: Toronto, Canada
- Program Location(s): Toronto, Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Web Development
Juno College of Technology’s flagship web development curriculum focuses on JavaScript and React and can be completed in 13 or 34 weeks. The only Canadian bootcamp on this list, Juno College of Technology is accredited by a different process than bootcamps in the United States. Under the 2005 Private Career Colleges Act, Juno is regulated by the province of Ontario.
Kenzie Academy | NECHE
- Headquarters: Indianapolis, IN
- Program Location(s): Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Software Engineering, Full Stack Web Development, Cyber Security, UX Design, Python With Applied Blockchain, Amazon Career Choice
Since being acquired by Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) in 2021, Kenzie Academy has worked to fit its programs into the US higher education system. Its accredited online coding bootcamps are classified as certificate programs and can be taken for college credit. SNHU’s accreditation means that Kenzie Academy students can apply for federal financial aid.
NYC Data Science Academy | ACCET
- Headquarters: New York City, NY
- Program Location(s): New York City, Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Data Science, Data Analytics
NYC Data Science Academy is the only accredited coding bootcamp that specializes in data-oriented careers. The bootcamps teach students how to use Python and R for either data science or data analytics. In order to earn accreditation from Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training, NYC Data Science Academy passed a rigorous peer review process.
Turing School of Software & Design | ACCET
- Headquarters: Denver, CO
- Program Location(s): Online
- Accredited Bootcamp Programs: Front End Engineering, Backend Engineering
Turing School is an accredited online coding bootcamp with seven-month and nine-month programs, all of which are full-time. Students work 60 to 80 hours per week as they strive to master either front end or backend development. The programs’ rigor led to their accreditation, and the school is working under ACCET to become eligible to receive federal financial aid.
Alternatives to Accreditation for Coding Bootcamps
Formal accreditation is just one avenue that coding bootcamps can pursue to validate the quality of their coding courses to students, employers, and tech industry observers. Short of getting an official stamp of approval from a government-affiliated agency, here are a few ways that non-accredited coding bootcamps can increase the credibility of what they offer:
- University partnerships. Some bootcamp providers specialize in designing accelerated tech programs for the continuing education or professional studies division of a university. These university coding bootcamps, which include Berkeley Coding Boot Camp and UT Austin Boot Camps, benefit from having the names of world-renowned institutions of higher learning attached to their curriculums.
- Robust career services and job guarantees. The credibility of the bootcamp model is predicated on positive student outcomes, and the ability of graduates to find relevant jobs is arguably as good as accreditation. Some bootcamps commit lifetime job search resources and networking opportunities to their graduates while some bootcamps even guarantee jobs to graduates who meet certain conditions.
- Built-in apprenticeships and internships. Instead of job guarantees, some bootcamps build a training-to-work pipeline into their courses, where students transition from an intensive program straight into an apprenticeship or into completing real-world projects for an actual client. Such hands-on experience is as good as gold on the job market, and these opportunities bring an extra layer of credibility to bootcamps that can offer them.
- Self-reported job outcomes. Bootcamps like General Assembly and Flatiron School seek to establish the credibility of their curriculums and the strength of their career services by publishing annual reports about the success of their graduates, including job placement rates and average salaries. This way, prospective bootcamp students can get direct insight into the quality of the program by looking at metrics that matter to them.
- The Council on Integrity in Results Reporting (CIRR). CIRR is an organization that uses a set of objective standards to validate the graduation and employment outcomes of member bootcamps. CIRR membership resembles accreditation in that it serves as a kind of quality control, which reassures prospective students about the accuracy of CIRR reports, holds member schools accountable, and signals to the industry that CIRR coding bootcamps are more serious than non-members about transparency.
CIRR Coding Bootcamps
There are 11 current CIRR coding bootcamps. Of these members, Codeup and Turing School are also on the list of accredited coding bootcamps. The table below shows the latest outcomes for both current and former CIRR members, a total of 29 schools. The employment rate reflects the percentage of graduates who found jobs within 180 days of finishing their program.
| CIRR Coding Bootcamp | Bootcamp Status | Latest CIRR Outcomes | Program Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ada ITW | Current CIRR Member | Graduation Rate: 27.1% Employment Rate: 46.1% Average Salary: $8,478 |
Year: 2020 Location: Buenos Aires, Argentina Program: Front End / Backend Development Graduates: 77 |
| Bloc | Former CIRR Member, acquired by Thinkful | Graduation Rate: 34.3% Employment Rate: 75.8% Average Salary: $65,500 |
Year: 2019 Location: Online Program: Designer Track (Self-Paced) Graduates: 65 |
| Bottega | Former CIRR Member | Graduation Rate: 95.7% Employment Rate: 70.5% Average Salary: $46,380 |
Year: 2018 Location: Salt Lake City, UT Program: Full Stack Python & React Graduates: 46 |
| Byte Academy | Former CIRR Member | Graduation Rate: 81.8% Employment Rate: 66.7% Average Salary: $88,400 |
Year: 2019 Location: New York City, NY Program: Immersive Graduates: 9 |
| Code Chrysalis | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 93% Employment Rate: 72.5% Average Salary: $42,382 |
Year: 2020 Location: Tokyo, Japan Program: The Immersive Bootcamp Graduates: 40 |
| Code Fellows | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 83.0% Employment Rate: 80% Average Salary: $70,106 |
Year: 2016 Location: Seattle, WA Program: All programs Graduates: 106 |
| Code Platoon | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 93% Employment Rate: 77.4% Average Salary: $85,500 |
Year: 2022 Location: Chicago, IL Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 65 |
| Codesmith | Current CIRR Member | Graduation Rate: 94.2% Employment Rate: 80.1% Average Salary: $127,500 |
Year: 2022 Location: Online Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 301 |
| Codeup | Current CIRR Member | Graduation Rate: 87.5% Employment Rate: 76.2% Average Salary: $57,120 |
Year: 2022 Location: Dallas, TX Program: Full Stack Web Development – Java Graduates: 21 |
| Digital Crafts | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 96.0% Employment Rate: 91.0% Average Salary: $62,400 |
Year: 2017 Location: Atlanta, GA Program: Full Stack Immersive Graduates: 48 |
| Eleven Fifty Academy | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 100.0% Employment Rate: 81.3% Average Salary: $51,750 |
Year: 2018 Location: Fishers, IN Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 38 |
| Epicodus | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 54.3% Employment Rate: 55.2% Average Salary: $55,000 |
Year: 2020 Location: Portland, OR Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 67 |
| Fullstack Academy | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 100.0% Employment Rate: 79.4% Average Salary: $70,000 |
Year: 2019 Location: Chicago, IL Program: Fullstack Academy Immersive Graduates: 63 |
| Galvanize | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 100.0% Employment Rate: 66.7% Average Salary: $105,000 |
Year: 2019 Location: Austin, TX Program: Data Science Immersive Graduates: 9 |
| Grace Hopper Program | Former CIRR member, part of Fullstack Academy | Graduation Rate: 100.0% Employment Rate: 84.3% Average Salary: $90.000 |
Year: 2019 Location: New York City, NY Program: Web Development Immersive Graduates: 102 |
| Hack Reactor | Former CIRR member, acquired by Galvanize | Graduation Rate: 69.7% Employment Rate: 81.3% Average Salary: $84,240 |
Year: 2019 Location: Austin, TX Program: Software Engineering Immersive Graduates: 32 |
| Hack Upstate | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 91.7% Employment Rate: 66.7% Average Salary: $50,003 |
Year: 2019 Location: Syracuse, NY Program: Full Stack JavaScript Web Development Graduates: 9 |
| Hackbright Academy | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 99% Employment Rate: 71% Average Salary: $88,000 |
Year: 2016 Location: San Francisco, CA Program: All programs Graduates: 79 |
| Hacktiv8 | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 95.8% Employment Rate: 57.1% Average Salary: $6,046 |
Year: 2022 Location: Jakarta, Indonesia Program: Full Time Data Science Graduates: 91 |
| Lambda School | Former CIRR member, now Bloom Institute of Technology | Graduation Rate: 51.4% Employment Rate: 85.9% Average Salary: $60,000 |
Year: 2018 Location: Online Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 71 |
| Launch Academy | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 59.0% Employment Rate: 82.6% Average Salary: $72,500 |
Year: 2022 Location: Boston, MA Program: Fundamentals of Web Development Graduates: 23 |
| Project Shift | Former CIRR member, now Parsity | Graduation Rate: 65.0% Employment Rate: 100.0% Average Salary: $66,240 |
Year: 2019 Location: Durham, NC Program: Full Stack Software Engineering Fellowship Graduates: 14 |
| Sabio | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 92.9% Employment Rate: 82% Average Salary: $65,000 |
Year: 2016 Location: Culver City, CA Program: Full Stack Software Development Graduates: 39 |
| The Software Guild | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 72.0% Employment Rate: 47.8% Average Salary: $60,008 |
Year: 2020 Location: Minneapolis, MN Program: Full Stack Web Development Graduates: 23 |
| Tech Elevator | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 85.7% Employment Rate: 94.4% Average Salary: $65,000 |
Year: 2022 Location: Cincinnati, OH Program: Full Stack Software Development Graduates: 21 |
| The Tech Academy | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 88.5% Employment Rate: 69.2% Average Salary: $55,016 |
Year: 2021 Location: Online Program: C# and .NET Graduates: 13 |
| Thinkful | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 12.5% Employment Rate: 77.8% Average Salary: $60,450 |
Year: 2019 Location: Online Program: Data Analytics (Self-Paced) Graduates: 9 |
| Turing School of Software & Design | Current CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 62.1% Employment Rate: 74.7% Average Salary: $85,000 |
Year: 2022 Location: Online Program: Back End Engineering Graduates: 75 |
| V School | Former CIRR member | Graduation Rate: 79.2% Employment Rate: 57.9% Average Salary: $55,000 |
Year: 2016 Location: Salt Lake City, UT Program: Full Stack JavaScript Web Development Graduates: 19 |
Benefits of Accreditation for Bootcamps
- Institutional validation. Accredited coding bootcamps are able to claim legitimacy within the American or Canadian higher education system in a way that non-accredited coding schools, and even CIRR coding bootcamps, cannot. This can serve as a competitive advantage in an accredited bootcamp’s efforts to recruit students.
- Oversight and curricular review. An accredited coding bootcamp has to undergo a review process every few years to ensure it remains in adherence to accreditation standards. While this may seem like a hassle, it holds bootcamps accountable to a set of procedures designed to show that they’re serious about doing what’s best for students.
- Employer recognition. When you go on the job market, you need to be prepared for some potential employers to have conservative ideas about where candidates receive their education. A recruiter with a conventional mindset may give a longer look to a graduate from an accredited coding bootcamp than to one from a non-accredited school.
- Eligibility for federal financial aid. The question of how to pay for a coding bootcamp is less stressful when federal funds are in play. While accreditation doesn’t guarantee federal financial aid for coding bootcamps, it does increase a bootcamp’s chances of gaining access. Kenzie Academy has taken this extra step for its students, who are eligible for funding through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
Benefits of Alternatives to Accreditation for Bootcamps
- Internal regulation. The fact that one-third of the accredited coding bootcamps are also active members of CIRR testifies to the respect this organization carries within the bootcamp industry itself. The attempt by CIRR coding bootcamps to regulate themselves allows the industry to cut out the middleman and speak more directly to students.
- Control over the curriculum. In teaching coding skills, most bootcamps prefer to remain optimally responsive to changes in the tech industry, which the review process that comes with accreditation is not conducive to. In-demand technologies are changing all the time, and bootcamps don’t want to be stuck focusing on a programming language, web development framework, or career path that’s no longer in vogue.
- Student-focused flexibility. Accreditation is biased towards full-time programs and other forms of stability. But one of the most attractive features of bootcamp education, from part-time programs to virtual classes, is program flexibility. To meet students where they are, both in-person and online coding bootcamps need to be creative about finding ways for students to squeeze coursework into their busy lives.
- Collaboration with tech companies. Whereas accreditation pulls bootcamps closer to the education system, non-accreditation helps bootcamps maintain closer ties with the tech industry. By doing outreach with tech companies and asking them what they need, non-accredited coding bootcamps can expand their network of employer partners and put their students into direct contact with potential future employers.
Are Accredited Coding Bootcamps Better?
Accredited coding bootcamps are not necessarily better or worse than CIRR coding bootcamps or, for that matter, any other bootcamp. There are plenty of trusted bootcamps, such as General Assembly and App Academy, that are able to sell students on the quality of their programs through positive alumni reviews and repetition of a winning formula.
Accreditation is an important signal, but it isn’t a secret ingredient that will launch students into their dream job. It’s just one of many factors a prospective student should consider when choosing a program. Whatever bootcamp does the dirty work of teaching you the technical skills you wish to learn and giving you the tools you need to find a job is the one for you.
Accredited Coding Bootcamps FAQ
Accreditation by the Accrediting Council for Continuing Education & Training (ACCET) is good for specialized forms of higher education, including trade associations, intensive language programs, and non-degree-granting coding bootcamps. ACCET was founded in 1974 and has been accrediting schools under the banner of the US Department of Education since 1978.
The easiest way to validate the accreditation for a bootcamp program is to look up the accreditation agency on the US Department of Education website. From there, you can read about the agency’s history, its standards, and what other institutions have earned accreditation under its auspices.
Coding bootcamps that accept financial aid include Turing School, Claim Academy, and Kenzie Academy. Turing School is one of the bootcamps that accept the GI Bill, but only veterans are eligible. Claim Academy partners with state and federal programs for low-income student aid, and Kenzie Academy is one of the few bootcamps eligible for Title IV federal financial aid.
Yes, 72 percent of employers respect bootcamp graduates about as much as college graduates in terms of overall job readiness, according to an Indeed study from 2017. A post-pandemic report by The Burning Glass Institute found that employers are ditching degree requirements in favor of skill-based assessments, which is exactly what bootcamps are geared toward.
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