If you’re interested in learning how to code online, you’ve probably researched a lot of coding schools — from Skillcrush (that’s us!), to General Assembly, to Codecademy’s free program, Udacity’s Introduction to Programming Nanodegree, and more. Now that we have a few reviews of other coding schools under our belt, we thought it was only fair that we do an honest Skillcrush Break Into Tech review, too.

In this post, I’m going to review Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course, so you can decide if it could be a fit for you and your career goals.

Why Skillcrush Break Into Tech? It’s our most comprehensive package for beginners that is self-paced, affordable, and can get you job-ready. We stand behind our program, but we also wanted to give an honest assessment so that you can make an informed decision about whether or not it’s a good option for learning to code.

Below, you’ll find the results of my research and be able to see for yourself whether Skillcrush’s Break into Tech is a good fit for you.

Table of Contents: Skillcrush Break Into Tech Review

1. What is Skillcrush?
2. What is the cost of Skillcrush Break into Tech?
3. How long does it take to complete Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course?
4. Do you receive lifetime access to course materials?
5. How beginner-friendly is Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course?
6. Is Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course project-based?
7. Does Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course provide student community and support?
8. Does Skillcrush Have a Job Guarantee?
9. What are the refund policies at Skillcrush?
10. Is there a commitment to inclusivity and anti-racism at Skillcrush?
11. Skillcrush Key Takeaways

A quick answer to your question: Is Skillcrush legit?

Looking for a quick summary of the Skillcrush Break into Tech review? Here’s the tl;dr:

If you value an online coding school that promises a job guarantee if you can’t find employment in tech within six months, offers a large number of courses and unlimited time to complete them as well as lifetime access to course materials, and is actively pursuing inclusivity and anti-racism policies, Skillcrush is a great fit for you.

Skillcrush alumni go on to start new careers as designers, developers, and more, and find success and fulfillment doing full-time work, running freelance businesses, and pursuing other flexible and lucrative careers. You can read some of their stories here: Skillcrush Reviews & Success Stories 💫

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What is Skillcrush?

As a student looking for online coding schools, you have a lot of options. While many online learning programs can teach you how to code for free, they sometimes lack the instructor support and career mentorship that a paid online course can offer. If you’re going to pay to learn how to code online, which learning platforms and coding schools can you trust to teach you what you need to know to build a career?

Let’s look closer at what Skillcrush has to offer. 😉

Skillcrush is an online coding school that offers paid and free courses for students interested in learning coding and other technical skills. For a taste of the curriculum and Skillcrush experience, sign up for our free online Coding Camp.

Here’s Skillcrush’s mission statement, pasted from our About page:

We believe that technology doesn’t have to be so hard—and that tech is a tool that anyone can use. Our goal is to improve our students’ quality of life through digital empowerment and skills to enter high-earning and flexible careers. Our community of students, alumni, and instructors will support you as you go from total tech newbie to tech pro. We are specifically focused on getting more women, people of color, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, people without college degrees, parents and caretakers, or people who’ve taken long breaks from the workforce into the tech world. If you feel like there’s no place for you in tech because you’ve never seen someone like you represented, we understand—and want you to know that you are so, so welcome here.

Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course is a comprehensive job-training program that includes front end development, visual design, web design, full stack development, WordPress development, and career training courses on freelancing and preparing for the job market (plus other add-ons available for purchase). Each class includes multiple true-to-life projects to add to your portfolio.

When you enroll as a Skillcrush Break Into Tech student, you’ll select a “Fast Track” in either design or web development, and your course of study will be customized to help you become “job ready” in that field. The fast tracks specifically prepare you for a career as a designer or as a front end web developer, with lots of flexibility to learn skills in other niches (such as user experience and digital marketing, which are add-ons you can purchase with your Break Into Tech course).

We’ll base this Skillcrush Break Into Tech review on the following factors:

• cost
• pacing
• lifetime access to course material
• beginner friendliness
• whether courses are project based
• support and community
• refund policies
• inclusion and anti-racism

What is the cost of Skillcrush Break into Tech?

How much it costs to take an online coding program is the most important concern for a lot of people. An online learning course can cost anywhere from $0 to more than $15,000. Whether you just want to dip your toes into the programming waters or you have current financial commitments but want to change careers, cost is absolutely going to be an important factor in your decision.

Skillcrush charges a one-time fee of $1,599 or 12 monthly installments of $149 for the Break Into Tech program, which includes a bundle of courses in visual design, web design, front end development, full stack development, WordPress development, and career training and career support.

Skillcrush also offers Break Into Tech students four additional add-on courses for purchase: Advanced CSS Layouts ($199 for Break Into Tech alumni) and $249 each for Python for Web Apps and Data, User Experience, and Digital Marketing.

Skillcrush offers special discounts for people who are unemployed full-time students, and current or former military service members. If any of these describe you, you’re encouraged to email hello@skillcrush.com to ask if you qualify for a discount.

How long does it take to complete Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course?

Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech program is self-paced — you control how quickly or slowly you move through the course materials and projects. Most students take 6–12 months to complete the Break Into Tech course working 1–2 hours a day.

Skillcrush recommends spending at least six months to complete the course to allow plenty of time for skill retention, freelance work, and completing the bigger projects — even if you have more time to devote and you can work faster.

Because Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course works on a one-time fee or installation basis, you don’t have to worry that you’ll pay more if it takes you longer to complete it than you thought. Whether you complete the course in six months or one year, the total tuition is the same, so there’s no need to rush through the course in order to save money.

📌 Check out our course FAQs for more info!

Do you receive lifetime access to course materials?

Another factor to consider is whether you retain access to all of the course materials after you graduate. While the information seems easy to remember while you’re learning and actively practicing, it’s easy to forget things over time. A program that allows you to look back at your course materials is important, not just to refresh your memory, but also if you want to revisit your lessons after a long break.

Skillcrush guarantees lifetime access to all of your course materials as soon as you sign up and even after you graduate (as long as you make all your payments and don’t end up getting a refund). Whether it takes you six months, one year, or ten years to finish the Break Into Tech course, you’ll never lose access to your lessons, ability to get instructor feedback, or career and instructor support. Once you join Skillcrush, you have access to everything Break Into Tech-related until the end of time (or the Internet!).

How beginner-friendly is Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course?

If you’re thinking about taking the plunge and becoming a designer or developer, you’re bound to wonder if you can take these courses even if you don’t know anything about coding or design work. That’s a question almost all beginners have — and we have an easy answer!

Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech program requires no prior tech experience and is designed for total beginners. Skillcrush believes that anyone can learn tech skills and tries to make courses non-jargony and fun to encourage newcomers.

📌 Related: How Long Does It Take to Become a Web Developer?

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Are Skillcrush’s courses project-based?

Besides cost and beginner-friendliness, the next biggest worry potential students have is landing a job after graduation. One important aspect to consider when choosing an online course is whether or not the course is project-based — doing hands-on projects as you learn means that you can build a portfolio to show potential employers what you know. Because hiring managers want to see real-world projects and portfolios, courses that offer plenty of projects can help when it comes to finding a job after you graduate.

Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course offers multiple projects per class. There are 14 courses included in Break Into Tech, and all together that means you’ll have the option to complete 15+ projects by the time you’ve graduated. (That said, depending on your goals, you may not end up taking every single class or doing every single project!)

Sample projects include: building a portfolio website, making a dynamic gallery that showcases data, building a hotel booking site, designing a logo, creating a WordPress site, making a chatbot, and making content accessible on desktop, mobile, and tablets.

Does Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course program provide student community and support?

While learning can definitely be fun, it can also be hard, and knowing you have access to a community of others going through the same challenges is a huge help. When it comes to learning to code online, students often ask: will I go through this process alone? Will I be able to talk to other students and receive the support I need? The good news is that Skillcrush offers support and community for students.

Skillcrush has a Slack community of students and instructors. You can connect to your classmates through the online community when you’re working on your lessons and get answers to your questions in minutes. After you graduate, you can access the Skillcrush Alumni Group to find jobs, ask questions, pitch ideas, and more.

Skillcrush’s Slack channels are a great way to network and connect with fellow students

If you’re shy, you can ask your instructor directly for feedback on your work

In addition to a student community, you can join live Q&A sessions to chat face-to-face with instructors, and ask unlimited questions by email. If you need reassurance that you’re understanding the material but are shy about posting on Slack, you can request in-lesson feedback from instructors — where you submit your work privately to your instructor — and ask questions about projects to make sure you’re on the right track.

If you’re looking for career support, you can also meet with your Career Counselor in 1-on-1 video chats to discuss career goals, get help with job searches, and practice interviewing.

What is Skillcrush’s Job Guarantee?

Skillcrush offers a Job Guarantee for the technical skills training portion of its Break Into Tech course, which is called the “Career Track.” Skillcrush’s job search training and coaching program is called the “Get Hired Track,” and it comes with a job guarantee.

You read that right — if you’re unable to find a job six months after starting your job search and following the job search process that Skillcrush has provided, we’ll refund you for the Get Hired Track portion of Skillcrush Break Into Tech ($899).

What are the refund policies at Skillcrush?

You’ve done all of your research, decided what online coding school to go with, chosen which course you want to take first, signed up, paid, logged in for the first time, and then realized that this isn’t what you were expecting. Can you really request a refund now?

With Skillcrush, you’re eligible for a full refund within the first 14 days of the program under Skillcrush’s Satisfaction Guarantee. In addition, if you complete your coursework within 12 months and you are unable to at least make your money back ($1599, the cost of the program), then we’ll refund you in full.

Is there a commitment to inclusivity and anti-racism at Skillcrush?

At Skillcrush, we believe it’s critically important to recognize the social and economic injustices that fall disproportionately on Black communities, Indigenous communities, and other people of color. A company’s stance on social issues reflects their values, which is worth keeping in mind when you decide which companies to support.

At Skillcrush, we haven’t always done the necessary work to decenter whiteness and put anti-racism efforts at the forefront of all we do — and let’s be honest, who gets to learn tech skills and work in this massively influential and lucrative industry is a big deal. Since 2020, we’ve made it one of our top 3 company goals, and each team here spends time and resources each week figuring out what it really means to decenter whiteness and be a truly inclusive company.

From Adda Birnir, our founder and CEO:

Skillcrush has elevated our commitment to anti-racism to the highest levels within our company operations: it’s now one of three company goals (the other two being to maintain a sustainable business and get more students making more money), and we’ve amended our company mission for the first time since our founding to include anti-racist language.

Skillcrush strives to build consciousness about diversity, inclusion, and anti-racism within every aspect of the company, increase diversity on the management team, create an actively anti-racist culture at Skillcrush where BIPOC staffers thrive, steward our business resources towards companies whose anti-racist values align with ours, and continue to deepen our understanding of media representations of BIPOC, and the ways in which we must actively dismantle racism in all aspects of our product design, curriculum, and marketing.

📌 Read more on Skillcrush’s Long-Term Plan for Anti-Racism.

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Skillcrush Key Takeaways

Here’s a brief list of the key takeaways for Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course:

In terms of Affordability and Cost, Skillcrush is affordable for a bootcamp that includes so much course material and support.

If we’re looking at Pacing, Skillcrush has a big advantage if you have a lot going on in your life. With Skillcrush, you can take as long as you need without racking up a higher bill.

When it comes to Lifetime Access to materials, Skillcrush provides lifetime access to all aspects of the Break Into Tech course, including quizzes, instructor feedback, and Q&A sessions.

Skillcrush is Beginner-Friendly with no prior programming experience required — we’ll teach you everything you need to be job-ready.

If you want a program with lots of Project-Based practice, Skillcrush offers students multiple projects per course — 15+ for the Break Into Tech program.

Skillcrush provides Student Support and a Student Community via Slack and the Skillcrush platform.

If you’re worried about finding a job on your own and want the security of a Job Guarantee, Skillcrush’s Break Into Tech course has you covered.

If you’re prone to buyer’s remorse, you’ll be relieved to know that Skillcrush has a 14-day Refund Policy.

Finally, if Inclusivity and Anti-Racism are important to you, know that Skillcrush is actively aiming to be inclusive and anti-racist as a company (and sharing our progress).

To recap, when you’re looking for an online coding program, it’s important to keep in mind your preferred pace, your needs, and what environment you learn best in. In the end, the program that matches your budget, learning style, and goals is the one you’re going to learn the most from (and enjoy).

📌 Related:

• Should You Learn To Code With Udemy? A Udemy Review
• Should You Learn To Code With Codecademy? A Codecademy Review
• Udacity Nanodegree Review: Is A Udacity Nanodegree Worth It?

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