Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rithm School has temporarily transitioned our program to a fully remote model. We love in person education and we think there is a lot of value in being physically there to explain something when you get stuck. However, given the current state of things, an in person experience is not currently possible. These past few weeks, we have worked hard to make the online experience as close as possible to the in person experience that has been so successful. So here are some frequently asked questions about how our program currently works remotely.
Are the lectures live or recorded videos?
Live! But we also have recordings. Just like the in person class, we think it's important to go over the material with the class live online. And just like in the in person class, we want to make the lecture as interactive as possible. We call on students and expect a lot of engagement during the lecture. However, we know that certain concepts might not always click while you're listening remotely, so we also record all of our live lectures for students to review later.
Additionally, Colt Steele recorded videos of himself giving all of the lectures from our Rithm School curriculum for an online format. So if you ever want to review a topic before we cover it in class, or if you ever get confused by a topic that we covered in a live lecture, then you can always watch our prerecorded videos for another perspective.
What technology do you use to present a lecture for a remote class?
We have used zoom to give live lectures to the class and we have been pleased with the technology. More on that in future questions.
What happens if I have a question during lecture?
Please ask! We know questions come up while we're lecturing and we want to encourage you to ask as many questions as you would in person. Zoom has a great feature that allows participants to raise their hand. That let's us know that you have a question and it's easy for us to see so we can respond quickly.
Are remote classes larger? Will there be 50 or 60 students?
No. Like any Rithm School class, we want to keep class sizes small. We think that it's best for everyone if you can get individual attention and get help when you need it. So we're committed to keeping class sizes small even if we do a class that's remote.
Will I get to interact with other students?
Yes! Our in person classroom experience involves a lot of pair programming and we are doing the same thing in our remote classes. After we finish lecture, there is typically a lab for you to work on with a partner. We will pair you up with a partner and use the zoom breakout rooms to give you a place to collaborate. If you ever have a question while you're working together, an instructor can join the breakout room to help you out.
How will I know if I'm doing well? How do I get feedback?
Just like our in person class, we think it's important that you get quality feedback from experienced engineers so that you know and use the best practices when you're coding. For every lab assignment we give, we have checkpoints where we have you pause and get a live code review from one of the instructors to make sure your code looks good.
Additionally, at the end of every week at Rithm School, we have an assessment that helps us wrap up the week and see what students are understanding from the material. The assessments are hand graded by us and includes a lot of written feedback. If the class is in person or remote, you should have a good idea about where you stand and what you need to work on in the class.
How do company projects work if the class is online?
They work quite well. We're still committed to doing company projects in a remote format. One of our classes is currently going through company projects now and it has been very successful. Many development jobs are remote now, and collaborating as a team on a software project is easy with tools like github, zoom, etc. We think the company projects work just as well remotely as in person.
Will there be job support?
Yes, Rithm School's curriculum includes 2 weeks of job preparation. The job preparation is led by our career coach, Zach DeRossette. He will give you the tools you need to effectively network, promote yourself, find interviews, and negotiate that first offer. Zach continues to coach and support our students after they graduate so that they have help and advice during their job search.
Get in touch
We're very proud of our in person classroom experience and we feel like we've brought all the best parts of that experience to a remote classroom as well. If you have more questions, please get in touch with us and schedule an informational call to find out more.
