Full-Time vs. Part-Time Tech Programs: Which One’s Right for You?

You’ve done your research, you’ve double-checked the reviews, and you’ve made the decision: a bootcamp’s right for you. There’s just one last question to answer: should you study full-time or part-time?

So let’s dive in. Here’s all you need to know to choose the type of program that will fit your needs.

The TL;DR

We’re going to get into more detail below, but to determine the best coding bootcamp schedule for you, here’s the data for our Software Engineering program that’ll help you make your decision:

How much time do you have?

We’ll get into the more granular differences between a full-time and part-time program below, but we need to start with the main difference that’ll help you figure out how to choose a coding bootcamp: the hours you’ll put in.

For example, we have both full-time and part-time Software Engineering programs at TripleTen (and will soon have full- and part-time Cyber Security programs). The part-time programs are flexible coding bootcamps that ask students to set aside 20 hours per week_{If You Have Enough Time For This, You Have Enough Time for a Bootcamp}, while the full-time versions asks students to dedicate 40 hours per week.

But before you go counting your free hours to see how many you really have to study, we’ll save you some effort:

Just answer one question: Do you work full-time?

It’s that simple. If you do, go for the part-time version — we crafted that format of coding bootcamp for working professionals who need to fit studies around a job. 

If you don’t work full-time, go for a full-time coding bootcamp.

See, there are things that the chart above doesn’t really express in its bootcamp schedule comparison. In fact, let’s expand on the data a bit. Our full-time Software Engineering bootcamp takes only 4 months, which means you gain a new profession in less than half the time of the part-time version. You’re job-ready and in the market faster. Not only that, but you will graduate with a project with a real company already in your portfolio, so the speed won’t come at the cost of in-depth training that will power your career change to tech.

How the learning differs

Naturally, the difference in the duration and weekly study loads leads to variations within the programs themselves. With your increased pace, you’re going to be met with equally increased dedication from our industry-seasoned professionals. 

In our part-time coding bootcamp, learning coaches_{All About TripleTen’s Learning Coaches: How They Fuel Student Success}, project reviewers, sprint-focused instructors, and more all come in at different points to provide you the guidance you need based on where you are in the curriculum. This allows you more flexibility to fit your studies into a schedule that might not allow you to spend 40 hours a week studying.

But if you study full-time, you have more personalized support. All those previously mentioned roles are combined into one instructor who is completely focused on you and your cohort. They host one-on-ones, help you organize your learning process, and give live lectures — something not offered in the part-time approach.

In more detail, if you study full-time, you’ll be attending live, interactive lectures with this expert at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. ET daily to help you thoroughly understand the new concepts, and you’ll have milestones you’ll need to meet. All combined, this will keep you on track and form a bedrock of accountability, making sure that you fully master the material.

As TripleTen Chief Product Officer Elise Deitrick put it:

While our part-time program is great for those looking to slide their studying hours in whenever they fit into their busy schedules, our full-time program offers a more structured approach. In our full-time program there are daily live lectures and office hours hosted by a single instructor — who also reviews your projects at the end of each week. Not only will you finish the program in less than half the time — you get a more cohesive experience.

Elise Deitrick, TripleTen CPO

Now, in both, you’ll also get access to career coaching_{Career Coaching at TripleTen: What It Is and How It Helps You Land a Job}, but again, there’s a difference. If you opt for the longer study duration, your coaching will start at week 10, whereas it will start right at week 1 in the shorter program.

There’s one last crucial thing we should mention: regardless of which of the two you choose, you’ll learn the exact same material for the exact same cost.

Still unsure which one is right for you? Our advisors can help — book a free career consultation today.

Should you study full-time? Andrew did.

If you were to look at Andrew Millsaps_{Rekindling His Curiosity for Tech After A Decade in Sales: Andrew Millsaps’s TripleTen Story}’s resume, you might figure he had his career figured out. Starting out in sales, he’d progressed to opening an insurance agency. He had his own company, but the work had gotten stale and monotonous.

So Andrew sold his business and decided to get back to a field he’d once found so intriguing — tech. And for him, speed was crucial. “My goal was just to get through the program [and] quickly learn the skills,” he said. So even though the TripleTen Data Science program is designed to be tackled part-time, he decided to up the pace for himself and study as if it were his full-time job.

I really spent like an entire workday, virtually every single day, five or six days a week, studying.Andrew Millsaps, TripleTen grad

It paid off. When he was scrolling through his social media feed, he saw a connection post about a data role at a utilities company. Andrew wasn’t fully done with his studies, but because of the skills he had gained through the TripleTen Data Science program, he decided to reach out. He aced the first interview, and the excitement he’d lost in his previous field suddenly rushed back in:

Between that first interview and the second one, I realized this is the role that I want to have. I want it to be with this company.Andrew Millsaps, TripleTen grad

It spurred him to go just a little bit deeper, and in preparation for his interview with the CEO, he built a United States map color-coded by price per kilowatt hour of energy. This project, powered by the skills he gained at TripleTen, proved his know-how. “When I was interviewing with the CEO, we actually pulled up the project and looked at it right there at the interview. And I remember thinking, Man, I'm glad I did that,” he said.

Since then, he’s been a Data Analyst at Volunteer Energy Cooperative.

Now I'm in tech, and I'm loving it.Andrew Millsaps, TripleTen grad

If you’re like Dallin, studying part-time might be better for you

Dallin Sly_{From Trucking to Coding: Dallin Sly’s TripleTen Story} had worked several different jobs — door-to-door sales, retail, and food service (“A restaurant's the only place they'll ask you to sell your soul for minimum wage,” he said). When he met the woman he knew he was going to marry, he realized he “needed to go figure out a way I could take care of things.”

He started out as a furniture mover before getting injured and transitioning to trucking. And in that career, no matter how he tried to find more time to be home with his wife and family, the hours were brutal.

It was a 60 to 70 hour work week, generally closer to 70 hours. So I still didn't see anybody because I would get home at 4 a.m., go to sleep, wake up at 11 a.m., be around for an hour or two, and then I'd have to go right back and work.Dallin Sly, TripleTen grad

It was unsustainable. He wanted to be around to take care of his family, and he wanted a job that wasn’t unhealthy. “I was exhausted trucking. On paper, it's a very simple, very easy thing, but it's very stressful. There's a lot that goes into it. It's terrible on your body. I gained 85 pounds plus while I was a driver,” he said.

He’d thought about tech before, but now he knew he needed to make the change, so he enrolled in TripleTen’s part-time Software Engineering program because he still needed to drive to support his family. And although he was nervous about mastering the material, it turned out that the skills themselves weren’t the main hurdle — imposter syndrome was: “My biggest struggle was definitely just that self-doubt.”

He managed to fit his studies around his full-time work schedule, get the new know-how down, and it all came to fruition in his final project at TripleTen, which he nailed. “I got really high marks on that last project. It felt great turning it in,” he said.

So when he saw a job listing that intrigued him, he felt confident in applying for it.

I saw this job listing, and it just said it was with the Polk County BoCC. And I didn't even know what that was, so I was like, ‘All right, what is this?’ I clicked on it, looked into it, and, as far as the hard skills went, I checked every box.Dallin Sly, TripleTen grad

He got the interview, but he thought he bombed it. “I called my wife after that, and I was like, ‘I blew it. That's it.’ I was like, ‘There's nothing I could do. I tried my best, but I just couldn't get through this without blabbing on forever about nothing.’”

That Friday, he got the email that he’d landed the job. Now, he’s a Programmer Analyst at the Polk County BoCC, and the new position is what he was aspiring to.

I'm able to spend more time with my family. My wife's pregnant right now, and being able to be there for her, take care of her through this pregnancy, is special. Because for those first two, I was gone for a lot of it.Dallin Sly, TripleTen grad

Get expert guidance

Want to know more? Book a free career consultation with one of our advisors who can offer personalized advice on which format would work best for you.