Thinkful Review – A Complete Guide

Thinkful is an online education platform offering both full-time and part-time bootcamps to accommodate different schedules. The platform partners with GitHub, Women Who Code, and Black Enterprise to provide education to underrepresented groups in tech.

Thinkful coding bootcamps prepare students for work in the tech industry with hands-on training, career coaching, and workshops to tailor their portfolios and resume. Graduates also get six months of career support.

In this Thinkful bootcamp review, we cover Thinkful courses, the admissions process, Thinkful costs and payment options, and student outcomes.

Thinkful Courses

Thinkful coding bootcamp offers six immersive flexible online courses taught by experienced industry professionals in disciplines including software engineering. Beginners can learn to code with prep classes to gain experience without any Thinkful cost or commitment. Students get a mentor who partners one-on-one to help them succeed.

Thinkful Admissions Process

Thinkful bootcamps are appropriate for beginners who can demonstrate time management and communication skills and accept constructive criticism. Note there are no required prep courses.

Students must be at least 18 years old and have a high school diploma or GED certificate. You also need to be proficient in written and spoken English.

You'll need high-speed internet access and a computer with a microphone, speakers, and video capability, including a webcam. All data analytics courses also require Excel.

Thinkful Cost

Thinkful cost for a bootcamp ranges from $4,900 to $16,000 for the full-time six-month software engineering bootcamp. At $4,900, the digital marketing bootcamp is the least expensive option. It is also the quickest, as it takes three months of part-time study to complete.

Thinkful's part-time technical project management bootcamp costs $6,500 and runs for five months. Part-time data science, software engineering, and UX/UI bootcamps run for six months and cost $9,500.

The data analytics bootcamp offers part-time courses over four months for $8,000. And students can complete the full-time UX/UI design bootcamp in five months at $12,150.

These prices reflect an upfront payment. Thinkful cost may vary based on which tuition payment option you select.

For example, Thinkful offers a deferred tuition plus living expenses plan for full-time students. The living expense adds $1500 per month to help you cover groceries, bills, and rent while taking classes. Ultimately, the living expense loan will increase the amount you owe after completing the program.

Thinkful Payment Options

Deferred Tuition Plan: Thinkful partners with Ascent Funding to provide deferred tuition plan payment options. A deferred payment plan allows you to start learning without any payments upfront.

However, if you use the deferred tuition option, you'll start a 36-month fixed monthly loan payment once you find a job. Any full-time job paying at least $40,000 annually — or contract job lasting at least three months and paying $3,333 — qualifies. And the loan will accrue interest.

Deferred Tuition Plan With Living Expenses: If you're a full-time student, you may be eligible for the deferred payment tuition plan with living expenses. Students receive the same benefits as regular deferred tuition.

Living expenses are an additional $1,500 per month to help cover bills. The extra money will also increase your loan payment, and living expenses won't qualify for the tuition refund program.

Discounts: Thinkful offers discounts for women, non-binary individuals, and veterans. Discount amounts vary between $200-$500 by the program.

Installments: You can split your tuition into fixed monthly payments while attending bootcamp with no additional fees. It's important to keep up with payments so you don't lose your place in the bootcamp.

Tuition Refund Program: Thinkful will refund your tuition and cancel any remaining payments if you're not working in your field within six months of graduating. You must meet specific eligibility requirements to qualify.

Students who financed their program with a payment upfront, month-to-month payment, or a traditional loan may be eligible. You must graduate on time, complete all the course and career services requirements, and pass background checks.

The job must be within a one-hour commuting distance in one of Thinkful's approved cities.

Upfront: Paying tuition upfront is the most cost-effective option. The cost for each program ranges from $4,900-$16,000. You'll find Thinkful cost information on each individual bootcamp's program page.

Is Thinkful Worth It? Thinkful Student Outcomes

A Thinkful bootcamp could be worth it, based on student outcomes information. Outcomes highlight data about the number of students who completed Thinkful bootcamps.

Student outcomes also reveal the percentage of students who landed employment in their field within six months of graduating. Examining student outcome data is one way to check if a bootcamp is worth it.

But data is easy to manipulate. Check to see if a third party verifies the outcomes.

Thinkful was a member of the Council on Integrity in Results Reporting (CIRR) until 2020. CIRR-verified bootcamps provide reliable, transparent, standardized, and audited outcomes for prospective bootcamp students.

Thinkful currently uses a third-party auditor to review, verify, and certify student data. Thinkful posts student outcomes on its website with links to updated student information.

We've listed the CIRR data for Thinkful from 2019 below.

Thinkful Student Outcomes

Graduation Rate	Employment Rate After 180 Days	Average Starting Salary
88%	85%	$60,000

Thinkful vs. Springboard

Thinkful vs. Springboard

	Thinkful	Springboard
In-Person vs. Remote	100% online	100% online
Courses	Data Analytics, Data Science, Digital Marketing, Software Engineering, Technical Project Management, UX/UI Design	Data Analytics, Data Science, Cybersecurity, Software Engineering, Tech Sales, UX/UI Design
Full-Time vs. Part-Time	Part-time bootcamp: 3-6 months, Full-time bootcamp: 4-5 months	6-9 months, with part-time and full-time options
Cost	$4,900-$16,000	$6,600-$11,900, plus an optional $490 prep course
Payment Options	Upfront Monthly installments Deferred tuition plan Deferred tuition plan with living expenses Discounts	Upfront Monthly installments Deferred tuition plan Student loans Scholarships
Student Outcomes	Third-party verified student outcomes	Publishes some of its student outcome data — no third-party verification
Job Guarantee	Tuition refund if the student cannot find a job in their field within six months of completing the program	Tuition refund if the student cannot find a job in their field within six months of completing the program

Frequently Asked Questions About Thinkful Coding Bootcamp

Is Thinkful a good bootcamp?

Thinkful may be a good investment, with flexible online courses preparing graduates with job-ready skills in in-demand industries. The platform is transparent with student outcomes, including graduation rates. Thinkful posts student outcomes on the website, updates the information regularly, and uses a third-party audit to ensure its accuracy.

Is Thinkful hard to get into?

It's not hard to get into Thinkful, and the courses are 100% online. You need a high school diploma or GED certificate and a computer with high-speed internet. Thinkful also helps you start learning to code for free with beginner-friendly practice exercises to get experience on the platform.

Is Thinkful accredited?

Thinkful isn't regionally or nationally accredited, and it does not offer a degree program. Students at Thinkful's bootcamps aren't eligible to participate in federal student financial assistance programs. However, Thinkful collaborates with Southern New Hampshire University to offer a college pathway in analytics, data science, or software engineering.

Does Thinkful help you get a job?

Thinkful provides career support to get a job and tuition reimbursement for qualifying students who don't find work in their industry. You have a dedicated career coach who helps you practice interviews and salary negotiation. They'll also review and adjust your portfolio and resume to target specific employers.

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