General Assembly

I took the Front-​End Web Dev class with the awesome brilliant hilarious Kim Goulbourne and I’m so happy I did. The TA’s were Stephen Bae and Anri, and they were so good too– staying after class to help and genuinely interested in our class projects and making them awesome!
I had a little HTML understanding going in, but by the end I felt confident with HTML and CSS and have been coding every day since! The class moves super fast, so just know your social life will be on hold for three months. And it’s hard material to cram in three months, so you have to be really patient with yourself and just throw yourself into it! We also covered much JavaScript but that might just be something you need to learn on your own– it was for me!
Kim was excellent at explaining coding. She can break it down for you like no other teacher and she’s got the energy you need at 8:00pm after a full work day… and she worked all day too! But it’s such a fun class.
Just today I was at a job interview where my new skills were seen as a great possible contribution, so I know it’s worth it!

This review is only for the Digital Marketing Course I took and had to drop because it was that bad (3 others also dropped it). Warning that not all teachers are created equal at GA, and unfortunately you can’t go into a class (paying $ 3,500) and expect that GA has done the due diligence of vetting a course teacher.
I know other people have had good experiences with other teachers, but my personal experience with this course — a waste of time and money. It truly left me feeling there should be stricter guidelines for educational services like GA and some type of legal ramifications. I felt GA had falsely advertised themselves with ads claiming they were the «most prestigious digital marketing course». My teacher entered our class saying «this will be a learning experience for us both» but what I didn’t expect was that she would literally know less than me in many areas. She fumbled through the first half of the course, being honest that her «expertise» on certain subjects was lacking. But halfway through I got sick of hearing «I don’t know much about this subject», when I’m paying $ 3,500 and spending 6 hrs a week trying to learn this subject.
Overall, I’d suggest heavily researching your teacher if you’re considering a course here, or check out Skillshare (which has awesome digital marketing courses for like 4000% cheaper). I’d also recommend not paying for the class in full at the start. I ended up paying about $ 1000 for the course, but I left feeling dirty about it, like I should have been paid. Also, nobody really apologized or took ownership of the situation which still really bothers me. They made it clear that this was not their policy and a «a rare exception to our refund policy that is not often granted».

I’m not sure how I signed up for a newsletter from General Assembly, but not only have they been spamming me, but they also sold my email address to other companies, and so now I’m getting even more spam. I’m not sure if ethics is taught along with your digital marketing classes but if I had to guess I’d imagine not.
If I signed up for your newsletter, fine, I deserve that spam, but it is unethical and shameful for General Assembly to turn around and sell my contact information.

Started going to GA since in Boston. Besides their coding classes, they have free or very inexpensive varied professional development courses. Some are better than others, esp the ones you pay for, even $ 5. They usually have free coffee, beer, snacks, esp. If you go early. My fav classes were Pitching and Mental 6 Pack by some of the most accomplished, effective career coaches I’ve ever encountered!

I took the Digital Marketing course last spring and found it immensely helpful. I don’t have a marketing background of any kind and yet I found myself taking on more marketing responsibilities for the small chocolate maker I work for. While I learned much of my skills on the job, taking the course really allowed me to step back and think from marketing perspective in a way that I wasn’t before. This says a lot about myself, but having to attend the class and finish assignments outside of work but related to work forced real structure and pace into my learning and I’m not sure I could have picked up all the knowledge and skills I did at the same rate. The skills I learned at GA helped me increase sales, increase followings, design better, and increase customer satisfaction, as well as helped deepen my own understanding of what it is we do that’s special at the factory.
My instructors, Jon and Emily, were immensely helpful and supportive both during the course and after it was finished. I have been very ADD all my life and there are times when I really need guidance to help me sort through the bigger picture without forgetting or focusing too hard on the details. I’ve found having a good teacher is key, and Jon and Emily were both fantastic and continue to be whenever I reach out and have question.

Sarah was quick to rectify the situation and generously offered me a $ 175 credit. I ended up attending two other digital marketing classes in addition to the social media bootcamp I originally signed up for. Some professors were better than others but I really got a lot out of all three sessions. I definitely plan to sign up for more GA classes in the future.
But their admissions team is still working out the kinks. A month after I left my review, I received an email from a different sales rep so I asked them to remove me from their mailing list completely.

I seriously have had it with this place and wish I could rate it zero stars. I signed up for a Getting Started with Wordpress class for $ 35.00. I showed up to the location given. The confirmation sent me to the wrong floor. I went to the correct floor, arriving at 5:30pm, a half hour early. There was «some confusion» about the class location. Finally, they came over to tell us that the class was rescheduled to 8pm that evening but the email never went out to participants so if you couldn’t sit around and wait for two hours (because everyone in NY is not busy at all and has all the time in the world to sit around and wait for two hours on a whim) then you could reschedule and get a 20% discount. I’m pissed because I have plans later that night so cannot wait — plus, I left work early to get to the class on time! Clearly they do not have the same consideration as I do for people’s time. Whatever shit happens.
BUT THEN, I go to reschedule and there are no future Getting Started with Wordpress classes set up. I email and ask for a refund and tell them I will sign up for a class that I can attend once it’s scheduled. After my third email, they tell me «unfortunately not an option within our existing refund policy». Okay — so you’re just going to keep my $ 35 bucks until another class is scheduled — even though you’re the one that f’d up? Fine.
THEN, the next class is scheduled — in another MONTH and that class I cannot attend because I am flying out the next morning at 6:45am. Moreover, the class is scheduled at 6pm, which now I know could be rescheduled to 8pm at the last minute. I can’t do that when I have to fly out the next morning. So now what — I have to wait ANOTHER month to see if I can attend their next class. Meanwhile, they’re just holding my payment hostage. Plus, they keep telling me I can get a 20% discount on a different class up to a $ 100. Why on earth would I sign up for another more expensive class — when they can’t even deliver on this one??? Thank god I didn’t sign up for the $ 300 workshop, which I originally considered — I’d be out $ 300 bucks instead of just $ 35!
It’s just bullshit that they would not refund my money — because they screwed up. If they would have just refunded the payment, I wouldn’t have had to write this terrible review and would have signed up for another class when it was convenient. Instead after — now four emails with them — I still have not taken or booked another class, but they have my $ 35 bucks. I’m just so glad I didn’t sign up for a more expensive class. You’d think they would want to keep me happy so I would continue taking courses there!
AVOID THIS PLACE — or you’ve been warned — you may or may not ever get the class that you’ve paid for. I’m still waiting to see if the money I’ve given them will yield a class.

Seems like the reviews area mixed bag here, but I’m an alum of the Web Development Immersive and had a fantastic experience. Before taking the course, I had tried to teach myself some coding skills, but I felt myself moving very slowly without the guidance of someone who had some degree of expertise. At GA, I had three instructors, all of whom were extremely knowledgeable and friendly, and made learning web programming a pleasure.
I learned far more in those 13 weeks of instruction than I could have possibly learned on my own, and met many friends in my class with whom I still keep in touch. After the course, I did some freelance work for a few months before landing a full time gig. Couldn’t be happier with what I got out of GA!

I took a part-​time UX course at General Assembly New York with the stellar teacher team: Ron Wilde, Rachel Inman and Joe Formica and I cannot recommend them enough. Very attentive to students, fun and helpful, giving a lot of examples from their work and being there any time we needed them.
The course consisted of both theory and practical hands-​on tasks, peer reviews were highly encouraged too which made the community aspect of the class very fun. We had guest speakers and even a field trip to Google’s office in NYC.
I agree with one of the previous reviews: learning at GA is not having everything handled to you on a plate. You have to be curious, ask questions, motivate yourself and be involved. Otherwise any kind of educations is a waste of time. I highly recommend GA to my friends in the city!

I am a UX-​focused Product Manager and personally trained and taught at General Assembly. GA provides a unique learning experience and truly promotes collaboration among the tech community. I met most of my tech connections through GA and still lean on those individuals for mentorship as I navigate the landscape.

I am an Web Development Immersive Alum, and I definitely enjoyed my experience at GA. I was going through a career mid-​life crisis, and was always interested in Web Development, so I took the plunge. It was very overwhelming at first but GA provided an unparalleled learning environment that made everything worth it. From the get go, we were coding on day one and didn’t stop. Sure it was difficult, but GA provided so many resources to help you succeed. The teachers were always hands on whenever you ran into problems and there were teacher assistants after hours when working through homework and labs. The biggest asset of GA, the students and community, definitely made the experience the best possible as we were able to learn from one another and grow together.
Can you learn how to code on your own? Yes you can, but the structured environment and community at GA allows you to learn much more effectively and teaches you how to logically think through coding problems and challenges that arise.
Is this experience for everyone? Probably not, but if you are willing to challenge yourself day in and day out, then this is the place for you.

I have been recommending family and friends to General Assembly for a few years now but I finally took a course in December of 2014. 2 weeks after my course was over I became an EIR (an expert in residence/​teach assistant) for the same course.
The course I took was titled «Mobile Development» but it really is «IOS development in SWIFT». The instructor was the amazing Rudd Taylor. Rudd’s intimate knowledge of IOS (both in objective C and Swift) coupled with his ability to break down complex theories into real world concepts, make him one of the very best technology instructor I have ever come across in my 15 years of experience in tech. Before the course was over I was already offered an internship at a startup as a junior mobile developer.
General Assembly, the instructor, the EIRs and the producer of the Mobile Development course exceeded my expectations so much that I became an EIR immediately after completing my course. Working as an EIR for GA gave me a new perspective of how dedicated the school is to each individual student. I am going to continue to work at GA and continue to be part of enhancing people’s lives through education in technology.

I’m an Immersive alum and have attended many one-​off workshops & events at GA over the last year. Like most other educational environments, what you’ll get out of GA really depends on the effort that you individually put in. Nobody there can wave a magic wand for you, or read your mind to know exactly what you want/​need to learn, or put you in front of the right people. Technology may be killing some 1 – 1 communication, but speaking up, asking questions, and doing preliminary research isn’t dead.
Overall, my experiences at GA have been mostly excellent, particularly the Immersive course which helped me change careers and get my current tech job (which I love). GA didn’t give me the things I wanted in life in exchange for my tuition, but rather, gave me a runway to launch myself from. Through GA I was able to tap into the larger NYC tech community by talking to my instructors and people that I met at GA events. I learned about best practices, industry trends, good Meetups to attend, which podcasts are worth listening to, and then actively did those things. I learned how to pitch myself as someone worth hiring in a tech company, despite a background as a fine artist, and I was able to surround myself with a community of like-​minded people, of all ages and walks of life, that were always helpful and encouraging.
The staff and instructors at GA are just as consistently helpful and encouraging, and I believe this is a major selling point of attending GA over another school. Again, it helps to express your needs and wants. There are a Lot of students, and they are expanding rapidly (for good reason!), but they aren’t a perfect operation. In fact, GA are well aware that they aren’t perfect, and adamantly request & welcome feedback on almost everything. My feedback is: they’re doing a good job paving and expanding the runway to launch a lot of satisfied students, but you’ll definitely need to plan your trip and pack your own bags.

All flash. GA has that made-​in-​China feel. You’re paying over 3k in many instances for a 1k experience. The teachers are all knowledgable, but it’s become less of a skill building organization and more of a Kaplan-​based get-​the-​customers-​in-​and-​back model… customers, not students.
Speaking of, really odd customer service. Sure there’s free coffee, but you’re not allowed to sit in EMPTY classrooms until they’ve been cleaned. You can’t be on the EMPTY second floor before 5:30 – even if your class is there. Even if you’re paying over 3k for a 12 week part-​time class. Something’s not right…
You’d probably learn the same amount elsewhere for comparable weirdo rules and save at least a month’s rent. I’m taking my next web class somewhere else. GA’s a noble idea and they have a clever URL. Not quite enough to justify that money for the product though.

The General Assembly energy and community, from the staff to the students, is what’s missing from every company, coworking space, incubator, and accelerator. I’ve been part of the General Assembly ecosystem since it was just a coworking space. Now, I teach the digital marketing part-​time course. It’s come a very long way and continues to improve its culture and classes.
The GA staff bends over backwards to make sure every instructor and student has the resources and support to succeed. They take feedback VERY seriously and use every last word to make changes and improvements.

Taking the Digital Marketing class at General Assembly was one of the most rewarding and exciting experiences I’ve ever had.
The people and instructors at GA are so inviting, influential and helpful, so you fit in as part of an amazing community. If you’re engaged and ready to learn, you will get so much out of the experience here. GA breaks tired norms and brings learning into the 21^st century
Instead of going back to college or a university, taking an intensive course at General Assembly helped me develop far more relevant skills. I feel like a Digital Marketing expert now. I’d recommend the UX, Front and Back end Web Development classes or the Product Development ones too. And if you’re not ready for that, take some of their three hour workshops, those are great too.
Also, if you’re looking for a job, General Assembly will help you find one after you complete their course and put your new skills to test. And if you’re in a start-​up, they’ll help connect you with the people you need.
Highly recommended! I’ll definitely be more courses with GA in the course.

General Assembly was great when they first started. they offered quality programs on learning web development, business development and classes in many other things. Over a 3 year period they have scaled quickly to many countries. they offer zillion of online courses in even more topics than you can imagine. there quality has suffered tremendously.
There in class courses were pretty good when I took them 3 years ago. not sure what they are like now.
I took their Circuit course online. I did learn something. but I think there are cheaper and better ways to learn this information. I paid $ 1500 for a 12 week class. 30 min a week of one on one mentoring. A live lecture every week. When they have 70 plus people in a class. it becomes low-​quality instruction… the design of the course is not that helpful. you have each section has a 4 – 5 minute video, a list of bullet points of things to remember. There is a code challenge that is quirky filled with bugs.
again. you can always get something out of these course. but you have to see is it the best way to learn and does the cost make sense. are there better ways to learn? even get higher quality information.
They have VC’s to pay back. they need as many users as they can. and the online programs a very bad. its too much for them to manage. and the good people they have are stretched thin… I think they need systems in place to deal with this better.
One thing I have learn is that YOU DO NOT in MOST cases GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR. it is kind of interesting. I used to have the mindset of this logic. I want to learn to code, I should seek out the most well known company (who I think is reputable) and pay there high price for the course. That the more I pay. the more I am getting and the higher quality of instruction I am getting. this is usually not the case.
mentors are awesome though. I think they are overworked though.
The people who love GA are people who love good branding. but good branding alone has no substance. pretty offices, nice logos, and friendly people can’t hide incompetence and low quality.
The best resources aren’t always the best «marketed» resources. do you home work and you’ll find much better resources for learning coding. Better quality instruction, better price, and a more genuine community of people that love to code.

I just took a three-​hour class entitled, «Social Media Strategy Mapping». The best way to describe it is this: I feel like I just took a foreign-​language class, in which I am already beginner-​intermediate, and that we didn’t speak a word of the language in class. We talked about the language, and why it’s important, and why people use it, etc, but we never actually spoke it, or did any grammar or exercises.
I was hoping that we would be taught some real strategy, with specific tools, organization advice, different steps, etc… Basically a step-​by-​step class on how to put together a good social media strategy. None of that. Just a bunch of blah blah about what social media means, what «social» means, what «media» means. Just useless stuff. NOTHING PRACTICAL. Stay away from this class. This is just a waste of time and money.
Who this class is good for: people who have a lot of money and don’t know what to do with it; people who have a lot of time and don’t know what to do with it; people who don’t want to be challenged and who want to be comforted in their ignorance by being told things that EVERYBODY knows.
On the plus side, the teacher is nice. He tries hard to keep the students entertained by playing a bunch of videos and promising every 30 minutes that you’re about to practices what you just «learned». The problem is that you don’t learn anything, and that there’s nothing to practice. I’m just amazed by how the guy was able to do a three-​hour class of emptiness.

Excitedly signed up for javascript class. Slightly hesitated given the hefty price but in the spirit I believe in you get what you pay for, I dove in. The class was not as advertised. Most of it was spent «teaching» us how to google search for code solutions. Really?
I didn’t attend day 2 because it was so dismal. Emailed the teacher, he didn’t seem too bothered. A month later the company emailed to ask about the class, I went back and forth with them via email. They offered to let me retake the class for free then never got closure on that. Not a great business model if you ask me. Charge a lot. People leave unsatisfied with the class. The student communicates that twice (albeit it apparently not «loud» enough) and they don’t do as promised even with repeated attempts by the student.
Have taken many classes at other places and had good, in fact, great experiences. General Assembly may have growing pains, but I’d expect more for the price and supposed intellect of the collective group.

Disclosure: I never finished the Product Management course that I signed up and fully paid for. I dropped out of the class because I didn’t find it useful.
I took a Product Management course at GA because I had informally taken on PdM responsibilities throughout my career and wanted to fully transition into a PdM role. I thought a formal and holistic training would help me more confidently make that transition. I met some great people in this class and I’m still in touch with some of them today, even though I’m no longer in NYC, but that’s about what I got out of the $ 3,000 and time commitment I put in.
Although the topics seemed relevant and thoughtfully selected, the content was fluffy and surface-​level. Sure, there’s time constraint preventing us from going into too much detail, but for 4 – 6 hours a week, I was expecting more than the equivalent of reading a couple of books on the topic. The class size prevented it from being effective. While diversity is great, I think there should’ve been some sort of prerequisites or pre-​course reading required so that all everyone could start the class with the same basic knowledge. The sessions were intended to be interactive, so each session incorporated a couple of quick exercises meant to be done in groups. I found these in-​class exercises frustrating, because there was never nearly enough time to be effective and we spent most of the time trying to self-​organize. I think the exercises could’ve been better designed.
I think it’s great that the instructors were full-​time product managers with experience in the industry. At the same time, it was like dating someone with children: you know you’re not going to be their first priority. Some instructors seemed better at managing their priorities than others, so the overall class experience relies heavily on how committed the instructor is. While my instructor could speak to the topics very well and even invited great guest speakers for some of the topics, I’ve had a much better experience taking classes taught by full-​time instructors just because the full-​time folks have put far more time into studying the material and planning the class.
I thought it was a bit strange how closely guarded the class material was. The presentation was never made available until after the session, which annoyed some students because they liked to print the slides out and take notes on them. I don’t think the instructor had an active role in contributing to the development of the course material either. This was my only experience with GA; it sounds like others have had good experience with the more technical courses. IMHO: not worth the time and financial commitment.