[aspir]

I agree with you, except for viewing the bootcamp as a negative. Self driven exploration and learning is key, but attending a bootcamp is itself indicative a good traits. In the "best" bootcamps applicants have to:

- Quit their old job to go to school full time. This is huge in indicating seriousness of their career change.

- Pay real cash to attend. Again, this shows that an attendee is serious about their new career.

Both of these require significantly more commitment than _just_ buying books, going to meetups, and finding more experienced friends. It's not mutually exclusive -- when hiring, I want to see if the bootcamp grad has done these things. But, attending a school is definitely a positive.

Source: I've hired 3 bootcamp grads, and the result has been so good I'm actively continuing to do so.