Thankful this place shutdown. The owner was an egotistical maniac and at one point literally had a swearing/screaming tell off session with our group. He also enjoys using his "status" as a way of putting down ppl and making them feel less than. All of the "lessons" you take at this "school" can be found for free online and there is absolutely no need to drop $14K or more. Not only that, you're expected to do all of your own work in terms of networking and finding jobs during and after. You're deemed a lazy, entitled brat if you're not doing most of the work yourself. So not sure what we're paying the tuition for? I'm not surprised by the reviews here. The owner uses bullying tactics to scare ppl from speaking out such as telling students he will ruin you and that knows all the CEOs and founders in silicone valley (I highly doubt such an assinine person would be accepted in those circles). Hence my need to make this account to avoid jeopardizing my own career that I built myself from scratch. If you contact alumni and ask for the real tea, you will find out these shiny reviews are a farce and I welcome you to do that to save yourself. I hope this review saves people a ton of money and emotional abuse caused by this establishment. read more

I am an alum, and I am so glad to hear this place is shut down. The founder and his team are egotistical, delusional, abusive, and rude. I had low self esteem when I joined which is why I tolerated their attitudes. I was once yelled at by the founder's mother, she literally yelled at me at the school. And the team bullied students who were so afraid of losing the network. 14K was not worth it. I wasted my time and resources there. My previous 1 star review was deleted, not sure why. I am adding another one here. If they represent Silicon Valley, I would not touch SV because the culture is toxic. read more

Attending Tradecraft accelerated my career by 2-3 years. In late 2013, I was just wrapping up my degree in business while working at a startup in Texas. Through a friend, I happened upon a post about Tradecraft, and I immediately applied because it looked like the perfect next step after graduation. Much to my surprise, I was accepted for the first class, so I packed my bags and moved across the country to San Francisco. Over the next three months, I worked with amazing people, pushed myself to my limits, and luxuriated in learning about marketing. After graduation, I got an opportunity to work for Adecco at YouTube were I now get to market cutting-edge products at one of the best companies in the world. I really can't speak too highly of Tradecraft, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to go places in their career. read more

Being a part of this program last year was the BEST career decision I have made to date. It will be well worth your time and money! It not only taught me essential business skills, and opened up doors that were not previously opening, but also gave me the opportunity to build relationships and mentorships with experts in multiple industries! read more

Tradecraft - TC1 - Specialty Schools Near Me - San Francisco, California

Inspiring instructors Fantastic culture, students who make it happen Awesome mentors $12k and 3-months is a lot to give-up to take a course at Tradecraft. I would recommend Tradecraft over General Assembly in a heartbeat. Doing Tradecraft is cheaper and faster than 2 years of Grad School ( spending $80k+ and 2 years in HCI) to get a job upon graduation. Are you motivated? Are you interested in changing your career? Are you interested in coding, growth, UX or sales? If so, Tradecraft can help you. Why it's worth it: 1. Personal Development sessions with Shawn Plunkett 2. Learning UX with Kate Rutter and Laura Klein 3. The people & culture!! 4. Career Development with Misha Chellam and Brett Hunter 5. Inspiring Q&As with mentors (i.e. Ryan Hoover, Noah Kagan, Seth Godin, and Gagan Biyani, ..the list goes on!) There isn't much on the Tradecraft website, so I recommend doing some digging on your own (read the Medium articles written by Tradecraft students, follow Tradecraft Twitter accounts and etc.) read more

Me: I graduated from the University of Vermont in May 2014, Joined Tradecraft's growth marketing track in Sept 2014 and landed a head of growth position for a well-funded startup in Nov 2014. TC: It's like a MBA for startups. By the end of the program you will have the skillset and mindset to perform and delivery at startups of all sizes/funding stages. For me, the core TC experience breaks down into 3 main things: 1) Community and Network As some of my other TC peers have pointed out, the community and culture at TC is unparalleled to any other tech program. I've never been surrounded by more ambitious, high flying people in my life. This becomes invaluable to students because it gives you the support system you need to develop core hard/soft skills but also sets the bar high and provides a "we can do even more" type of attitude to creative problem solving. The network speaks for itself at TC. I've had the opportunity to learn about growth marketing and traction from the best in the business. Being at TC gives you an exclusive pass to meet with and learn from senior leadership at very noteworthy startups. Irene Au, anyone? 2) Work on real problems TC gives you the chance to work on real problems startups have to deal with. Some of these problems are project based where you're consulting with startups in the Bay Area and others are assignments that focus on building particular hard skills for a given track. I found both sets of problems to be very exciting and challenging to work on. You will have a lot of "lessons learned" type moments where you learn from your mistakes. This is part of the growth curve and it's something TC embraces. 3) Personal Development This last point ties in with the first point, but it's worth noting. TC does not just invest in you for 12 weeks. They make a commitment to help you accelerate your personal growth long after you exit the program. During the first part of the program, there is a lot of focus on personal development and identifying your strengths to leverage them. Once you exit the program, there is a focus on making sure you get where you want to be and making it easy to reconnect with the entire TC community (which is pretty big these days). By the end of the program I felt like I had a completely new mindset for approaching growth marketing and the everyday challenges startups face. These are the types of experiences and values you can expect from TC. If these are things you value too and you're looking to break into the tech scene, I'd highly recommend applying to the program. read more

Tradecraft was one of the best experiences I've ever had -- both career wise and for personal growth. I recommend the program hands down, and I can advocate for all tracks. As a student for the 1st growth class, I learned under the mentorship of Graham Hunter and Will Bunker, who not only taught me marketable skills, but also learned industry secrets, helped me network with awesome mentors, and accelerated my career by at least a year. This program is hard -- you'll have to bust your back to make it, but you'll have fun learning and doing. Remember, this is a program for winners. read more

I heartily endorse Tradecraft for delivering exactly what they promise--accelerating a career into a meaningful role at a startup. The instructors are smart, passionate, and connected. The program teaches you quite a lot (like drinking from a firehose), and you do great work for the startups that they pair you with. I worked in the sales and business development track, and Sean provided terrific instruction on accomplishing a lot in those roles. He also was terrific to lean on while working for the paired startup, diagramming and breaking down what went right and what went wrong within our sales process. Tradecraft also concentrates very hard on doing everything it can to help you find a job, including mock interviews. Most importantly, however, is Tradecraft's network (growing every day) that it taps into to help people find the right role. It's how I found mine. Cheers to Tradecraft. read more

That was the most important 3 months that accelerated my career by few years at least. From being UX + UI freelancer before the programme, I landed as a Product Manager after it. I am from Lithuania, so Tradecraft was the unique chance to understand and get the feeling of the Silicon Valley. Besides learning the craft of UX, I learnt how to set my goals, how to achieve them, how to network and how to make an impact. Few months ago I came back to San Francisco. The contacts made during the programme made me feel like at home. It was easy to arrange meetings with Dropbox, Pinterest, Autocad people to learn from them further. read more

Tradecraft was one of the most rewarding experiences of my professional career. I was accepted to the Product Design track, which I began with zero previous PD experience. Ultimately, I learned more in 3 months through Tradecraft's instructors, mentors, and previous + current students than I've learned in any previous 3 months of education. I moved forward from the program with an incredible body of knowledge, a deep design skill set, a clearer understanding of the tech industry, and more connections than I could have hoped for. Their structure allowed me to work with clients right away, immediately allowing me to apply what I was learning in a real work setting. If you're serious about your career, Tradecraft is an investment you won't regret. read more

Attending Tradecraft has been an amazing experience. I met amazing people, outstanding instructors and had the possibility to learn from the best mentors in the Silicon Valley. As a student of the Growth track I have to say that Graham Hunter and Will Bunker are simply the best instructors you can ask for. They are very knowledgeable, prepared, have first-hand experience due to their awesome career, and always available to help and give good advice. The best part of Tradecraft is that I wasn't only studying, but I was also involved in real projects with real startups, so I was able to have a first-hand experience in Growth and marketing. The entire experience gave a real boost to my career and I came out of the program being way more competitive in the job market: I was able to pivot my career and change industry, even though I had to deal with immigration issues and ask for a VISA sponsor. I definitely recommend this program for people who are passionate about the tech industry, the startup world and want to pursue a tech career. The value of the program, the mentors, the network and the opportunities that will come after you graduate are totally worth the investment to be part of the Tradecraft family. Special thanks to the founders Misha Chellam and Russ Klusas, who built an amazing family, brought together smart people, gave us access to exceptional knowledge and are always inspiring and supportive. read more

Attending Tradecraft accelerated my transition into design and tech. I worked at two startups before the program, but I didn't have the hard skills to get a full time UX design position. After I finished the program, I had a few offers for UX design positions and many other exciting leads. In addition to the hard skills I learned, Tradecraft also made me to think hard what kind of work I want to do (within design) and for which companies. They forced me to think hard about the industries I'm passionate about and why, and they made me think about what kind of impact I want to leave on the world. Highly recommended!! read more

Tradecraft was an event that changed my outlook on career and what I wanted for myself. Through the program, i gained confidence, knowledge, networks and a community of fellow students who are always willing to lend a helping hand. Tradecraft made me step out of my comfort zone, allowed myself to be vulnerable and eventually gain the support of the staff and fellow students. The resulting growth propelled me to the right direction and helped solidify my career path. The ongoing support and community after the program, is still paying back with an avenue for professional advice, idea sharing and help launching businesses. Well worth the investments. read more

What brought me to Tradecraft? I was a long time management consultant before a personal situation triggered me to think about how I wanted to spend my time. While I loved the people I worked with, I didn't feel I was making much impact. After many coffee chats, I discovered product/UX design was a topic I could spend days pouring over. Sticky notes and Sharpies just made me giddy. I was pretty confident this is what I wanted to do, so I looked for ways to get me into the field quickly. Why Tradecraft? Living in the Bay Area, we are fortunate to have many options to get education in the form of accelerators, workshops, higher ed, etc. I browsed all, but eventually chose Tradecraft because of the consistent response I got from alums -- great instructors, great peers, and sky's the limit with what you can do in your time there. This was the place for people who have ambitious goals and want to use what they learn to do great things in this world. Plus, Tradecraft's leaders are experienced entrepreneurs and we could rely on them to be straight with us on what works, and what doesn't. What was it like? There was a flexible schedule that included instructor-led sessions, course projects, mentor talks, and self-study. The most unique and valuable aspect of Tradecraft IMO were the consults. People teamed up to work on short contracts with actual startups that needed UX design help. I loved this because we were solving real business problems, interacting with founders/PMs/engineers, and learning to work with different personalities. The mentor talks were also great - we've had big-name folks present; and I was grateful to have the opportunity to interact with them in a more intimate environment. The daily challenge at Tradecraft was prioritizing your time. There was a constant feeling of FOMO. Everyone around me was doing cool things, but I had to stay focused. Choosing not to do something was harder than choosing to do something. I think it helps to come into Tradecraft with a pretty clear end goal; one that's specific and measurable. What about landing a job? Well, I got one! I'm now a UX designer at a growing start-up in SF. It took a few months, but Tradecraft made that short runway possible. In addition to track-specific work, we also received career development help - and not the cliche, theoretical stuff that you might've heard in college - these were tactical tips. I was confident that as long as I followed those tips, I could make this career transition. To me, Tradecraft was not just a 3 month program, it's a lifelong membership to a community that's constantly inspiring me and supportive. I highly recommend it! read more

I joined Tradecraft's Product Design track back in summer 2015. It has been one of the best decisions I have made to date. Tradecraft has just done so much for me that it's hard to effectively put it down into words. Here are some of the highlights: 1. I got to learn from the best instructors in town via course-work (both of whom are established and talented designers in their own right) 2. I learned from and worked alongside highly driven and brilliant Tradecrafters 3. Tradecraft has an amazing network of individuals who are always ready to help you along your professional journey. I have gotten many introductions to mentors and to companies of interest through Tradecraft's network. 4. I gained a lot of hands-on design experience through client-project work, which involves Tradecrafters working with real startups to produce real high-quality results. 5. Mentors constantly come into Tradecraft to share with us the lessons they've gained from years of working in their fields. Although Tradecraft touts itself as a "twelve-week" program, the ongoing support and wealth of knowledge you gain far extends beyond that timeframe. Their career support has been nothing short of stellar during this trying time of putting a portfolio together and navigating the job-search process. Because of the nature of Tradecraft and the vast amount of information and resources it offers, it is easy to feel overwhelmed. However, I quickly learned that part of the journey at Tradecraft is learning how to identify the things that were most important to me, and prioritizing them so that I was able to get the most out of the program. Fast forward to today: I am now employed at a startup that I am passionate about with wonderful people I enjoy working with. It took me a few months, but I wouldn't have been able to be where I am today at Tradecraft's ongoing support. Tradecraft is indeed a powerhouse of information, support and mentorship where you can really hone your craft and make life-long friendships. It has given me the confidence and skills that have molded me into the designer I am today. I would highly recommend Tradecraft to anyone who is serious about learning from the best, and being part of an rich network of talented and motivated individuals. read more

As a member of the first class, I thought attending Tradecraft and giving up 3 months of a working salary while also paying tuition would be a big risk, not to mention that it was a brand new (and unproven) program at the time. It was the best decision I made for my career so far. The return on investment has been more than worth it, and this program has accelerated my career at least 2-3 years. I am very happy to be working at my current company now, and I was definitely a much more competitive candidate in the job market after the program. As a member of the Growth track, I can't speak highly enough of our mentor instructors--Graham Hunter and Will Bunker. Graham's dedication in teaching and challenging us to go beyond and teach ourselves made this educational experience unlike any others I've experienced. Will's career advice and encouragement taught me more about my own motivations to seek fulfillment in my career. Ultimately, it was Graham who made the crucial introduction that led to my current position--all because he told me about a tech meet up after class. Kudos also to the founders Misha Chellam and Russ Klusas who selected an excellent first cohort. I learned as much from my fellow classmates as I did from our instructors and industry mentors. I would recommend this course for people who know they want to break into or accelerate their tech careers. Opportunities to learn and to network are presented to you, but you do have to be highly motivated and hard-working to take advantage of them to the fullest. It's not a program to hold your hand. Instead, it's a program that will open doors for you and introduce you to people you probably wouldn't meet otherwise. You'll have to work to reap the benefits, but they are well worth it. read more

About me: I went through Tradecraft (TC) in the fifth cohort's Growth Marketing track. About TC: The size/stage of the company depends on you, but Tradecraft prepares you to work at a tech company. Through various mechanisms, some intentional and others not, TC forces students to learn and work independently, advocate for themselves and their needs, and manage their time and relationships. These are probably the three most valuable skills anyone can learn, and they are essential to anyone who hopes to break into tech, especially on the non-technical side of things. Recommendation: Highly recommended. read more

Big 4 Accounting Career Pivot - Read Me if applicable I hope my story resonates with some of you.  I felt locked into Big 4 accounting, every year that passed my skills were laser focused on building an aptitude around one particular code section.  While my colleagues were fawning over reaching the next level (Sr. Associate, Manager, Sr. Manager, etc.) I was thinking to myself, how did I get into this mess of living in the world of measuring success through chargable hours.  My creativity which my college friends and family loved about me dwindled and I felt if I didn't change something drastically, there would be no turning back.   Something did change - at age 30, I decided to change my career.  I was a bit naive and abruptly left my job.  A year later, I wasn't any closer to landing a Growth/Marketing role.  I didn't have the network or the knowledge to successfully land a role.  I endlessly interviewed - it is painful to even remember the amount of rejection and time I spent on proposals to try and cater to highly competitive SV companies. My Tradecraft experience was more valuable than my highly ranked graduate program at UT Austin.  The classes were rigorous and the self introspection was intense.  At times I felt overloaded but I knew this was the right path.  Our highly experienced and patient growth instructor understood how to ramp students up to the ever changing world of growth marketing.  On top of curriculum, students worked together on real projects for brand name startups.  I was privileged to lead a data heavy paid acquisition project with Udemy and presented my findings to a board room filled with their growth team. My experiences with Tradecraft led to many rich conversations with companies which wouldn't respond to a LinkedIn or Angel.co resume drop.  The leads and network Tradecraft offers is unparalleled.  TC is very tactical by nature and understands how to stand out in this talent flooded market.  Within a few months after graduation, I landed my dream role as a product marketing manager owning all marketing initiatives for a particular product line.  I am work with designers, developers and closely with the CEO on a day to day basis.  The work environment is highly collaborative and I feel empowered to make all decisions around design of my product.  I couldn't have dreamt any of this would've been possible.  If anyone in the financial services space thinking of a transition - I highly recommend looking into what Tradecraft can do.   Please feel free to look me up on LinkedIn to reach out to me directly. read more

Tradecraft was one of the best experiences of my life. It feels strange to use the past tense because although I completed the official three month program in Growth a few months ago, Tradecraft is and will continue to be a huge part of my life. For three months, I worked my ass off. Nights and weekends. Reaching out to mentors. Taking on projects for high-profile startups with real expectations. I learned more in those three months than I could have possibly expected, and then after, I went out to figure out where I wanted to land. See, the reason it's weird to use the past tense is that even after those three months passed, Tradecraft has been there for me. When I was going through interviews, evaluating my opportunities, and negotiating my contract, Tradecraft was an unbelievable support. And I absolutely credit all the support I got as the reason I landed my dream job. There are lots of great places to learn the nuts and bolts of how to work in tech startups. I'm so glad I chose Tradecraft because it's ultimately about a long-term relationship where I'm continually supported with the knowledge, resources, and relationships to kick ass long into my career. And in turn, I get excited about giving back to Tradecraft because it's an incredible community of friends, mentors, and advocates who support each other. It's a big commitment of time, energy, and money. But if you're ready to commit and you're given the opportunity, I can't think of a more rewarding experience than Tradecraft. read more

Most amazing experience of my life. In 3 months, I went from an SEO / Content Strategist for small businesses to Director of Growth for an early-stage startup. I received career training, personal development training, and entrepreneurial training. Tradecraft revolutionized the way I think about marketing. Highly recommend if you want to focus on growth, sales & business development, or UX for startups. Look up quora.com "is tradecraft effective" to get more perspective or contact me directly at llstubler@gmail.dot. That's how strongly I feel. read more

TL:DR Tradecraft is a rare gem of a school and community. If you are at all interested in doing a career accelerator program, I would highly, highly, recommend doing it, even if you need to take out a loan to do so (which I did). Personal Background: I was working as a photojournalist and found myself getting super interested in UX Design. After learning a lot on my own (doing courses on Treehouse, reading books, messing around in Sketch), I decided that doing an in-person bootcamp would let me immerse myself in the design/startup community in a way that I couldn't by simply learning on my own. I was initially hesitant about shelling out $14K as I would have to take out a loan and that sounds like a steep price for a 3 month program. I ended up making back the cost of the program in the following three months, making a ton of new friends who also love design/startups, and now have a job I find incredibly creative and fulfilling. The Program: (Disclaimer: I did the Product Design Track and finished the program Mid-2015. They are constantly iterating/improving the program, some things may be different now) The single biggest differentiator between Tradecraft and nearly all other bootcamps is that Tradecraft throws you into 'client work' projects almost immediately (Week 3) and you do most of your learning by doing real work for real companies. It goes like this: 1) Someone at Tradecraft reaches out to a company they're interested in or companies reach out about having some design work done. 2) The company comes in for a 'consult' which is led by the Product Design instructors - after the consult, students discuss if it seems like a project they would be interested in.If so, student Project Leads are assigned and a proposal is drawn up. 3) Students work directly with the startup to complete proposed design work, utilizing the Product Design Instructors (who are mind-blowingly amazing) whenever they have questions. 4) Students get awesome experience/portfolio pieces and startups get quality pro-bono design work. This set-up is amazing for a couple of reasons. First, all of the learning you're doing is way more concrete when it's for a real company. Second, you get real design experience you can show to potential employers. Third, you bond closely with your cohort as you work through all the projects together, building a strong design network. Personal Growth: In spite of all the professional growth I had at Tradecraft, by far the most valuable aspect of the program was the way it reshaped my understanding of how to learn and how to best approach life as a whole. Misha, Russ, Zac, Jake, Nick and the rest of the staff infectiously imbue students with an amazing mentality: Be intentional about what you want out of life, work incredibly hard to get there, be good to those around you, and follow your curiosity. It fosters an enthusiasm and confidence that has stayed with me since. Outcome: The Product Design field is amazing right now (January 2016). Soon after graduating I got a job at an early stage startup from a fellow Tradecrafter. He had graduated before me and when a contact of his was hiring designers, he posted on the Tradecraft 'Job Opportunities' Slack Channel about the position. I replied and ended up getting the job, I've been there since. General salaries at this point for Product Designers out of Tradecraft Range from 70-125K. Coming from a career in Photojournalism, that is mind-boggling. I actually would love to know any other time in history when someone could do 3 month program and immediately be eligible for work at an equivalent of a 70-125K salary. Maybe the 3 month journey across the U.S. during the gold rush? But that was 6 months and you'd probably get dysentery. Regardless of salary, I have found design to be deeply satisfying and filled with intelligent, wonderful people. Conclusion: Tradecraft is wonderful. It is hard for me to think of a better way to spend 3 months of one's life. I left with close friends, a more intentional/positive outlook on my life and learning, and a career that I love. Do it! Feel free to hit me up with any questions at all: toby.silverman88@gmail.com @tobysilverman https://www.facebook.com/toby.silverman (https://www.facebook.com/toby.silverman) read more

Tradecraft is a force multiplier and your mindset is critical to the value you can derive from its program. If you go in prepared to actively learn and work HARD you will see amazing results. The instructors are there to help you cut through the BS and efficiently teach yourself. If you only passively engage with the program you will waste time, money and be frustrated with your experience. This program is understanding of beginners but will not coddle you or hold your hand. Expect some tough love. I recommend you read everything you can on your chosen track before you show up day 1. A typical day includes: 3 hours of instruction Assignments Client Work (Clients are typically small to medium startups and the projects last 8 -12 weeks. Participants bear all of the responsibilities of typical contract work.) Mentor Talks (industry experts and very influential individuals are constantly in the building. The networking possibilities are great.) Most of your day is unstructured so time management is paramount. Learning to prioritize is necessary. Expect to be in the building or working at least 12 hours a day. This program is not for everyone but I can say I am 100% satisfied with the money I spent. Given the choice I would do it again. read more

I can't think of good enough words to describe what Tradecraft was for my career/life. Coming from very far away (Chile), you read about tech & growth but don't really understand how things are done in the Bay Area. Tradecraft was the gap between those two worlds. I joined with an interesting background. Being a founder twice (including a Snapchat - Latin American competitor that grew to 80,000+ DAU), I had experienced the pains of growing a company. Growth isn't luck. It's a mindset. And even though I had some previous experience optimizing viral loops, Tradecraft gave me the solid foundations to become a growth marketer. I met amazing people during the 3-month program. Humble, fast learners. Always looking for new ways to add value to the community. Most of them now working at top startups in the Bay Area. Tradecraft is for people that want to learn, are curious and motivated. If you expect the world to do everything for you, then this is not the place for you. If you work hard, you'ill get 10x back. The instructors are incredibly smart and have experience in startups and growing companies. They help you accelerate your learning curve by giving you the right material and walking you through the different growth channels. I'm currently working in a hyper-growth company. Couldn't be happier. I will be forever grateful for everything they did for me and the Chilean Mafia. read more

Awesome experience with whip smart people. I was in the very first class at TC and enjoyed what I learned and the people I got to meet, from my classmates, to the instructors, to the amazing mentors collected along the way. Glad I took 12 weeks out of my life to experience Tradecraft! read more