Latest / The Career Change Podcast with Fexingo: Switching Fields, Bootcamps, and Reskilling / How Bootcamp Grads Can Land a Remote-First Job
Transcript
- Lucas: So, we've talked a lot about how bootcamp grads can land on-site roles — the whiteboard interview, the system design round, the behavioral fit. But what about remote-first jobs? That's a whole different game. Luna: Right, because in a remote interview you might not have a whiteboard at all. And the signals they're looking for are totally different. Lucas: Exactly. And I think bootcamp grads actually have an edge here if they play it smart. Because when you've learned to code in a bootcamp, you've already built a lot of the skills that make remote work effective: self-direction, async communication, googling your way out of a problem. Luna: Yeah, bootcamps are basically remote work bootcamps in disguise. You're often collaborating on Slack, pairing over Zoom, submitting assignments via GitHub. That's the same stack remote teams use. Lucas: So the first thing I'd tell anyone is: don't undersell that experience. On your resume, under your bootcamp project, write something like 'collaborated asynchronously with a distributed team using GitHub Issues and Pull Requests.' That's a keyword that hiring managers at remote-first companies are scanning for. Luna: And if you don't have that experience? Say you did a full-time in-person bootcamp. Can you still signal remote readiness? Lucas: Absolutely. One thing you can do is contribute to open source. Pick a project that uses a distributed workflow — most of them do — and make a few PRs. Even if the changes are small, you're showing you can communicate in writing, handle code review, and work across time zones. Luna: That's smart. And it's a concrete example you can bring up in an interview. 'I submitted a PR to this open source project, the maintainer is in Europe, I had to explain my approach in a comment thread.' That's gold. Lucas: Yeah, and it leads directly into one of the most common remote interview questions: 'Tell me about a time you had to communicate something complex asynchronously.' If you have that open source example, you're set. Luna: What about the companies themselves? Are there certain remote-first companies that are more bootcamp-friendly? Lucas: Great question. A lot of the fully remote companies that have been remote since day one — like GitLab, Buffer, Automattic — tend to be more skills-focused and less credential-focused. GitLab's handbook literally says they don't care about degrees. They care about what you can do. Luna: That's a huge advantage for bootcamp grads. But I've heard that GitLab's interview process is notoriously tough — lots of written exercises, async communication tests. Lucas: It is. But the good news is they're transparent about it. Their entire hiring process is documented in their public handbook. You can prepare for it. They have a 'hiring' section that explains the stages: a written application, a technical assessment, a team interview, and then a final interview with the manager. All async-friendly. Luna: So a bootcamp grad could literally study the GitLab handbook before applying. That levels the playing field. Lucas: Exactly. And it's not just GitLab. Buffer publishes their salary formula and their interview rubric. Zapier has a similar approach. These companies want to see that you've done your homework. Luna: But let's be real — not every bootcamp grad is going to get into GitLab right away. What about the more common remote roles at, say, a startup that went remote during the pandemic? Lucas: That's actually the majority of remote job listings right now — companies that were forced into remote and decided to stay. They're often less structured, which can be good and bad. Good because they might be more flexible about your background. Bad because they might not have a clear process for onboarding junior hires remotely. Luna: So what's the play there? Lucas: The play is to demonstrate that you're low-friction. Show them you can set up your own dev environment, you can use the tools they use — Slack, Notion, Linear, whatever. In your cover letter or first interview, say something like: 'I'm comfortable working in an async environment. I know how to over-communicate without being noisy.' Luna: Over-communicate without being noisy — that's a nice phrase. Give me an example of what that looks like in practice. Lucas: Sure. Let's say you're working on a bug fix. A noisy person might ping someone on Slack every five minutes with questions. An effective async worker writes up their findings in a shared doc, lists the hypotheses, and says 'I tried X and Y, here's what happened, I'm going to try Z next unless someone objects.' That's over-communication — but it's structured and respectful of others' time. Luna: That's a great distinction. And it's a skill that bootcamp grads can practice immediately. Start writing your daily standup updates that way, even if you're just in a study group. Lucas: Speaking of standups — a lot of remote teams use async standups in Slack or a tool like Geekbot. If you can show that you're already doing that, it's a huge plus. Luna: Honestly, this episode feels like it's worth a coffee. If today helped you see the path forward, supporting the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo is the easiest way to say thanks. We keep the show ad-free because of listeners like you. Lucas: Yeah, it really does make a difference. Even a one-time cup helps us keep doing deep dives like this. And we're back to the topic — because the next thing is the remote interview itself. Luna: Right. So what are the biggest mistakes bootcamp grads make in remote interviews? Lucas: The biggest one is treating it like a phone screen. You need to be on camera, have good lighting, a clean background, and a stable internet connection. But more importantly, you need to adjust your communication style. In person, you can read the room. On a video call, you can't. So you have to be more explicit. Luna: Like, 'I'm going to pause and think for a moment' instead of just going silent. Lucas: Exactly. Silence on a video call feels like a dropped connection. So narrate your thought process. Say 'Let me think about that for a second' or 'I'm going to pull up my code example.' That keeps the interviewer engaged and reassured. Luna: What about the technical portion? If you're asked to code share, any tips? Lucas: Yes. Before the interview, make sure you know how to share your screen and switch between windows smoothly. Have your editor open with a clean project. And practice talking while you code. That's hard. But bootcamp grads actually have an advantage here because pair programming is baked into the curriculum. Luna: So if you did pair programming in your bootcamp, say that. 'I'm used to explaining my thought process while coding because we did driver-navigator sessions every day.' Lucas: Yeah, that's music to a remote interviewer's ears. It shows you're collaborative and you won't clam up. Luna: Any red flags to watch out for in remote companies? Things that should make a bootcamp grad think twice? Lucas: Absolutely. One big red flag is a company that says they're remote but requires you to be online during specific hours with no flexibility. That's not remote-first, that's remote-controlled. Look for companies that talk about async-first culture, results-only work, or have a written handbook. Luna: Also, if they don't have a clear onboarding plan for junior hires, that's a risk. A good remote company will have a documented onboarding process, a buddy system, and regular check-ins. Lucas: Right. And don't be afraid to ask in the interview: 'How do you onboard new developers who are remote?' If they say 'we give them access to the repo and let them figure it out,' that's a red flag. Luna: So the takeaway is: bootcamp grads can absolutely land remote-first jobs, but they need to lean into their existing skills — async communication, self-direction, pair programming — and signal that readiness. Lucas: And target companies that value those skills over pedigree. GitLab, Buffer, Zapier, Doist, Basecamp — these are companies where a bootcamp grad can thrive. And they're hiring. Luna: One last thing: how do you find these companies? Any job boards that are more remote-first focused? Lucas: Sure. Remote OK, We Work Remotely, and the 'remote' filter on LinkedIn are good starting points. But also check out company career pages directly. GitLab has a 'jobs' page that lists all open roles. Buffer too. And don't ignore startups on AngelList that have 'remote' in their description. Luna: And when you apply, tailor your resume. Highlight collaboration tools, open source contributions, and any experience with distributed teams. Lucas: Exactly. And if you've done a group project where you used Slack and GitHub, that counts. Don't sell it short. Luna: All right, I think we've given listeners a solid roadmap. Next episode, maybe we can dig into how to negotiate a remote salary — because that's another beast entirely. Lucas: Yeah, location-based pay is a whole topic. Companies like Buffer are transparent about it. Others not so much. We'll cover that soon.