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A review of Jelly Academy digital marketing bootcamp

Hi, I’m Polina! Formerly, I worked as a senior digital marketing manager and now I am a marketing mentor at Pathrise. I help job-seekers prepare for their future in digital marketing. Check out my review of Jelly Academy.

What does Jelly Academy do?

Jelly Academy is a Canadian bootcamp that helps people launch a career in digital marketing. Despite being remote, their program features small class sizes with plenty of 1-on-1 instruction. 

Their flagship 6-week marketing bootcamp teaches students the skills they need to become a digital marketer. Students participate in six weekly 3-hour sessions over Zoom. But, the course is also quite hands-on, with lots of assignments and assessments. Students get homework challenges every session and are encouraged to complete certification tests for Google, Facebook, and Hootsuite.

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The first live session covers social media marketing with Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. In the second session, students work with SEO as they learn to optimize websites and marketing content for the Google algorithm. Then, the curriculum focuses on pay-per-click (PPC) ads on Google, Facebook, and Instagram. Students use Google analytics to understand customer needs and craft effective marketing plans. Finally, the course covers public relations. In addition to learning to appeal to buyer personas, students study common public relations avenues: traditional, experiential, influencer partnerships, and thought leadership. 

Upon completion of the bootcamp, students get a formal certificate and an additional 22 hours of self-paced content to help them prepare for more marketing certification tests. Therefore, grads leave the program prepared (and encouraged!) to take 5+ Google certification exams as well as certification tests from Hootsuite, Facebook, and more. Besides certification prep, the course does not include any job support or career services. 

Masterclasses

In addition, a shorter self-paced masterclass series is also available. The curriculum consists of 9 recorded video lessons that cover in-demand marketing tools. Students learn to master Google My Business, Mailchimp email campaigns, WordPress, SEO, social media, and Squarespace. Plus, the curriculum touches on landing pages, DashThis, and content creation using only a phone camera. Like their flagship course, the masterclass series includes no job support.

Who is Jelly Academy for?

People looking to break into digital marketing with little to no experience could benefit from Jelly Academy. The program is especially helpful for people seeking a part-time remote program with lots of hands-on assignments. Moreover, students who want to prepare for multiple marketing certifications could be a great match for the course’s many assessments and certification prep lessons. Aspiring marketers who want to master in-demand marketing tools on their own time could also be a good fit for the masterclass series.

What does Jelly Academy cost? How much work is involved?

Tuition for their flagship marketing bootcamp is $3,250. On the other hand, their masterclass series is $75. Women and BIPOC students may be eligible for a scholarship.

Unlike many other bootcamps, Jelly Academy does not have any formal admissions process. The program is open to anyone.

Ratings and reviews

Jelly Academy has received extremely positive reviews. They hold a perfect 5 star rating on Course Report based on just 2 reviews. One grad described the program as “the ideal learning environment” with so much support that “working with Jelly is like working with friends.” She also appreciated the hands-on curriculum, satisfied that the program “challenged me with tasks and always followed up to ensure I was applying my knowledge correctly.”

The program also holds a perfect 5 star rating on Switchup. One grad described the instructors as “very knowledgeable and able to answer any questions students had.” The student was also impressed by the comprehensive curriculum, satisfied that the program “covers all of the important sectors of digital marketing and allows you to further the education on your own through other certificate programs.”

Google reviewers gave the program yet another 5 star rating. One grad raved about the “truly amazing curriculum” that many felt struck the perfect balance between practical assignments and important conceptual topics. Another grad praised the course for “great teaching and instructions to get your Google certifications.”

One student described the course as especially helpful “if you’re pressed for time and like to learn in an immersive environment.” Overall, most grads seem satisfied with the course for its comprehensive yet practical curriculum that prepared students for certification exams. However, it’s worth noting that Jelly Academy does not offer any kind of job support. They prepare students for marketing jobs, not the job search.

Alternatives to Jelly Academy 

If you choose not to enroll in Jelly Academy, there are a number of alternative bootcamps and resources that can help you launch a career in digital marketing.

  • One of the most popular bootcamps with a digital marketing track is General Assembly. Their program is project-based, with students graduating with polished portfolios to help them get a job. Learn more about General Assembly in our review.
  • The tech bootcamp Tradecraft offers courses in growth marketing, sales, product design, and more. Their 12-week program is designed for people looking to land a job at a high-growth startup, with an emphasis on practical entry-level skills students can use to impress employers.
  • Similarly, Noble Desktop is a tech bootcamp with tracks in digital marketing. This instructor-led program has live classes and lots of opportunities for portfolio building with in-demand marketing tools.
  • Other tech resources with digital marketing tracks include Pluralsight, Bootcamp Digital, Digital Creative Institute, and InternStreet.
  • The online bootcamp GrowthX Academy offers courses for people who are interested in digital marketing, business development, product management, and UX design. 
  • Likewise, SEMRush Academy, QuickSprout, Copyblogger, HubSpot Academy, and Facebook Blueprint all offer free online digital marketing courses.
More alternatives
  • Students seeking self-paced university courses can check out edX. This huge online learning platform hosts marketing courses from top universities like Harvard and MIT as well as big tech companies like Microsoft. Learn more about edX in our review.
  • Similarly, Coursera has thousands of courses in a huge variety of tech topics, including digital marketing. They often collaborate with universities and top tech companies like Google to keep their curricula practical and in-demand for today’s market.
  • The online learning platform Udemy hosts over 100,000 self-paced video courses in digital marketing, tech sales, software engineering, UX design, and more. Students only pay around $10 per class and get lifetime access. 
  • Another massive online learning platform is Udacity. They offer both free and paid courses on a variety of tech subjects, including digital marketing. Students in Udacity’s nanodegree programs work 1-on-1 with mentors while getting hands-on practice. Find out if Udacity is right for your career goals in our review.

How does Jelly Academy compare to Pathrise?

Jelly Academy offers bootcamps and masterclasses to help people launch digital marketing careers from scratch. Most students start with no experience. Fellows in the Pathrise program should already have a background in their chosen field so that they get the most out of our technical curriculum. 

While Jelly Academy grads get a formal certificate and training for even more marketing certificate exams, they do not get any job support. Pathrise is a full service organization that helps students through all phases of the job search. Experienced mentors work 1-on-1 with fellows in our program to optimize their resumes and LinkedIn profiles, build their portfolios, prepare for technical and behavioral interviews, negotiate salaries, and much more. Our mentors have already helped 1,000+ students and professionals land great tech jobs. 

Like Jelly Academy, our program is flexible, with only 2-4 hours of group sessions per week and fellows can schedule 1-on-1s as needed. Pathrise fellows also get access to income share agreement (ISA) so they pay nothing until they land a job. We never require any upfront payments or deposits.

Pathrise is a career accelerator that optimizes the job search through 1-on-1 mentoring. Fellows in our program have seen their interview scores double and their response rates triple, landing jobs in just 3-5 months on average. If you are interested in working with any of our mentors to land your dream job faster, join Pathrise. 

Apply today.

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Alex MacPherson

Hi I'm Alex! Since graduating from UC Berkeley in 2019, I have worked on the growth team for Pathrise helping job seekers hone their skills to land their dream role through curated content on interview prep, resume building and more.

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