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Ascend Learning

Is this your company?

Developers Beware - Seems like a hip startup environment but is far from it. - Developer Ascend Learning Employee Review

1.0
Mar 5, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Building that they bought and refinished is nice. They have nice chairs. Parking is not a problem. There is coffee.

Cons

Codebase is bloated, largely procedural and has not been refactored in years nor is it likely that this will ever be made a priority. No coding standards or best practices adhered to- simple bug fixes take 10x longer than they would in a well maintained repo. Words like Git, Composer, Agile, Scrum, MVC or Unit Testing are unfamiliar terms at this company. Small problems and routine maintenance issues like server updates get ignored for months or even years as they are deemed unimportant. Employee concerns about such issues are also ignored out of hand. Senior Dev staff lacks development experience outside the company. Management and Senior Dev staff averse to adopting new technologies or processes. Management unwilling or unable to address workplace or employee problems that could be solved with very basic communication. Overall development team culture is passive aggressive and toxic.

Explore other reviews about Ascend Learning

5.0
Jun 9, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great environment with good leaders who want to see you grow

Cons

Need a little more parent involvement

2.0
Jul 7, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Decent benefits Hybrid WFH schedule Some really great direct managers

Cons

Chaotic and disorganized, with old outdated backend systems. Work performance and output not generally recognized: people who do very little work are often paid the same, or more than people who do double or triple the workload, and are allowed to continue with the company while other shoulder the load. Once you are on a team or part of a BU - good luck making a move to another team or BU. The place is a revolving door for a lot of positions, but once you learn a skillset they are unlikely to allow a move. The sales team runs this place, so be prepared to be bullied constantly by them, even when you are told to gatekeep.

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