COLUMBIA ENGINEERING

CODING
BOOT CAMP

Curriculum Overview
The digital revolution has transformed virtually every area of human activity, and learning to code can put you at
the heart of today’s dynamic workforce.

Columbia Engineering Coding Boot Camp is an intensive boot camp that prepares you to build end-to-end web
applications and become a full stack web developer. This 24-week boot camp features online classes and hands-
on projects, all designed to fit within your busy schedule.

The course is rigorous and fast-paced, exploring both the theory and application of web development. As you
gain proficiency, you’ll use what you learn to build complex projects under the guidance of instructors who are
professional web developers. You will complete the boot camp with an impressive professional portfolio, and you
will have access to career guidance as you begin your journey to becoming a web development professional.

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 Is a Boot Camp Right For You?

Success in this boot camp takes creativity and curiosity. We seek learners who are looking to push
themselves to the next stage in their careers, whether they are starting fresh or looking to move up at
their current role.

You should consider a boot camp if:

You want to switch careers and find new challenges and opportunities in an in-demand industry.

You are looking to move into a more technical position but need to bridge the gap between your
current role and the next step up.

You need more flexibility in your career, or you are looking to work remotely, make your own
hours, and strike out on your own as a freelancer.

You are trying to launch your own business and need new skills to take the leap.

You want to offer more value within your current role and boost your earning potential.

You recently graduated and need hands-on experience to enter an in-demand field.

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 What You’ll Learn

The curriculum begins with a deep dive into the basics of coding and data structure. You will complete
the boot camp with hands-on experience with the applications and programs used by full stack
developers. Along the way you will build a professional portfolio to impress future employers.

Course topics include:*

Computer Science Applied to JavaScript API Design

• Algorithms (Searches, Sorts) • Client-Server Model API
• Performance • REST
• Time Complexity • JSON
• Big O Notation • AJAX (Fetch API)
• Data Structures • HTTP request methods
• Design Patterns • GraphQL

Deployment and Delivery Server Side Development

• Heroku • Node.js
• Git • Express.js
• GitHub Pages • User Authentication
• Shell Scripting • Template EnginesMERN Stack (MongoDB,
• Unit Testing Express.js, React.js, Node.js)
• Linting
• Continuous Integration
Databases
• MySQL
• MongoDB

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 What You’ll Learn

Browser Based Technologies Supplemental Self-Study Topics

• HTML After completing the boot camp, you will have access
to four continuation courses to help you build fluency
• CSS
in additional technologies and help increase your
• JavaScript competitiveness in the job market:
• jQuery • Python
• Responsive Design • Java
• Bootstrap • Amazon Web Services
• Progressive Web Applications (PWAs) • C#
• Local Storage, Session Storage, IndexedDB
Continuation Courses are an optional week (10 hours)
• React.js of self-paced content and offer you the opportunity to
add projects to your professional portfolio.

*The materials covered in this course are subject to change due to market demand.

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 Your Next Career Move

Upon completion of the boot camp you will be qualified to pursue a range of professional roles,
such as:

Full stack developer Software developer

Front end web developer Software engineer

Back end web developer Application developer

Technical project manager Web developer

QA and test engineer

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 Learning Outcomes

Certificate recipients of the coding boot camp are prepared to:

Apply “social coding” accepted and best Expertly navigate the file system and
practices (including source control, issue tracking, terminal basics
functional feedback, etc.)

Work independently or in a group on complex

Build a front end website either from scratch projects throughout the entire development
or by utilizing a front end framework (such as life cycle
Bootstrap)

Understand the basics of troubleshooting and

Deploy static and dynamic websites to enhancing legacy code
the cloud

Communicate the basics of serving a web

Implement complex logical conditions to page and how the browser renders code
meet an objective

Create RESTful APIs utilizing JSON as a

Write SQL commands to perform Create, data format
Read, Update, and Delete commands

Consume RESTful APIs properly utilizing

Create a full stack Single Page Application REST verbs
with AJAX communication

Create session-based applications utilizing

Develop your vision for a website — and then user authentication schemes that are well-
build it! known and widely used

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 Course Structure
The boot camp includes informative discussion as well as individual and team exercises. Homework
assignments provide an opportunity to apply what you’ve learned and build on it. The goal is to give you
a comprehensive learning experience and true insight into what it’s like to be a full stack developer.

DISCUSSION LAB WORK PORTFOLIO PROJECTS

Instructor-led discussions cover the You’ll put classroom teaching into You’ll build a substantial portfolio
background, history, and use of a practice individually and with a of projects that demonstrate your
new technology or concept. team to work on timed in-class abilities across a wide variety of
exercises and projects. technologies.

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 Support Every Step of the Way

As you progress through your boot camp, you will have access to a range of support and resources to help
you succeed. You can work with instructors in office hours, access 1:1 tutoring and 24/7 learning assistants,
and work with your classmates and support teams in a dedicated Slack channel.

You will also work closely with our dedicated Career Engagement Network, which offers comprehensive
services to learners:

Resume and profile development coaching Soft skills training

Customizable tools and templates Interview practice sessions

Online career events with industry One-on-one career coaching

professionals

After completing the boot camp, you’ll have access to additional resources:

A Slack group for all coding boot camp alumni Lists of networking groups and nonprofits
seeking web development volunteers

Curated open-source projects and activities

Supplemental online learning materials in
Python, Java, C#, and AWS

Technical and behavioral interview

preparation materials

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BUILDING YOUR PORTFOLIO

You will build your portfolio throughout the boot camp, putting what you’ve learned to work
on actual projects, ranging from simple HTML and CSS code samples to sophisticated single
page applications with back end databases.

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 Building Your Portfolio

Your Full Stack Portfolio Page

Skills Needed
Your portfolio page will showcase your work with links and
• HTML5 • Heroku
descriptions to the projects you’ve created, code samples,
• CSS • Git
and personal information that employers want to see.
• JavaScript

Objectives
• Create a home on the web to showcase your skills
• Design and build a complete site from concept

Business-Oriented Homework
Skills Needed
Projects
All homework:
Homework assignments are designed to emulate two real- • HTML • JavaScript
world scenarios: on-the-job tickets and job-seeking coding • CSS • Git
challenges. In both cases, the assignment is framed as a user
story. Select homework:
• jQuery • APIs
• Bootstrap • Heroku
• MySQL • MongoDB
• Node.js • React
• Express.js • GraphQL
• ORM

Objectives
• Each assignment focuses on a specific layer of the
tech stack; objectives will vary based on the tech
stack focus

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 Portfolio continued...

Self-Selected Front End Project

Skills Needed
This group project forces you to think outside your comfort
• HTML5/CSS • Bootstrap
zone. Together with your group, you will build a front end
application that interacts with real-world services like Google • JavaScript/jQuery • Git
Maps, Twitter, or The Library of Congress API. • API Consumption

Objectives
• Work in a group to build a project together
• Interact with third-party services
• Think in terms of mobile responsive design

Full Stack Project

Skills Needed
In your first full stack web application, you’ll create an
• HTML5/CSS • Node.js
intuitive front end, robust back end and scalable database.
• Heroku • Express.js
• JavaScript • ORM
• MySQL • Template Engines
• Authentication

Objectives
• Track issue progress with industry
standard tools
• Communicate with team members asynchronously
• Design a MySQL Database Schema
• Create a full stack application
• Write project documentation
• Understand database relationships

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 Portfolio continued...

Final Project
Skills Needed
You will work independently or break out into groups to
• Everything you’ve learned!
collaborate on a final project. You will come up with your own
project and actually build it. The skills you learn during this
project will truly help you to prepare for your first interviews.

Objectives
• Define project scope • Deployment
• Quality assurance testing • Code
• Responsive design organization

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 Course Curriculum By Phase

Phase Description What You’ll Learn

The first phase, Foundation, equips you with • HTML, CSS and JavaScript
Phase 1:
the fundamental concepts of web development, • Creating a web page from scratch
Foundation
covering HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, as
(Weeks 1-8) • Mastering terminal commands
well as command line fundamentals and API
consumption. • DOM manipulation
• Integrating third-party libraries ( jQuery,
Bootstrap)
• Consuming RESTful APIs
• Parsing JSON to extract meaningful
data
• Using AJAX to update data on a
website

In the second phase, Technical, you learn the • Writing Node.js server code to serve
Phase 2:
skills necessary to engineer a full stack web static web pages
Technical
application, working with servers, databases, • Querying large amounts of data and
(Weeks 9-16)
and other back end technologies, and answering questions from a MySQL
connecting them to the front end. database
• Understanding and using Joins,
Wheres, and Counts strategically

The last phase, Performance, has a dual • Utilizing NoSQL databases, such as
Phase 3:
meaning in that you acquire skills to optimize MongoDB, as an alternative to MySQL
Performance
your web applications for speed and efficiency • Improving the performance of
(Weeks 17-24)
as well as prepare yourself for the transition to applications
a career in web development. • Converting traditional applications into
progressive web applications (PWAs)
• Creating single-page applications with
React
• Computer Science applied to
JavaScript (data structures, algorithms)

Optional Phase: Continue building your professional portfolio of Take crash courses in:
projects after you complete the boot camp. • Python
Online Continuation
Courses • Java
As an alumni of the boot camp, you’ll have
(Supplemental Learning) access to additional learning, projects, and • Amazon Web Services
networking opportunities that never expire. • C#

Build your fluency in additional technologies

and further increase your competitiveness
in the market with hands-on learning that’s
supported by a global network of alumni.

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