Development with MERN Stack

In this course, you will learn how to build full-stack web applications using the MERN stack, which includes MongoDB for database management, Express.js for backend routing, React for front-end development, and Node.js for server-side functionality. You will gain hands-on experience in integrating both front-end and back-end components to create dynamic, data-driven applications.

You will also master the creation of RESTful APIs, managing databases, and ensuring that your applications are scalable and efficient. By the end of the course, you’ll be well-equipped to develop high-performance web applications and implement best practices for full-stack development.

3 months

Web Development Basics

Web development is the process of building websites and web applications using technologies like HTML for structure, CSS for styling, and JavaScript for interactivity. It involves two main areas: Frontend (what users see and interact with) and Backend (server-side logic and databases). Key elements include creating responsive designs, handling user authentication, and managing data through databases, making it essential for developing dynamic, full-stack applications.

Topics Covered:

HTML (Semantic & Non-Semantic Tags, Forms, Tables, Accessibility), CSS (Box Model, Positioning, Flexbox & Grid, Responsive Design (Media Queries, Mobile-first Approach), Tailwind CSS Basics

Hands-on Projects:

Build a Responsive Portfolio Page

What You Learn This Week:

You’ll be capable of creating well-structured web pages using HTML (semantic tags, forms, tables, accessibility), styling with CSS (box model, Flexbox, Grid, responsive design), and utilizing Tailwind CSS to build a responsive portfolio page.

JavaScript Fundamentals and Version Control

JavaScript is a versatile programming language used to add interactivity and dynamic functionality to web pages, allowing developers to create responsive and engaging user experiences. Git, on the other hand, is a version control system that helps developers track and manage changes in their code, making collaboration easier and ensuring efficient code management.

Topics Covered:

JavaScript Essentials (ES6+ Features): Variables, Scope (Let, Const), Functions (Arrow, Higher-Order), Promises, Async/Await, Event Loop & Callbacks, DOM Manipulation, Git & GitHub: Git Basics, Branching, Merging, Working with Pull Requests & Issues

Hands-on Project:

Develop an application with Local Storage

What You Learn This Week:

You'll be able to use JavaScript to manipulate the DOM and handle async tasks, master ES6+ features like promises and arrow functions, and understand Git for version control. You'll also build a dynamic To-Do List with local storage.

Development with React

React is a JavaScript library for building user interfaces, primarily for single-page applications. It allows developers to create reusable UI components that update efficiently when data changes. React uses a virtual DOM to optimize rendering performance and provide a smooth user experience. It also supports features like state management, hooks, and component-based architecture, making it a popular choice for developing modern, dynamic web applications.

Topics Covered:

Component-Based Architecture: Functional & Class Components, Props, State, Context API, React Hooks (Deep Dive): useState, useEffect, useRef, useContext, useMemo, Custom Hooks, React DOM Events, Routing, Component Styling: Tailwind CSS, Shadcn UI

Hands-on Project:

Develop an application with API Integration

What You Learn This Week:

Understand core React concepts like functional and class components, props, state, and hooks. Build reusable components, manage state, style with Tailwind CSS and Shadcn UI, and integrate external APIs, such as weather data, to enhance your app.

Node.js & Express.js Essentials

Node.js is a JavaScript runtime built on Chrome’s V8 engine, designed for building scalable, high-performance server-side applications. It enables developers to use JavaScript for backend development, supporting asynchronous, event-driven architecture for handling multiple requests efficiently. With its non-blocking I/O model, Node.js is ideal for building real-time applications, RESTful APIs, and microservices. Express is a minimal and flexible node js web application framework that provides broad features for building web and mobile applications. It is used to build a single page, multi-page, and hybrid web application.

Topics Covered:

Node.js Core Modules, Modules: Local, Assert, Buffer, Console, Crypto, File System, DNS, and HTTP, Express.js Basics: Routing, Middleware, Request & Response Handling, RESTful API Development: CRUD Operations, Working with Postman & API Testing, Error Handling & Logging

Hands-on Project:

Develop and application with CRUD Functionality

What You Learn This Week:

You'll learn how to build scalable backend applications with Node.js and Express.js, handle routing and middleware, implement RESTful APIs, and test endpoints effectively using Postman. By the end of the week, you'll be proficient in backend development essentials.

Authentication & Security

MongoDB is a document-oriented NoSQL database designed for high scalability, flexibility, and performance. It stores data in a JSON-like format, making it ideal for modern web applications that require dynamic and hierarchical data structures. Authentication and security are fundamental aspects of modern web applications, ensuring that user data remains protected and unauthorized access is prevented. Implementing secure authentication mechanisms and robust security measures helps safeguard sensitive information, mitigate vulnerabilities, and enhance user trust. This week focuses on essential authentication techniques, token-based security, and best practices for securing backend and frontend applications.

Topics Covered:

Password Hashing, JSON Web Token Authentication, Storing and Securing Token in Browser Storage, Managing Token Expiration and Refresh Tokens, Creating a Custom Authentication Hook, User Authorization, Backend Route Protection with Auth Middleware, and Role-Based Access Control

Hands-on Project:

Develop an application that includes User Authentication System with Role-Based Access Control

What You Learn This Week:

MongoDB is a document-oriented NoSQL database designed for high scalability, flexibility, and performance. It stores data in a JSON-like format, making it ideal for modern web applications that require dynamic and hierarchical data structures. Mongoose is an Object Data Modeling (ODM) library for MongoDB and Node.js, providing a structured schema-based approach to working with MongoDB while simplifying data validation and query building.

MongoDB & Mongoose

MongoDB is a document-oriented NoSQL database designed for high scalability, flexibility, and performance. It stores data in a JSON-like format, making it ideal for modern web applications that require dynamic and hierarchical data structures. Mongoose is an Object Data Modeling (ODM) library for MongoDB and Node.js, providing a structured schema-based approach to working with MongoDB while simplifying data validation and query building.

Topics Covered:

MongoDB Fundamentals: Collections, Documents, Schema Design, Cursor, CRUD Operations, Mongoose ORM: Schema & Model Definition, Data Validation, Middleware, Virtuals, Advanced Querying & Aggregation: Filtering, Sorting, Pagination, Aggregation Pipeline, Database Relationships: Referencing vs. Embedding, Population, Security: Enable auditing and logging to track access and changes to MongoDB instances

Hands-on Project:

Develop an application with MongoDB and Mongoose

What You Learn This Week:

You’ll understand the core principles of MongoDB and NoSQL databases, learn how to structure data effectively using Mongoose, and perform CRUD operations efficiently. Build and optimize database queries, enforce schema validation, and implement relationships between collections to enhance data consistency in real-world applications.

Building a Real-World Project

This week is dedicated to applying all the skills learned throughout the course by building a comprehensive real-world full-stack project. You will follow best practices in project planning, backend and frontend integration, authentication, and security. By the end of this module, you will have a polished project that demonstrates your ability to develop a fully functional web application.

Topics Covered:

Project Planning & Architecture: -Defining project scope and requirements -Choosing the right tech stack and database design -Structuring a scalable backend and frontend, Full-Stack Development -Backend implementation with Node.js and Express -Database integration with MongoDB and Mongoose -Frontend development with React and Tailwind CSS -Authentication and authorization best practices API integration and testing

What You Learn This Week:

By the end of this week, you will have the ability to design and develop a full-stack web application from start to finish. You will learn how to structure a project, integrate frontend and backend technologies, implement authentication and security best practices, and deploy a production-ready application. This hands-on experience will give you the confidence to build and manage real-world applications effectively.

Advanced Features & Testing

This week focuses on advanced frontend and backend features that enhance application performance, maintainability, and reliability. You'll explore advanced routing, state management, debugging tools, and testing methodologies to ensure robust and scalable applications.

Topics Covered:

Dynamic routes and nested routes Form Handling & Validation: Formik & React Hook Form State Management: Redux Toolkit & Zustand WebSockets for Real-Time Communication Using React DevTools, Memoization, and Code-Splitting Writing Tests with Jest and React Testing Library

What You Learn This Week:

You'll gain hands-on experience in advanced routing, state management, and real-time communication. You'll also learn best practices for debugging and testing, ensuring your applications are optimized for performance and reliability.

Version Control & Collaboration (Git)

Version control is an essential skill for software development, enabling developers to track changes, collaborate efficiently, and maintain code integrity. This week covers Git fundamentals, branching strategies, remote repositories, and collaboration workflows.

Topics Covered:

Understanding Git and GitHub/GitLab Setting up Git, configuring user details Git basic commands: init, add, commit, push, pull creating branches, switching branches and merging branches Handling merge conflicts and branching strategies Git workflows: Feature branching, GitFlow

Module Tasks:

Initialize a Git repository and push it to GitHub Create branches, merge changes, resolve conflicts

Deployment & CI/CD

Deployment and Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) are crucial for modern software development, ensuring efficient code deployment, automated testing, and streamlined delivery pipelines. This week focuses on mastering containerization, cloud hosting, and CI/CD automation to deploy full-stack applications seamlessly. By the end of this module, you will be able to work with Docker, deploy applications to the cloud, and automate deployment workflows.

Topics Covered:

Introduction to Containership (Docker) -What is Containerization? -Introduction to Docker and why it's used -Installing Docker and setting up the environment -Dockerfile, Images, and Containers -Running a basic container (nginx, hello-world), Introduction to AWS (Cloud Basics) -AWS overview and key services -Setting up an AWS Free Tier account -Introduction to EC2, S3, IAM, RDS, and Lambda -Deploying a Docker container on AWS Elastic Beanstalk, CI/CD Pipelines (Automating Deployment) What is CI/CD and why is it important? Introduction to Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD Creating a simple CI/CD pipeline Automating Docker builds and pushing images to Docker Hub, Module Tasks: -Create a simple Dockerfile and build an image -Run a container using docker run -Launch an EC2 instance and connect via SSH -Deploy a static website using AWS S3 -Set up a GitHub Actions pipeline for auto-building Docker images -Push Docker images to Docker Hub or AWS ECR

Final Project & Career Preparation

As a culmination of everything learned throughout the course, this week focuses on applying full-stack development skills to a real-world project. Additionally, you will prepare for technical interviews, build a strong portfolio, and enhance your resume and LinkedIn presence to boost job prospects. By the end of this module, you'll have a polished project to showcase, interview confidence, and a roadmap for launching your career.

Topics Covered:

Final Full-Stack Project Development -Planning and structuring a full-stack application -Backend development with Node.js, Express.js, and MongoDB -Frontend implementation with React and Tailwind CSS -Authentication and security best practices -Testing and debugging full-stack applications -Deployment and CI/CD integration for production readiness, Technical Interview Preparation, Participate in mock technical interviews, Portfolio & Resume Enhancement

What You Learn This Week:

By the end of this module, you'll have a complete full-stack project in your portfolio, a well-structured resume, and the confidence to tackle technical interviews. You’ll also understand how to showcase your skills effectively and position yourself for job opportunities in web development.