Full-Stack Web Development Curriculum
A modern, project-based engineering roadmap tailored for adult learners (TypeScript, React, Node.js, PostgreSQL, and Cloud DevOps).
The 70/30 Engineering Rule
Aim for 30% theory (reading & watching) and 70% hands-on coding (breaking things, debugging terminal logs, and shipping real repositories). Consistency beats marathon cramming sessions every single time.
Curriculum Roadmap Overview
From terminal foundations to deployed full-stack SaaS architecture:
| Phase | Duration | Focus Area | Core Technologies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phase 0 | 2–3 Weeks | CS & Web Fundamentals | Internet Architecture, Bash/Zsh, Git & GitHub |
| Phase 1 | 6–8 Weeks | Frontend Foundations | Semantic HTML5, Responsive CSS3, JavaScript ES6+ |
| Phase 2 | 6–8 Weeks | Frontend Engineering | TypeScript, React, Vite, TanStack Query, Tailwind CSS |
| Phase 3 | 6–8 Weeks | Backend Engineering | Node.js, Express, PostgreSQL, Prisma ORM, REST APIs |
| Phase 4 | 4–6 Weeks | Full-Stack Integration | OAuth2, JWTs & Cookies, OWASP Security, WebSockets |
| Phase 5 | 2–3 Weeks | DevOps & Quality | Vitest, Playwright, Docker, GitHub Actions CI/CD |
| Capstone | 4 Weeks | Production SaaS Project | Full TypeScript Stack (End-to-End deployment) |
Foundations & Mental Models
Goal: Demystify how the internet functions, master command-line operations, and adopt industry-standard Git version control.
Core Topics
- How the internet works: DNS resolution, IP routing, TCP/IP, HTTP/HTTPS client-server cycle.
- Terminal & Shell: Directory navigation (
cd,ls), file management, pipes, permissions. - Version Control: Git commits, branching strategies, merge conflict resolution, GitHub pull requests.
Modern Frontend Foundations (HTML, CSS, JavaScript)
Goal: Build accessible, responsive web interfaces and control DOM manipulation with modern ES6+ JavaScript.
Core Topics
- Semantic HTML5 & a11y: Semantic elements (
<main>,<nav>,<article>), form validation, ARIA landmarks, keyboard accessibility. - Modern CSS: Box model, Flexbox, CSS Grid layout, custom properties (variables), mobile-first responsive design.
- JavaScript ES6+: Scope & closures, array methods (
map,filter,reduce), DOM events, Promises,async/await, andfetch().
Recommended Reading
localStorage.Frontend Engineering (TypeScript, React & Modern Tooling)
Goal: Construct scalable, type-safe single-page web applications using component architecture.
Core Topics
- TypeScript: Type annotations, interfaces, union types, generics, type narrowing, strict typing.
- React Architecture: JSX, component lifecycle, props, state, controlled inputs.
- Hooks:
useState,useEffect,useRef,useMemo,useCallback, custom hooks. - Data Fetching & State: Server state vs client state (TanStack Query / React Query, Context API, Zustand).
- Build Tools & Styling: Vite bundler, Tailwind CSS utility-first styling.
Recommended Reading
Backend Engineering (Node.js, Express & Databases)
Goal: Build and secure RESTful web APIs, model relational databases, and write efficient data queries.
Core Topics
- Node.js: Event-driven architecture, streams, asynchronous filesystem operations, modules.
- Express.js: Router structure, request/response lifecycle, custom middleware, error handling, input validation with Zod.
- Relational Database (PostgreSQL): Schemas, table relationships (1:N, N:M), indexes, joins, ACID transactions, migrations.
- Database Access: Prisma ORM or Drizzle ORM for type-safe database queries.
- API Design: RESTful principles, HTTP status codes, pagination, rate limiting, OpenAPI/Swagger docs.
Recommended Reading
Full-Stack Integration, Auth & Security
Goal: Wire client to server securely, implement authentication, and protect applications against vulnerabilities.
Core Topics
- Authentication & Authorization: Password hashing (Argon2 / bcrypt), JWT vs. Session cookies (HTTP-only, SameSite), RBAC.
- Third-Party Auth: OAuth 2.0 & OpenID Connect (Sign-in with Google, GitHub).
- Web Application Security: OWASP Top 10 vulnerabilities (SQL injection, XSS, CSRF, insecure direct object references, CORS).
- Real-time Communication: WebSockets or Server-Sent Events (SSE) for live two-way updates.
Recommended Reading
DevOps, Testing & Cloud Deployment
Goal: Automate test suites, package services into containers, and configure automated deployment pipelines.
Core Topics
- Testing Pyramid: Unit tests (Vitest/Jest), Integration tests, End-to-End tests (Playwright).
- Containers: Docker basics, writing multi-stage
Dockerfiles, local multi-service orchestration withdocker-compose. - CI/CD Pipelines: GitHub Actions workflows for automated linting, test runs, and image builds.
- Cloud Hosting: Deploying frontends to Vercel, APIs to Render/Fly.io/AWS, and DBs to managed Postgres (Supabase/Neon).
Study Plan & Weekly Routine for Adult Learners
| Learning Track | Time Commitment | Estimated Duration | Weekly Cadence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part-Time | 10–15 hours / week | 8–10 months | 1–1.5 hours on weeknights (theory & tutorials); 4–5 hours on Saturday (building projects). |
| Career Transition | 25–35 hours / week | 4–5 months | 4 hours/day: 2 hours theory & study, 2 hours coding & building projects. |
The Capstone: Production Full-Stack SaaS Application
Construct and deploy a production-ready application that proves you can architect solutions across the entire software stack.
Suggested Project: Multi-Tenant Booking & Operations Platform
- Backend: Node.js / Express or NestJS with TypeScript, PostgreSQL, Prisma ORM.
- Authentication: Secure HTTP-only cookies with JWTs, email verification, password reset, and role permissions.
- Frontend: React 19 / Next.js with TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, TanStack Query, and optimistic updates.
- DevOps: Multi-stage Docker container, GitHub Actions CI/CD running Vitest and Playwright tests, deployed to production.
Get the Production Boilerplate & Project Files
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