DEV-204 Development

Software Architecture & Design Patterns

Teach architecture as the discipline of making changeable systems under real constraints: patterns applied only where they pay, clear layering, honest coupling and cohesion analysis, and decisions recorded so future teams understand them. Learners produce an architecture decision record and defend a design against stated quality attributes. Recognising and unwinding over-engineering is treated as a first-class skill.

B4Professional

6modules

42skill atoms

3role journeys

Curriculum

What this course covers.

6 modules, 42 named skill atoms. Expand any module to see them.

1Patterns That Earn Their Place7 skill atoms

strategy, factory and builder in real codeadapter and facade at integration seamsobserver and event publicationtemplate method vs compositionsingleton as a coupling hazardpattern names as shared vocabularydeleting a pattern that no longer pays

2Layering and Hexagonal Architecture7 skill atoms

ports and adapters separationdomain model free of framework annotationsapplication services as use-case boundariesdependency rule pointing inwardspackage by feature not by technical layeranti-corruption layer against legacy systemstesting the domain without infrastructure

3Coupling, Cohesion and Change7 skill atoms

afferent and efferent couplingconnascence as a coupling vocabularymodule boundaries that match change patternsshared libraries as hidden couplingAPI stability and consumer blast radiusdependency cycles detected with ArchUnitmeasuring change ripple in the commit history

4Quality Attributes and Trade-offs7 skill atoms

latency, throughput and availability targetsCAP consequences in practical designssecurity and auditability as design inputscost as an architectural constraintscenario-based evaluation of a designreversible vs irreversible decisionssaying no to a requirement that breaks the design

5Decisions, Evolution and Knowing When to Stop7 skill atoms

architecture decision records with context and consequencesfitness functions for evolutionary architecturestrangler fig migration of legacy systemsYAGNI and speculative generalityabstraction with only one implementationframework adoption cost over five yearsrecognising over-engineering in your own past work

6Architecting With AI in the Room7 skill atoms

the assistant proposes patterns fluently and indiscriminatelyit optimises for plausibility not for your constraintsgenerated designs skewing toward heavier architecture than neededusing AI to enumerate options then judging trade-offs yourselfasking for the failure modes of a proposed designADRs written with AI must still record real contextaccountability for the design sits with the architect

Where it fits

DEV-204 in the role journeys.

This course appears in 3 of our 45 role journeys. Here is what a learner takes immediately before and after it in each.

Software Engineer (AI-era)

Professional stage

SEC-303→DEV-204→AI-507

Java Developer

Professional stage

DEV-203→DEV-204→DEV-501

Backend Engineer

Professional stage

DEV-214→DEV-204→CL-321

Roles this course serves

Backend Engineer Java Developer Software Engineer (AI-era)

The capability ladder

This course is authored to band B4.

Every course we run is written to one rung of the CASI ladder, so a plan can be assembled to take a team from where they are to where they need to be.

What do B1–B6 mean?The CASI Capability Ladder — click to expand

Every course targets a band on the CASI Capability Ladder — our six-band proficiency scale, anchored to open standards (O*NET, ESCO, NICE, NIST AI RMF, Bloom's). A band tells you how deep a course goes, and what evidence proves it.

What the learner can doTypical evidence

AwareUnderstands concepts and vocabulary; uses tools with guidance

Knowledge checks

FoundationPerforms standard tasks correctly in familiar contexts

Guided labs, autograded exercises

PractitionerDelivers complete pieces of work independently

Scenario labs, proctored hands-on exams

ProfessionalHandles production-grade complexity, trade-offs and failure modes

Break-fix drills, design defenses

AdvancedEngineers systems end-to-end under constraints; leads others

Rubric-scored capstones, vivas

ExpertSets direction; recognised authority across teams

Portfolio + panel evaluation

A note on B6. Courses in this catalog target B1–B5. B6 is not taught — it is recognised, through a portfolio and a panel, once someone is setting direction for others. Every journey here is built to land a learner at B5.

Other Development courses at this level.

DEV-202

Run DEV-204 for your team.

This course runs at several lengths depending on how deep you need to go and how much of it your people already have. Tell us who is being trained and we will scope it.

Add it to a training plan Talk to our team Check your team’s level free

Software Architecture & Design Patterns

What this course covers.

DEV-204 in the role journeys.

Software Engineer (AI-era)

Java Developer

Backend Engineer

Roles this course serves

This course is authored to band B4.

Other Development courses at this level.

Advanced Java: Concurrency, JVM & Performance

Java Microservices with Spring Cloud

Advanced React & Frontend Architecture

Node.js Backend Engineering at Scale

Mobile Release Engineering & Store Operations

Mobile App Testing & Device Strategy

Run DEV-204 for your team.