Backend with Node.js

How it is taught

1. Step 1

   Start where you are

   A short placement task, graded by the tutor, starts you past the modules you can already do.

2. Step 2

   Learn in conversation

   Each concept is one session: the tutor explains, asks you to write code, and reviews it until you have shown you understand.

3. Step 3

   Keep it

   Every concept comes back on day 3, 7 and 18. A memory model tracks how well each one is holding, and reviews can go straight into your Google Calendar.

What you will learn

Each concept has its own page: what a session covers, an example and the mistake to watch for.

1. Module 1The Node.js runtime

   • The event loop
   • Modules in Node
   • npm and package.json

2. Module 2HTTP fundamentals

   • Requests and responses
   • Status codes
   • Headers and content types

3. Module 3Building REST APIs

   • Routing
   • Middleware
   • Request validation

4. Module 4Async patterns

   • Promises and async/await
   • Error propagation
   • Concurrency limits

5. Module 5Relational databases

   • SQL queries
   • Schema design
   • Indexes

6. Module 6Data access layers

   • Query builders and ORMs
   • Migrations
   • Transactions

7. Module 7Authentication

   • Password hashing
   • Sessions versus tokens
   • JWT access tokens

8. Module 8Authorisation and security

   • Role-based access
   • Input sanitisation
   • Rate limiting

9. Module 9Testing APIs

   • Unit tests
   • Integration tests
   • Test databases

10. Module 10Caching and performance

    • HTTP caching
    • In-memory caches
    • Profiling

11. Module 11Deployment

    • Environment configuration
    • Containers
    • Logging and monitoring