Software architect

Learn to design, document and defend the architecture of a real software system, using AI tools to draft and challenge your designs and designing systems that contain AI, in 20 weeks.

Coming soon · planned, not written yet

The fourth most common role: 6.1% of respondentsStack Overflow Developer Survey 2025

20
weeks planned
~30 h
a week
5
milestone projects
1
project, grown every week

These are planned figures. The weeks are written after we check the tools against current job postings and official documentation, so the final route may differ.

Built for the AI era

How AI fits this roadmap

AI assistants can now draft diagrams, options and decision write-ups quickly, so the value of an architect moves to judging them: which trade-off fits this team, this budget and this risk. This roadmap has you use an AI assistant in every design week and check its answers against requirements, load and cost. You also design a system with an AI feature in it, with the limits, fallbacks and review steps such a system needs.

The main project

Harbor

The architecture of an order and fulfilment platform with an AI assistant feature, designed, documented, reviewed and partly built as a working slice.

What you will be able to do

  • 01

    Turn vague business needs into written requirements, quality targets and constraints that a team can check a design against.

  • 02

    Draw a system at four levels of detail with the C4 model and keep the diagrams in the repository next to the code.

  • 03

    Record at least ten architecture decisions as ADRs, each with options, trade-offs and consequences, including decisions an AI assistant proposed and you changed.

  • 04

    Review a design against the AWS Well-Architected pillars and write a list of risks with owners and fixes.

  • 05

    Design an AI-backed feature with an MCP tool connection, cost and latency limits, evaluation checks and a fallback when the model is wrong or down.

01The route

Five months, one month at a time.

Each month ends in a milestone project, so you always have something to show for the work.

  1. Month 1 · Weeks 1–4

    Requirements, quality and AI-assisted design

    Requirements, constraints and quality targets such as latency, availability and cost. You set up an AI assistant, learn to prompt it for options, and check what it misses.

    MilestoneA requirements and quality document for Harbor, with a log of AI suggestions you kept and rejected

  2. Month 2 · Weeks 5–8

    Diagrams and decisions

    The C4 model for diagrams and ADRs for decisions. You have an AI draft diagrams and ADRs, then correct them against your requirements.

    MilestoneHarbor drawn at four levels, with the first ten ADRs in a Git repository

  3. Month 3 · Weeks 9–12

    Distributed systems and data

    Monolith or services, queues and events, consistency, caching and choosing a database. You build a thin working slice and test the design under load, with AI helping write the tests.

    MilestoneA running slice of Harbor that proves one risky design choice, with test results

  4. Month 4 · Weeks 13–16

    Cloud, security and architecture review

    Cloud design on AWS, security and failure planning, and reviews with the Well-Architected Framework. You review an AI-drafted design and list what is unsafe or costly.

    MilestoneA written architecture review of Harbor with ranked risks and fixes

  5. Month 5 · Weeks 17–20

    AI systems, leadership and capstone

    Design an AI feature with MCP tool connections, evaluation checks, cost limits and fallbacks. Then write the proposal, present it, handle pushback and prepare for interviews.

    MilestoneA complete Harbor architecture pack with the AI feature, a presentation and a portfolio write-up

03What is inside

Everything a week comes with.

Every week is built the same way, so once you have done one you know how all of them work.

  • 01

    One project, Harbor

    You grow one system design from first requirements to a reviewed, partly built platform, so every idea lands in something real.

  • 02

    A day-by-day plan

    Each week has a Learn part and a Do part, with a checklist so you know when you are done. Most weeks include a design task to do with an AI assistant and a step to check its work.

  • 03

    A project in every milestone

    Five milestones, each ending in a document, diagram set or running slice you can show and link to.

  • 04

    Reference topics

    Short topic pages on patterns and trade-offs, with check questions you can come back to.

  • 05

    A job track

    Design interview practice, portfolio and resume help, and a plan for moving into an architect role.

  • 06

    Progress in your Study plan

    Add weeks to your Study plan, give them dates, and finished days are counted for you.

04Is it for you

Who this is, and is not, for.

Better to know before you start than six weeks in.

It is for you if

  • You are a developer with several years of experience who wants to own design decisions, not just tickets.
  • You already write code in some language and have shipped a service that other people used.
  • You can give about 30 hours a week for five months. This is a part-time pace.

It is not for you if

  • You have never built software with a team. Build and ship something first.
  • You want a job guarantee. Nobody can promise that, and this roadmap does not.
  • You want a certification-only course with exam questions. This roadmap is about doing design work.
  • You want an AI tool to make the decisions for you. This roadmap trains you to judge them.

?Questions

Before you start

Is this roadmap ready?
Not yet. This is the plan. The weeks are being written and checked against current job postings and official documentation. Leave your email and we will write to you when it opens.
What will it cost?
The price is not set. Roadmaps are bought once, with no subscription. We will announce it when this one opens.
Will the plan change?
It may. Before the weeks are written we check the tools against current job postings, so the lengths and months here are planned, not final.
Do I need to be a senior developer already?
You need real experience building and running software, because architecture is judging trade-offs you have felt. Several years on a team is a good guide. If you have less, a backend or full-stack roadmap is a better first step.
Will it get me a job?
It will give you skills and proof of work. It cannot promise a job on a fixed date, because hiring depends on the market, your location and your past work.

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