20 credits
This certificate develops the required skills for work as a backend developer to support full-stack development of mobile applications. The certificate provides students with SQL and NoSQL database experience, API development coding practices, and development methodologies suitable for deploying apps on modern cloud-based systems. Students build knowledge and skill by contributing to several mobile apps, culminating in a portfolio-ready capstone project. Key topics include: developing, securing and testing REST APIs, the benefits, limitations, and key distinctions of different architectures, Backend-as-a-Service (BaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), and Functions-as-a-Service (FaaS), as well as Containers, offline synchronization strategies, and compliance with industry-specific and regional regulations (HIPAA, PCI-DCS, or FIPS). This certificate is appropriate for students and IT professionals with a moderate programming background and some database experience who want to move into mobile platform development.