Basically Web Dev Mini Bootcamp: Severely Unbalanced RTFM Edition. Familiarize yourself with the Express and Mongoose APIs beforehand and during the first half of the course if possible. HTML/CSS/JS takes up five of ten modules, one exclusively on React, then the final one is wasted on rudimentary security and usability concepts, so only two or three pertain to key aspects of the most important course outcome (a full-stack MERN SPA). Also be prepared to use outside learning resources. Canvas content is mostly just expanded, reworded regurgitation of reference documentation for specific features (and a couple key API usage patterns in those important weeks). ULAs aren’t helpful, but that’s hardly their fault. Web dev is convoluted and fractured so advising on specific stacks requires experience with them, which I don’t think the department screens for when hiring. Experience with other stacks helps tremendously in this course but, because of its generally low educational quality, doesn’t necessarily compound to expertise.

Submitted Sun Mar 16 2025

Familiarize yourself with the express and mongoose. APIs are the most important aspect of this course. They're the glue that holds everything together and arguably the most valuable takeaway. Unfortunately, they're explored in far too narrow breadth and shallow depth. This can lead to severe difficulties using the otherwise simple tools and frameworks that everyone loves to hem and haw about. Ignore the food service employee cigarette break whining about JS, CSS, etc. -- these difficulties are exaggerated for social reasons (cultural signaling).

Submitted Sat Mar 15 2025

I took this class with Pam, who is a very kind professor and gives good feedback. You can get an A if you do the extra credit, even if you lose some points on the homework assignments. Make sure you read the assignment details thoroughly! I enjoyed learning about web development, but I wish the content emphasized depth over breadth. There was too much information and not enough time for it to really sink in. I liked that each homework project built upon what you had done the previous weeks.

Submitted Tue Nov 19 2024

Took 290 during the summer with Naumann. If you take his course during Summer, then I highly recommend learning the basics of JavaScript and HTML/CSS before the course starts. It is a lot of information for 8 weeks, and you will learn more if you already know the basics starting out. It is worth mentioning that he gives a final that is worth 25% of your grade! If all you care about is getting an A or easily passing, then I would probably recommend Pam over Naumann. Overall, Naumann is a good professor and I thought it was a solid class.

Submitted Fri Aug 23 2024

Take with Nauman Chaudhry. Very well-organized course and he explain concepts well in the videos. I think it was just revamped. I went into the program with some web development background and clocked 60 hours total. It was a great standalone class for summer as I worked full-time. I'll be taking more classes from Naumann if I can.

Submitted Fri Aug 16 2024

It's a decent introduction/first exposure to web dev concepts and technologies if you let go of your expectations and just enjoy the ride. You might find that you learn a lot if you try to understand every line of the skeleton code the course provides, even if you disagree with their coding decisions or if their code is out of date (for instance, check out the current react-router tutorial documentation). I became a lot better at React thanks to this course. You can accidentally spend a lot of time on styling/color choices/layout, but as long as you follow the rubric and instructions carefully, you'll be fine. No exams with Pam was awesome.

Submitted Tue Jun 25 2024

I took it with Pam. Like others say, if you want an easy A, take it with Pam. If you want to actually learn something, take it with Naumann. Pam's class pairs well with 261 (Data Structures) because most of the assignments are just copy/pasting her templates into your own words (you literally ctrl+F on two assignments and change "movies" to your topic, it's ridiculous). The last few weeks they cram a ridiculous amount of information (which you won't retain) trying to cover Mongo, Rest and React. I'm talking like 7-8 explorations per module, but the assignments aren't hard. They just try to cover too much ground in this course and the whole thing suffers as a result. Again, easy A though

Submitted Mon Mar 25 2024

Make sure to use online tutorials. Later half of the class gets more complicated. Front part is easy. Plenty of extra credit! Can get an A if you commit 6-10 hours every week. Final week required 15hrs or more.

Submitted Wed Dec 20 2023

Took the course with Pam. During the first few weeks, you'll learn HTML, CSS, and a high-level overview of how the web works. Pacing during the first few weeks is a little slow, but don't let that fool you. When the latter half of the course kicks in, the course turns into an insane info dump of MongoDB, JavaScript, Node, Express, and React. You'll be given mostly-functional code that contains elements of the MERN stack, and you'll be asked to manipulate things in some fashion. You'll likely feel as if you have no idea what you're doing. Fortunately, every assignment contains a follow-along video from the professor (Pam) where she shows you how to complete the assignment. Most of this work involves getting really good at Ctrl F and replacing variable names within functions you barely understand. Grading in the course seems to be very subjective, so quadruple check the rubric to ensure you've completed every step and prepare to have a few points knocked off anyways. All being said, if you follow-along to the assignment videos and do the extra credit, you'll earn an easy A.

Submitted Mon Dec 18 2023

This course starts very slow with HTML and CSS for the six weeks, then it goes to 11 and drowns you in JavaScript, Node, Express, and React for the final few weeks. Luckily, all the modules were open from the beginning, so students are free to work ahead. There are plenty of extra credit opportunities, so I never felt like my grade was at risk, but I would definitely try to learn JavaScript on my own if I were starting this semester over again.

Submitted Sun Dec 17 2023