Abhishek Gupta

Posted on Jul 15

🏆 Software Engineering Roadmap (0 Monster)

Complete Learning Sequence for SDE | Backend | Full Stack | System Design | FAANG+ | Product Companies

Goal: Learn every important Computer Science and Software Engineering topic in the correct order—from absolute beginner to advanced—so you can become a world-class Software Engineer.

🟢 Phase 0 — Foundation

These subjects build your programming foundation.

1. Computer Fundamentals ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

History of Computers
Computer Architecture Basics
Hardware Components
Software Types
Number System
Binary
Hexadecimal
Boolean Algebra
Memory Units
CPU
RAM
Storage
Input & Output Devices

2. Programming Fundamentals ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Variables
Data Types
Operators
Input / Output
Conditional Statements
Loops
Functions
Arrays
Strings
Recursion
File Handling
Exception Handling

3. Object-Oriented Programming ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Classes
Objects
Constructors
Inheritance
Encapsulation
Abstraction
Polymorphism
Composition
Association
Interfaces
Generics

4. Git & GitHub ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Git Basics
Repository
Clone
Commit
Branch
Merge
Rebase
Cherry Pick
Pull Requests
GitHub Flow

5. Linux ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Linux Basics
File System
Permissions
Users
Groups
Shell
Bash
Process Management
Networking Commands
Package Managers

🔵 Phase 1 — Problem Solving

6. Mathematics ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Set Theory
Logic
Number Theory
Probability
Combinatorics
Big-O Mathematics

7. Aptitude ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Quantitative Aptitude

Number System
Simplification
Percentage
Profit & Loss
Discount
Ratio & Proportion
Partnership
Average
Age Problems
Time & Work
Pipes & Cistern
Time, Speed & Distance
Boats & Streams
Trains
Simple Interest
Compound Interest
Permutation & Combination
Probability
Mixture & Allegation
Logarithms
Progressions
Geometry
Mensuration
Coordinate Geometry
Trigonometry
Data Interpretation

8. Logical Reasoning ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Coding-Decoding
Blood Relations
Direction Sense
Seating Arrangement
Puzzles
Calendar
Clock
Ranking
Series
Missing Numbers
Odd One Out
Syllogism
Statement & Conclusion
Cause & Effect
Decision Making
Critical Reasoning

9. Verbal Ability ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Reading Comprehension
Grammar
Vocabulary
Synonyms
Antonyms
Sentence Correction
Error Detection
Para Jumbles
Cloze Test

🟣 Phase 2 — Data Structures & Algorithms ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Data Structures

Arrays
Strings
Linked Lists
Stack
Queue
Hash Table
Heap
Tree
BST
Trie
Graph
Disjoint Set
Segment Tree
Fenwick Tree

Algorithms

Sorting
Searching
Binary Search
Sliding Window
Two Pointers
Prefix Sum
Recursion
Backtracking
Greedy
Divide & Conquer
Dynamic Programming
Bit Manipulation
Graph Algorithms
String Algorithms

🟠 Phase 3 — Core Computer Science

10. Operating Systems ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Processes
Threads
Scheduling
Synchronization
Mutex
Semaphore
Deadlocks
Memory Management
Virtual Memory
Paging
Segmentation
File Systems

11. Computer Networks ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Network Fundamentals
OSI
TCP/IP
IP Addressing
Routing
DNS
HTTP
HTTPS
TLS
TCP
UDP
WebSockets
CDN
Load Balancing
Reverse Proxy
Cloud Networking

12. Database Management Systems ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

SQL

MySQL
PostgreSQL

NoSQL

MongoDB
Redis
Cassandra

Concepts

Transactions
ACID
Indexing
Replication
Sharding
Partitioning
CAP Theorem

🔴 Phase 4 — Software Engineering

13. Software Engineering Principles ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

SDLC
Agile
Scrum
SOLID
DRY
KISS
YAGNI
Design Principles
Clean Code

14. Design Patterns ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Factory
Singleton
Builder
Strategy
Observer
Adapter
Decorator
Repository

🟡 Phase 5 — Backend Development ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

REST APIs
Authentication
Authorization
JWT
OAuth
GraphQL
gRPC
File Upload
Logging
Validation
Testing

🟢 Phase 6 — Frontend (Optional for Backend) ⭐⭐⭐⭐

HTML
CSS
JavaScript
TypeScript
React
Next.js
Accessibility
Performance

🔵 Phase 7 — Cloud & DevOps ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

EC2
S3
IAM
VPC
Lambda
CloudFront
Route53

CI/CD

GitHub Actions
Jenkins

🟣 Phase 8 — System Design ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Capacity Estimation
Request Lifecycle
Storage
Caching
CDN
API Design
Authentication
Load Balancing
Message Queues
Distributed Systems
Reliability
Scalability
Microservices
Security
Observability
LLD
HLD

🟠 Phase 9 — Distributed Systems ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

CAP
PACELC
CQRS
Event Sourcing
Saga
Outbox
Raft
Paxos
Service Mesh
Distributed Locks

🔴 Phase 10 — Security ⭐⭐⭐⭐

HTTPS
TLS
Encryption
Hashing
OAuth
OWASP Top 10
XSS
CSRF
SQL Injection
CORS

🟡 Phase 11 — Testing ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Unit Testing
Integration Testing
API Testing
E2E Testing
Performance Testing

🟢 Phase 12 — Performance Engineering ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Profiling
Bottleneck Analysis
Load Testing
Stress Testing
Capacity Planning

🔵 Phase 13 — Observability ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Logging
Metrics
Tracing
Prometheus
Grafana
OpenTelemetry

🟣 Phase 14 — Engineering Excellence ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Documentation
ADR
RFC
Code Reviews
Debugging
Incident Response
Technical Debt

🟠 Phase 15 — Projects ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Build progressively:

Beginner

Calculator
Todo App
Blog API

Intermediate

Authentication System
Chat Application
URL Shortener
File Storage

Advanced

Payment Gateway
Notification Service
Search Engine
Ride Sharing Backend
Video Streaming Platform
Distributed Cache
Analytics Platform

🔴 Phase 16 — Interview Preparation ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

DSA

300–500 Quality Problems

LLD

30–50 Problems

HLD

30–50 Designs

Behavioral

STAR Method
Leadership Principles
Communication
Resume
Mock Interviews

🏁 Final Learning Order

1. Computer Fundamentals
2. Programming Fundamentals
3. Object-Oriented Programming
4. Git & GitHub
5. Linux
6. Mathematics
7. Aptitude
8. Logical Reasoning
9. Verbal Ability
10. Data Structures
11. Algorithms
12. Operating Systems
13. Computer Networks
14. Database Management Systems
15. Software Engineering Principles
16. Design Patterns
17. Backend Development
18. Frontend (Optional)
19. Cloud Computing
20. Docker
21. Kubernetes
22. DevOps & CI/CD
23. System Design
24. Distributed Systems
25. Security
26. Testing
27. Performance Engineering
28. Observability
29. Engineering Excellence
30. Production Projects
31. Interview Preparation

Top comments (1)

Sanjay Kumar Sah • Jul 17

Incredible compilation. While the early phases map out the foundational equivalent of a traditional 4-year Computer Science degree, what really stands out is the inclusion of Phases 8 through 14 (System Design, Distributed Systems, Performance Engineering, and Observability). In real-world production environments, mastering those operational and reliability tiers is what separates standard coders from elite engineers.