Learn System Design for Junior Engineers

The job market is challenging for junior engineers.

The expectation to design a system end to end was historically a senior engineer job. But now, it is common for entry-level engineers to face an architecture interview to "see how you think," as many interviewers put it.

Approaching these interviews can be daunting. 

But the pressure doesn’t end after you pass the interview.

With AI poised to accelerate developer output, the bar is rising for junior engineers to bring a systems-level understanding from the outset.

In short, each engineer is expected to produce more in this environment.

And yet, the future is bright for junior engineers.

Yes, you read that right. I believe the future is bright for junior engineers.

The truth is we’re on the brink of a major shift in how systems are built. The way we build systems will most likely never be the same.

And who usually thrives in the middle of such a change? People who are learning this new native way of doing things. 

The question is, what should junior engineers focus on to take advantage?

The future for junior engineers lies in understanding systems holistically

We are moving in the direction where a single developer can be extremely productive. This direction is trending to single developers building more significant parts of an application on their own. 

It is critical to understand a system end to end, from the front end to the backend systems that power to the data stores that contain the application's data.

System design understanding is not just memorizing how Netflix built its system to repeat it during an interview. 

It is about developing the intuition and skills to translate requirements into a scalable, modular application.

Learn System Design provides a path for junior engineers to understand systems holistically

Learning System Design is not just a system design course, and it is not a grow-your-network-first community. Instead, it’s a hands-on practice space and platform where engineers collectively build practical system design skills, exchange insights, and gain confidence by solving real-world challenges together. 

It achieves this in three ways:

Provides A Holistic Framework for Mastering System Design

Learn System Design provides a cohesive approach for understanding how software systems fit together from end to end, ensuring you focus on both fundamentals and real-world application. By breaking down complex architectures into seven essential building blocks—such as workers, services, and various storage components—Learn System Design helps you see how each piece works independently yet integrates seamlessly into the bigger picture. This high-level, technology-agnostic method is designed to build your confidence, whether you’re facing system design interviews or daily challenges on the job.

Provides Structured Courses for Steady Progress

Within Learn System Design, the curriculum is organized into self-paced courses for foundational knowledge, ongoing “evergreen” weekly design practice sessions, and monthly cohort-based classes for deeper exploration. Each course type provides a step-by-step route to mastering different aspects of system design, from data structures and algorithms to specific case studies like building content discovery and collaboration tools. This multi-tier structure accommodates busy schedules while letting you advance with a community of peers, enhancing both retention and motivation.

Provides Weekly Challenges That Bring Theory to Life

Central to Learn System Design's approach is the LSD 101 Weekly Design Practice course, where you tackle a new system design problem every week. You receive feedback and share solutions with other learners, transforming theory into hands-on experience. These challenges recreate real-world scenarios—such as designing a fitness reservation system or an online grocery ordering platform—so you develop practical skills for handling high-traffic demands, data consistency, and more. This habit of continual practice cements your intuition and equips you to architect robust systems confidently.

If you spent a year in the Learn System Design community, you would become:

• Confident in designing a scalable system end-to-end in an interview and on the job
• Experienced in understanding requirements and designing accurate future-thinking solutions
• Assured of your ability to craft a scalable and reliable system 

Who is Learn System Design for?

• Aspiring engineers looking to deeply understand how to design systems
• Junior engineers in industry who want to jumpstart their careers
• Technical partners that seek to understand the essence of how systems are designed
  

Who is Learn System Design NOT for?

• People cramming for a system design interview next week
• Engineers who prefer to learn in isolation
• Anyone only looking to “just get a job”


Do you need prior experience to join?

No prior system design experience is needed to join Learn System Design for Junior Engineers. Upon joining our welcome checklist will guide you through the necessary

What differentiates Learn System Design from other courses, resources, and communities?

• It establishes a weekly habit to learn system design. The weekly cadence allows your mind to make the necessary connections to intuitively understand how to build systems.
• It introduces the benefits of the case study format. Case studies focus on introducing a real world problem and focusing on solving the problem at hand. This format is closer to system design interviews as well as on the job development.  
• It provides the opportunity to be supported by others within a safe community. We all need support, and this community will give you mutual support.

Who is the host of this community?

Kay Ashaolu [LinkedIn] is the host of this community and he is an Engineering Manager, a University Lecturer, and a former Staff Software Engineer. He has built systems end to end, managed teams that built systems end to end, and taught students to build systems end to end for 20 years. 

His lifelong passion is to see junior engineers grow into the unique problem solvers that the world needs today, as technology touch every aspect of our lives now and in bigger ways as time goes on.

What is Kay's role as host in the community?

All case studies, solutions, and content are authored by Kay. He also is an active participant in the community, providing feedback for case studies, responding to member's system design questions, and also sharing my own experiences throughout the week.

Ready to join us? Sign up now!

Imagine where you’ll be a year from now—confident, capable, and building scalable systems with ease. Make that future happen. Join us today!