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 a system design course, and it is not a grow-your-network-first community.

It is a weekly habit that is poised to help junior engineers understand systems holistically in three key ways:

Learn by doing every week 

Every Friday, members receive a new design study with a situation and set of requirements. Community members are encouraged to share their designs of the system that satisfy the request that week. 

Learn by example every week

On Tuesdays, members do a weekly deep dive into real-world case studies. These case studies feature a video that walks through a proposed system design from scratch, highlighting the thinking behind each decision.

Learn from others every week

As members work through your own system designs, they will gain the insights of other community members. They will also discuss system design concepts like caching, autoscaling, and change management with other engineers. 

What is the weekly time commitment?

There is no set one! Learn System Design is built to be flexible by providing the opportunity to build your design skills organically over time. The goal is to build a habit of investing some time each week towards this skill, however much time you have:

• 30 minutes a week: Review the case study we introduce on Tuesdays that feature a full end to end walkthrough of the solution's system design and post your thoughts to the community
• 1 hour a week: In addition to the above, read the Weekly Design Challenge and the solutions your fellow engineers came up with as well as the Example Design posted by the host, and post your thoughts
• 2-3 hours a week: In addition to the above, try your hand in designing a solution for the Weekly Design Challenge and post your design on Thursdays

The goal is to build a weekly habit where you spend at least 30 minutes a week working on your system design skills. Investing regular time in a skill like end to end system design has compounding effects, especially over the span of a year.

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

• Designed the systems that solve 50+ case studies from scratch
• Reviewed the system designs of 15+ popular applications
• Learned from dozens of like-minded engineers and their feedback

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. It is highly suggested that members with no experience do go through all of the videos in the Get Started section of the community, and learn more about the basic data structures and other topics listed there.

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 have 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!