Higher Professional Degree in Front-end Development

Front-end Development is a technology education where visual design meets coding, web design, and UX design. Front-end developers are in great demand, giving the students great career opportunities after graduation.

As a front-end developer, you write the code behind what you see and interact with when you open a website, a program, or an app. There is an increasing need for developers who possess a combination of technical and visual expertise.

This two-year education program provides you with the skills for practical work within the main areas of developing interactive and dynamic products. The program covers both design skills and technical programming skills.

Web and mobile devices

Front-end development is for those who wish to work with developing user-oriented solutions for web and mobile devices. The program is suitable for beginners as well as those who have worked with traditional media and wish to expand their skills in developing digital solutions.

After completing the program, you will have acquired skills and expertise in basic design principles, universal design, holistic user experiences, and technology solutions that meet the requirements and needs of today.

Best practices for developers

In this program, you will learn best practices for developers. You will be able to produce interactive online solutions, both visually and technically, and implement an interactive solution from the conceptual stage until the final product. Students will build networks with graphic designers, interaction designers, programmers, and content developers. They will further be able to collaborate with external specialist environments in the fields of social media, universal design, search engine optimization, and IT security.

Learn coding and programming languages

The students will receive a thorough introduction to industry tools used for web development. You will learn principles for good design, how webpages and interactive products are built both logically and visually, and how website technologies communicate with back-end systems. You will gain insights into programming languages such as Java, C-based languages, Ruby, PHP, and Python, all of which have different strengths and weaknesses and different uses.

JavaScript is a key tool for frontend developers. In combination with HTML and CSS, JavaScript is essential to create dynamic and interactive online solutions. It is also important to consider when to use JavaScript frameworks and when it is better to solve tasks without using it. You will be introduced to the most updated JavaScript frameworks at any given time, such as Angular and React. The field is developing rapidly, and new frameworks are continually being launched.

Sass is the main CSS tool the students will learn, but the program also covers tools like Less, Stylus, and the CSS framework Susy. Towards the end of the program, the students will be introduced to Ajax to develop more advanced online solutions.

Program information

Next startup:

• October 15, 2019
• January 7, 2020
• March 3, 2020
• August 11, 2020

Duration:

• 2 years, full-time
• 4 years, part-time

Program language:

• English

Program objectives

The program focuses on developing products in the intersection between customer experience and system development. The products we develop during the program should have both a high aesthetic value, good functionality, and correct technical execution. This means the students will learn about the design process, interaction design, and programming. The main objective of the program is to gain practical skills, and the training program is largely comprised of practical assignments where you will be working with industry-specific tasks.

Students will get insights into how to exercise entrepreneurship. Professional life as a frontend developer requires expertise in workflows, automation, and streamlining of both working processes and the product. The final project exam should be on a level where it can be used as an attachment to job applications or as a proposal for a real implementation.

Courses

Courses covered during the first year of study:

• Project methodology
• Web and communication technologies
• Design 1
• HTML and CSS
• Term assignment 1
• Interaction design
• Basic programming
• JavaScript 1
• Workflows 1
• Portfolio review 1
• Project exam 1

Courses covered during the second year of study:

• CSS frameworks
• JavaScript 2
• Design 2
• Term assignment 2
• Industry knowledge
• Workflows 2
• JavaScript frameworks
• Portfolio review 2
• Project exam 2

Learning outcomes

You will gain:

• Knowledge of concepts and industry tools used in web development, production, and implementation of interactive concepts, solutions, and products.
• Knowledge of languages, concepts, techniques, and industry tools that are used in web development and in the development of interactive concepts, solutions, and products.
• Knowledge of the most up-to-date process methods, styling tools, and programming languages for quality assurance, streamlining, and optimization of the work process.
• Knowledge about the most up-to-date tools used in website testing, interactive solutions, and products across platforms and operating systems.
• Knowledge about fundamental design principles and identity elements used to develop digital products.
• Knowledge about how websites and interactive products are structured both logically and visually.
• Knowledge about how website technologies communicate with back-end systems.
• Knowledge about how to review websites, interactive solutions, web services, and web content in terms of compliance with regulations and guidelines for universal design of ICT solutions and web standards.
• Industry knowledge about how interactive concepts and solutions should be prepared, presented, and delivered internally as well as externally, and knowledge about methods for entrepreneurship within the field.
• Updated professional knowledge through technical literature, lectures, online portals, and developer communities both locally and internationally.
• Knowledge of the history of the industry and the development of the Internet.
• Insights into your personal potential for development and how to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the field.
• The ability to account for the choice of tools, methods, and techniques during planning, development, design, and testing of interactive products and web services.
• The ability to account for regulations and guidelines for the universal design of ICT solutions and web standards.
• The ability to reflect on your own practice as a frontend developer, and to adjust it with proper guidance.
• The ability to reflect on user feedback or general technological trends, and adjust your own practices in line with these.
• The ability to find information and materials that are relevant to issues related to frontend development.
• The ability to conduct user testing of new or existing interactive products or services, and identify and document both visual and technical defects.
• The ability to review the development process for interactive products and services that will be used on different platforms.
• The ability to account for methods for entrepreneurship related to your field of expertise.
• The ability to plan and execute web design tasks and develop interactive products alone or as a group.
• The ability to plan and carry out frontend assignments in line with ethical standards, universal design guidelines, the needs of the target groups, or in line with customer briefs.
• The ability to plan interactive web solutions both visually and technically, and implement an interactive solution from the concept stage until the finished and fully operational end product.
• The ability to implement user-friendly interactive solutions according to the needs of selected target groups.
• The ability to build relationships with graphic designers, interaction designers, programmers, and content developers, and participate in discussions on the development of interdisciplinary and future-oriented practices.
• The ability to act as a co-player and key person in projects that intersect with related professions and carry out entrepreneurship in your field of expertise.
• The ability to build relationships with external specialist environments in the fields of social media, universal design, search engine optimization, and IT security.
• The ability to contribute to clarification, streamlining, and quality assurance processes in a company, both internally and externally, through the use of best practices for developers.

Job opportunities

As a trained frontend developer you possess the knowledge, skills, and expertise needed to develop and produce user-oriented solutions and services for web and mobile devices. The main objective of the program is to provide you with practical and industry-relevant education to prepare you for the working life after you graduate.

There is a great variety of job adverts related to this field for various businesses and professions. After you complete the program, you will be able to work for businesses like design agencies, IT companies, software houses, media agencies, or communication agencies. These industries are constantly changing due to rapid technological developments. Job descriptions will, therefore, vary and change over relatively short periods of time.

Further studies

Education can also serve as a platform for further studies. Students who have studied Front-end Development can also combine these skills with Graphic Design or Digital Marketing.