Building Backend Systems That Actually Work
We've been teaching back-end development in Taiwan since 2019. Not because we follow trends, but because we noticed something — most developers could write code, but few understood how to build systems that scale. And even fewer could explain why their architecture mattered.
How This Started
Back in 2018, one of our founders was debugging a production server at 2 AM for the third time that week. The issue wasn't complicated — just a poorly designed database query that nobody caught during development. That moment sparked a question: why weren't developers learning this stuff before they shipped to production?
So we started small. A weekend workshop for fifteen developers in Taipei. We focused on the unglamorous parts — database indexing, caching strategies, API design that doesn't break when traffic spikes. The response surprised us. People wanted this knowledge, but most bootcamps skipped it entirely.
By early 2019, we had our first structured program. Today, we work with learners across Taiwan who want to understand backend systems at a deeper level.
What Guides Our Teaching
Real Problems First
We don't teach technology in isolation. Every lesson connects to actual challenges you'll face — performance bottlenecks, scaling issues, security vulnerabilities. Because understanding the 'why' matters more than memorizing syntax.
Production Mindset
Tutorial code rarely survives contact with real users. We teach you to think about monitoring, error handling, and maintainability from day one. Your code should work when it's under stress, not just in development.
Honest Timelines
Backend development takes time to learn properly. We won't promise you'll be production-ready in six weeks. Our programs run six to twelve months because that's how long it actually takes to build solid foundations.
No Fluff Content
Every hour of curriculum gets you closer to writing better code. We cut the filler lectures and focus on concepts that show up in real codebases — connection pooling, transaction management, API versioning strategies.
Industry Context
Taiwan's tech market has specific needs. We stay connected with local companies to understand what skills matter here. Not what's trending on Twitter, but what actually gets used in production environments.
Continuous Updates
Technology shifts. Our curriculum from 2019 looks different today because we revise it every quarter. When PostgreSQL adds a feature that changes best practices, we update the materials. Simple as that.
Who Teaches Here
Eirik Thorvaldsen
Lead Backend Instructor
Spent eight years building distributed systems before teaching. Worked on payment processing infrastructure that handled millions of transactions daily. Now helps students understand why their database queries slow down at scale.
Saoirse O'Malley
Systems Architecture Instructor
Former infrastructure engineer who debugged production systems across three continents. Specializes in teaching caching strategies and load balancing. Believes every developer should understand how their code performs under real-world conditions.
How We Actually Teach
- Project-Based Learning: You build real systems from scratch. Not toy apps, but actual APIs that handle authentication, process payments, and manage concurrent users. Because you learn architecture by building it.
- Code Reviews Matter: Every project goes through peer review. You'll explain your design decisions and defend your architecture choices. This mirrors how professional teams work and helps you think critically about trade-offs.
- Performance Testing: We stress-test your code. You'll see exactly where it breaks, why it breaks, and how to fix it. Load testing isn't optional — it's part of understanding whether your system actually works.
- Real Codebases: You'll read and modify production-quality code. Learning to navigate existing systems is just as important as writing new ones. Most of your career will involve working with code someone else wrote.
- Async Learning Options: Life happens. Our fall 2025 cohort includes recorded lectures and flexible lab hours. You still need to show up for code reviews and project demos, but we're not going to pretend everyone has identical schedules.