The Ruby on Rails curriculum, milestone by milestone.
Click any milestone below to inspect its technical learning objectives, required GitHub deliverable, and evaluation rubric.
Every 4–6 days ends in a reviewed repository deliverable.
We teach Ruby on Rails because it integrates routing, MVC controllers, PostgreSQL database modeling, security, and automated testing into one coherent engineering discipline.
Milestone 01 · Ruby Foundations & CLI Problem Solving (Days 1–5)
Technical Objectives: Ruby 3.x syntax, methods, arrays/hashes, blocks, procs, enumerables, custom exceptions, and writing unit-tested CLI scripts. | Required Deliverable: 10 Minitest-verified Ruby scripts | Passing Rubric: All automated tests pass; you explain time complexity & method design live.
Milestone 02 · Object-Oriented Design & Git Branch Workflow (Days 6–9)
Technical Objectives: Classes, modules, mixins, encapsulation, composition vs inheritance, Git branching, rebasing, and opening your first Pull Request. | Required Deliverable: Domain-modeled Library & Inventory engine via Git PR | Passing Rubric: Clean SOLID class responsibilities, zero merge conflicts, readable commit log.
Milestone 03 · Web Foundations, HTTP Cycle & Responsive UI (Days 10–14)
Technical Objectives: Semantic HTML5, modern CSS Grid/Flexbox, DNS, TCP/IP, HTTP verbs, status codes (200/302/404/422/500), cookies, and headers. | Required Deliverable: Responsive landing application + HTTP request trace lab | Passing Rubric: W3C-valid markup, responsive breakpoints, accurate HTTP lifecycle explanation.
Milestone 04 · Rails MVC Architecture & RESTful CRUD (Days 15–20)
Technical Objectives: Rails routing, ActionController, ERB/Turbo views, partials, strong parameters, flash notices, and form error states. | Required Deliverable: Full-CRUD Notes & Task Manager web application | Passing Rubric: RESTful routes, zero N+1 view queries, proper HTTP 422 form validation handling.
Milestone 05 · PostgreSQL, Schema Design & Active Record (Days 21–26)
Technical Objectives: Relational modeling, reversible migrations, foreign keys, indexes, belongs_to/has_many/through associations, scopes, and custom validations. | Required Deliverable: Multi-table Relational Publishing Platform with PostgreSQL | Passing Rubric: Normalized 3NF schema, indexed foreign keys, tested model validations.
Milestone 06 · Authentication, Role Authorization & Web Security (Days 27–31)
Technical Objectives: Session management, password hashing (has_secure_password / bcrypt), role-based access control (RBAC), CSRF protection, and SQL injection prevention. | Required Deliverable: Role-secured multi-author portal (Admin, Editor, Member) | Passing Rubric: Zero privilege-escalation bypasses in security test suite.
Milestone 07 · Automated Testing (Minitest), JSON APIs & Debugging (Days 32–35)
Technical Objectives: Model unit tests, controller/integration request tests, fixtures, building versioned JSON APIs, and diagnosing stack traces with byebug/debug. | Required Deliverable: Automated test suite (90%+ critical path) + REST JSON API endpoint | Passing Rubric: All CI checks green; student diagnoses 3 planted production bugs live.
Milestone 08 · Team Pull Requests, Code Reviews & Cloud Deployment (Days 36–39)
Technical Objectives: Working from GitHub Issues, reviewing peer PRs, environment variables, production PostgreSQL setup, SSL, and cloud deployment. | Required Deliverable: Peer PR review log + live production deployment URL | Passing Rubric: Constructive code review comments and live HTTPS application online.
Milestone 09 · Independent Capstone & Technical Defense (Days 40–45)
Technical Objectives: End-to-end architecture planning, database schema diagram, full-stack Rails build, test suite, production release, and 30-minute oral code defense. | Required Deliverable: Live Capstone Web App + Architecture README + Defense Score | Passing Rubric: Passes capstone rubric & oral defense to qualify for Day 46–90 Internship Phase.
Structured like a real engineering assignment, not a textbook chapter.
Each milestone follows a professional repository layout containing a specification README, starter scaffolding, automated Minitest files, a broken-code debugging lab, and a clear grading rubric.
Ruby 3.x · Rails 7.x · PostgreSQL · Active Record · Minitest · Git & GitHub PRs · ERB & Turbo · REST JSON APIs · Linux CLI
shifttoit-rails-curriculum/
├─ m01-ruby-foundations/
├─ m02-oop-and-git-workflow/
│ ├─ README.md # Problem spec & constraints
│ ├─ lib/ # Your Ruby domain classes
│ ├─ test/ # Automated Minitest suite
│ └─ debugging-lab/ # Planted bug to diagnose
├─ m04-rails-mvc-crud/
├─ m05-postgresql-associations/
├─ m06-auth-and-rbac-security/
├─ m07-testing-and-json-apis/
├─ m08-peer-review-and-deploy/
└─ m09-capstone-defense/
From classroom repositories to supervised production workflows.
Once you pass Milestone 09, your second 45 days focus on real team workflows.
DAYS 46–55
Onboarding & Codebase Archaeology
Clone production-grade repositories, configure local Docker/PostgreSQL env, read existing schema.rb and test suites, and ship your first documented bug-fix PR.
DAYS 56–70
Feature Tickets, Background Jobs & Query Tuning
Pick up scoped Jira/GitHub tickets: build new controller actions, write database migrations, optimize slow Active Record queries, and add regression tests.
DAYS 71–82
API Integrations, QA Audits & Security Hardening
Work alongside Fair Share IT Services engineers on data validation, form workflows, automated reports, or WebsitesWatch SEO/technical audit checks.
DAYS 83–90
Production Release, Contributor Credit & Exit Review
Merge final verified PRs, document your architectural contributions, complete your mock technical interview, and earn your verified Internship Experience Certificate.
Start with an honest conversation.
Book a standalone ₹500 one-on-one career and technical counselling session, or apply directly to our 90-day training and internship program.