C#, OOP, ASP.NET Core, REST APIs, SQL, Entity Framework Core, Git, testing and a deployed web application.
What you will cover
C#
OOP
ASP.NET Core
REST APIs
SQL
Entity Framework Core
Git
testing
a deployed web application
Topic list from the institute's programme record.
Certification
Certificate terms for this programme are confirmed by the institute at admission. Any ADIVAS course-completion certificate is an institute certificate; it is not a university degree, an externally accredited qualification or a vendor certification (such as AWS or Microsoft) unless the institute states so in writing.
The programme title is as supplied in the institute's list. Please confirm the awarding body and recognition with the institute before enrolling.
Curriculum 0.1 · Draft: written for ADIVAS and awaiting academic review and approval. Topics and weeks may change before your batch starts.
Your skill trail
You move through 6 stations. Each week builds one skill you can show, not just a topic you have heard.
1
C# fundamentals
Write and debug small C# console programs using the dotnet command line.
Week 1 Getting started with .NET and C#
Week 2 Decisions, loops and methods
Week 3 Arrays, collections and strings
Week 4 LINQ, exceptions and the debugger
2
Object-oriented design
Model real problems with classes, interfaces and generics, and protect them with tests.
Week 5 Classes, objects and encapsulation
Week 6 Inheritance and polymorphism
Week 7 Interfaces, generics and dependency injection
Week 8 Unit testing and Git basics
3
SQL and Entity Framework Core
Design tables, write SQL queries and map them to C# with EF Core.
Week 9 Relational design and SELECT
Week 10 CRUD with SQL and constraints
Week 11 Joins and aggregates
Week 12 Entity Framework Core fundamentals
4
ASP.NET Core web applications
Handle HTTP requests with minimal APIs, controllers and Razor Pages backed by a database.
Week 13 HTTP and your first minimal API
Week 14 Controllers, binding and validation
Week 15 Connecting the API to the database
Week 16 Server-rendered pages with Razor Pages
5
REST APIs, security and quality
Design clean REST APIs, secure them and verify them with automated tests.
Week 17 Designing REST APIs
Week 18 Async, middleware and error handling
Week 19 Authentication, authorization and secrets
Week 20 Integration testing and AI-assisted review
6
Team practice and deployment
Work with Git branches, containers and cloud hosting to deliver a capstone application.
Week 21 Team Git workflow
Week 22 Configuration and containers
Week 23 Deployment and release
Week 24 Capstone demonstration
★
Institute Course and Enrolment API
Your project, reviewed by a trainer.
The ADIVAS mastery ladder: how each skill is recognised
Explored You have seen the idea and tried a first example.
Practising You can do it with hints and keep improving.
Proficient You complete the weekly practical task correctly on your own.
Proven You apply it in a project reviewed by your trainer.
Skill-level tracking is being added to the learner workspace. Your trainer already reviews weekly practical work.
What you will be able to do
Write C# programs using types, control flow, methods, collections, LINQ and exception handling.
Design object-oriented code with encapsulation, inheritance, interfaces, generics and dependency injection.
Model data in relational tables and write SQL for CRUD, joins and aggregates.
Use Entity Framework Core to map classes to tables, run migrations and query data efficiently.
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
Secure an application with authentication, authorization and safe handling of configuration secrets.
Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically.
Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Who it suits
School Class 11-12 students comfortable with basic logic who want a first serious programming path with C#.
College Engineering, science and computer-application students who want practical web-development skills beyond classroom theory.
Professional Working adults and career changers who want to build and ship business web applications on the modern .NET platform.
Prerequisites: Basic computer skills and logical thinking. No prior programming is required; weeks 1-4 start from zero. Tools: Current .NET SDK (LTS release), Visual Studio Code with the C# Dev Kit, or Visual Studio Community, SQLite and a free SQL Server or PostgreSQL edition for practice, Git and a free GitHub account, Postman or the VS Code REST Client, Docker Desktop or Podman, xUnit test framework.
Weekly plan
C# fundamentals Weeks 1–4
Week 1: Getting started with .NET and C#
Theory
What the .NET SDK, runtime and dotnet CLI do
Program structure, top-level statements, Console input and output
Value types, string, var and type conversion
Lab
Install the SDK, run dotnet new console, and write a fee calculator that reads a course fee and a discount percentage and prints the payable amount in rupees.
Homework
Write three small programs: a simple-interest calculator, a temperature converter and a name formatter.
Deliverable
A Git-ready console project folder with three programs and a README listing how to run each.
Weekly checkpoint
Ten-minute quiz on types and conversion plus a live run of the fee calculator.
You will be able to
Write C# programs using types, control flow, methods, collections, LINQ and exception handling.
Week 2: Decisions, loops and methods
Theory
if/else, switch expressions and boolean logic
for, while and foreach loops
Methods, parameters, return values and scope
Lab
Build a menu-driven grade calculator: read marks for five subjects with a loop, compute the average with a method and print a grade using a switch expression.
Homework
Write a method that checks whether a number is prime and use it to list primes up to 100.
Deliverable
A grade calculator with at least three methods and no repeated code.
Weekly checkpoint
Predict the output of four short loop snippets; fix one off-by-one bug.
You will be able to
Write C# programs using types, control flow, methods, collections, LINQ and exception handling.
Week 3: Arrays, collections and strings
Theory
Arrays versus List<T> and Dictionary<TKey,TValue>
String methods, interpolation and StringBuilder
Parsing input safely with TryParse
Lab
Create a small contact book using a Dictionary: add, search and list contacts, rejecting empty names and invalid phone numbers.
Homework
Count word frequency in a paragraph using a Dictionary and print the top three words.
Deliverable
A contact book program with input validation.
Weekly checkpoint
Choose the right collection for four scenarios; debug a wrong index error.
You will be able to
Write C# programs using types, control flow, methods, collections, LINQ and exception handling.
Week 4: LINQ, exceptions and the debugger
Theory
LINQ Where, Select, OrderBy, GroupBy and Sum
try/catch/finally and throwing meaningful exceptions
Breakpoints, watch windows and stepping
Lab
Load a list of 20 orders (id, customer, amount) and use LINQ to find the total per customer and the largest order; deliberately introduce a bug and locate it with the debugger.
Homework
Rewrite last week's word-frequency program with LINQ and compare the readability.
Deliverable
An orders analysis program plus a short debugging log noting the bug, cause and fix.
Weekly checkpoint
Write LINQ queries on paper for three requirements; explain what finally does.
You will be able to
Write C# programs using types, control flow, methods, collections, LINQ and exception handling. Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically.
Object-oriented design Weeks 5–8
Week 5: Classes, objects and encapsulation
Theory
Fields, properties, constructors and access modifiers
Encapsulation and keeping objects valid
Records and immutable data
Lab
Model a BankAccount class with a private balance, Deposit and Withdraw methods that reject invalid amounts, and a record for transaction history.
Homework
Add an overdraft limit rule and write down three situations the class must reject.
Deliverable
A BankAccount library with a console demo.
Weekly checkpoint
Code reading: spot why a public field breaks the rules of an object.
You will be able to
Design object-oriented code with encapsulation, inheritance, interfaces, generics and dependency injection.
Week 6: Inheritance and polymorphism
Theory
Base and derived classes, virtual and override
Abstract classes and when to prefer composition
Polymorphism through a shared base type
Lab
Create a Shape hierarchy (Circle, Rectangle, Triangle) with an abstract Area method and print a mixed list sorted by area.
Homework
Model Employee, Trainer and Admin with shared and different behaviour; justify each inheritance choice in two lines.
Deliverable
A small hierarchy with a polymorphic report method.
Weekly checkpoint
Predict the output of an override example; identify an inheritance misuse.
You will be able to
Design object-oriented code with encapsulation, inheritance, interfaces, generics and dependency injection.
Week 7: Interfaces, generics and dependency injection
Theory
Interfaces as contracts
Generic classes and methods
Dependency injection and the built-in service container
Lab
Define INotifier with Email and Sms implementations, inject it into an OrderService through the constructor and swap the implementation without editing OrderService.
Homework
Write a generic Repository<T> in memory with Add, GetById and GetAll.
Deliverable
An OrderService project that demonstrates loose coupling.
Design object-oriented code with encapsulation, inheritance, interfaces, generics and dependency injection.
Week 8: Unit testing and Git basics
Theory
Arrange-Act-Assert and xUnit Fact and Theory
Test doubles and testing edge cases
Git init, add, commit, log, diff and .gitignore
Lab
Write 10 xUnit tests for BankAccount including negative deposits and exact-balance withdrawal; commit after each passing test.
Homework
Push the project to GitHub and write a README with build and test instructions.
Deliverable
A repository with tests and at least eight meaningful commits.
Weekly checkpoint
Write two missing tests for a given class; read a git log and explain the history.
You will be able to
Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically. Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
SQL and Entity Framework Core Weeks 9–12
Week 9: Relational design and SELECT
Theory
Tables, rows, primary and foreign keys
Normalisation to third normal form with a worked example
SELECT, WHERE, ORDER BY, LIMIT and LIKE
Lab
Design tables for a training institute (Students, Courses, Enrolments), create them in SQLite and write 10 SELECT queries.
Homework
Normalise a flat fee-receipt spreadsheet into three tables and draw the relationships.
Deliverable
A schema script and a query file with comments.
Weekly checkpoint
Identify keys and anomalies in a badly designed table.
You will be able to
Model data in relational tables and write SQL for CRUD, joins and aggregates.
Week 10: CRUD with SQL and constraints
Theory
INSERT, UPDATE and DELETE with WHERE
NOT NULL, UNIQUE, CHECK and foreign-key constraints
Transactions: commit and rollback
Lab
Run CRUD statements against the institute database, trigger three constraint errors on purpose, and use a transaction to transfer a seat between batches.
Homework
Write an UPDATE that would be dangerous without WHERE and explain how to protect against it.
Deliverable
A CRUD script with expected results documented.
Weekly checkpoint
Predict the result of statements on a given table; explain a rollback.
You will be able to
Model data in relational tables and write SQL for CRUD, joins and aggregates.
Week 11: Joins and aggregates
Theory
INNER and LEFT JOIN
GROUP BY, HAVING, COUNT, SUM and AVG
Reading query results and spotting duplicate rows
Lab
Write queries for: students per course, students with no enrolment, and total fees collected per month.
Homework
Rewrite two subqueries as joins and compare readability.
Deliverable
A report query pack answering six management questions.
Weekly checkpoint
Count rows returned by joins on small tables; fix a wrong GROUP BY.
You will be able to
Model data in relational tables and write SQL for CRUD, joins and aggregates.
Week 12: Entity Framework Core fundamentals
Theory
DbContext, DbSet and entity classes
Migrations and keeping schema in sync
LINQ to SQL, tracking and AsNoTracking
Lab
Create a DbContext for the institute, add the first migration to SQLite, seed data and write LINQ queries that match last week's SQL.
Homework
Inspect the SQL that EF Core generates for two queries and compare with your hand-written SQL.
Deliverable
A console app using EF Core with a migration history.
Weekly checkpoint
Explain what a migration does; fix a missing foreign-key mapping.
You will be able to
Use Entity Framework Core to map classes to tables, run migrations and query data efficiently.
ASP.NET Core web applications Weeks 13–16
Week 13: HTTP and your first minimal API
Theory
Requests, responses, methods, headers and status codes
Minimal API endpoints and routing
JSON serialisation and the request pipeline
Lab
Create a minimal API with GET /health and GET /courses returning an in-memory list; call it from a browser and from Postman and inspect the headers.
Homework
Draw the request-response path for the call you made and label each step.
Deliverable
A running minimal API with a request log screenshot.
Weekly checkpoint
Read an HTTP request and identify the method, path and body.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
Week 14: Controllers, binding and validation
Theory
Controllers and attribute routing
Model binding from route, query and body
Data annotations and ModelState validation
Lab
Build a CoursesController with GET, POST, PUT and DELETE, rejecting a course with an empty title or a negative fee with a clear 400 response.
Homework
Add pagination parameters to the list endpoint.
Deliverable
A controller-based API with documented validation rules.
Weekly checkpoint
Choose correct verbs and status codes for six actions.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
Week 15: Connecting the API to the database
Theory
Registering DbContext with dependency injection
One-to-many and many-to-many relationships
Include, projection and avoiding N+1 queries
Lab
Replace the in-memory list with EF Core, add Student and Enrolment entities and return a course with its students in one query.
Homework
Turn on EF Core SQL logging and count queries before and after using Include.
Deliverable
A database-backed API with relationships and a query-count note.
Weekly checkpoint
Spot an N+1 problem in a code listing and fix it.
You will be able to
Use Entity Framework Core to map classes to tables, run migrations and query data efficiently. Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
Week 16: Server-rendered pages with Razor Pages
Theory
Razor syntax, page models and handlers
Forms, anti-forgery tokens and tag helpers
Layouts and partial views
Lab
Build an admin page that lists courses, adds a new one through a form and shows validation messages.
Homework
Style the page for mobile width using plain CSS.
Deliverable
A working Razor Pages admin screen.
Weekly checkpoint
Explain how a form post becomes a handler call; find a missing anti-forgery token.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
REST APIs, security and quality Weeks 17–20
Week 17: Designing REST APIs
Theory
Resources, nouns and idempotency
DTOs versus entities and mapping
OpenAPI documentation and API versioning basics
Lab
Refactor the API to use request and response DTOs, expose OpenAPI documentation and verify every endpoint with Postman collections.
Homework
Write a one-page API guide with example requests and responses.
Deliverable
A documented API with a Postman collection.
Weekly checkpoint
Fix poor endpoint names and wrong status codes in a given design.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes.
Week 18: Async, middleware and error handling
Theory
async and await with EF Core calls
Custom middleware and the ordering of the pipeline
Global exception handling, ProblemDetails and logging
Lab
Convert endpoints to async, add request-logging middleware and a global handler that returns ProblemDetails without leaking stack traces.
Homework
Trigger three different errors and check each response and log line.
Deliverable
An API with consistent error responses and logs.
Weekly checkpoint
Order middleware correctly; explain why blocking on async code is risky.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes. Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically.
Week 19: Authentication, authorization and secrets
Theory
Authentication versus authorization
ASP.NET Core Identity and JWT bearer tokens
User secrets, environment variables and never committing keys
Lab
Add registration and login, protect the write endpoints with an Admin role and store the signing key outside source control.
Homework
Test five requests with no token, a wrong token and a valid token.
Deliverable
A secured API plus a short threat note on what is still unprotected.
Weekly checkpoint
Scenario questions on leaked keys and role checks.
You will be able to
Secure an application with authentication, authorization and safe handling of configuration secrets.
Week 20: Integration testing and AI-assisted review
Theory
WebApplicationFactory and in-memory test databases
Testing status codes, validation and authorization
Checking AI-generated code for correctness, security and licences
Lab
Write eight integration tests; ask an AI assistant to review one controller, then verify each suggestion by running it before accepting.
Homework
Record which AI suggestions were correct, wrong or unsafe and why.
Deliverable
A passing integration test suite and an AI-review log.
Weekly checkpoint
Given AI-generated code, find a hidden bug and a security flaw.
You will be able to
Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically. Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Team practice and deployment Weeks 21–24
Week 21: Team Git workflow
Theory
Branching, pull requests and code review
Merge conflicts and how to resolve them
Conventional commit messages and issue tracking
Lab
In pairs, create feature branches for two features, open pull requests, review each other's code and resolve a deliberate merge conflict.
Homework
Write a CONTRIBUTING note describing your team's branch and review rules.
Deliverable
A repository with merged pull requests and review comments.
Weekly checkpoint
Order the steps of a pull-request workflow; resolve a conflict shown in text.
You will be able to
Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Week 22: Configuration and containers
Theory
appsettings files and environment-specific configuration
Writing a Dockerfile for an ASP.NET Core app
Health checks and logs in containers
Lab
Containerise the API, run it with a database container using Docker Compose and prove it works from outside the container.
Homework
Reduce the image size with a multi-stage build and note the difference.
Deliverable
A Dockerfile and Compose file that start the full stack with one command.
Weekly checkpoint
Read a Dockerfile and explain each line; fix a wrong port mapping.
You will be able to
Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Week 23: Deployment and release
Theory
Hosting options: app service, container host or a VM
Database migration during release and rollback plans
Basic monitoring and a release checklist
Lab
Deploy the capstone to a free-tier or institute-provided host, run migrations and test the public URL.
Homework
Write a one-page release checklist and a rollback plan.
Deliverable
A live URL, release checklist and smoke-test results.
Weekly checkpoint
Diagnose a failed deployment from logs.
You will be able to
Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Week 24: Capstone demonstration
Theory
Presenting an architecture clearly
Reviewing your own code for quality
Planning next steps for learning
Lab
Finalise the capstone, demonstrate it live, answer questions about design choices and walk through one test and one security decision.
Homework
Write a short reflection on what you would change with another month.
Deliverable
The deployed capstone, repository link and a five-minute demo.
Weekly checkpoint
Panel review using the capstone rubric.
You will be able to
Build ASP.NET Core web and REST APIs with routing, validation, DTOs and correct HTTP status codes. Secure an application with authentication, authorization and safe handling of configuration secrets. Write unit and integration tests and debug failures systematically. Use Git branches and pull requests, containerise and deploy an app, and review AI-generated code before using it.
Sample lessons
Week 5
Encapsulation with a BankAccount class
Encapsulation means an object protects its own data so that it can never be put into an invalid state. In C# you keep fields private and expose behaviour through methods and properties that check the rules. Instead of letting any code set a balance to a negative number, the class offers Deposit and Withdraw, which validate the amount first. This makes bugs easier to find because only one place changes the balance.
Calling code (Program, API)
Public methods: Deposit, Withdraw
Validation rules
Private balance field
Only methods can reach the private data.
Step by step
Create a class with a private decimal field for the balance.
Add a read-only Balance property.
Write Deposit that throws ArgumentOutOfRangeException when the amount is zero or negative.
Write Withdraw that rejects amounts larger than the balance.
Call both methods from Program and handle the exceptions with try/catch.
In real life
A UPI app never lets any screen edit your balance directly. Every change goes through a controlled transfer operation that checks limits and records the transaction.
Worked example
Problem. Why is public decimal Balance dangerous in a bank account class?
Solution. Any code could write account.Balance = -5000 and skip the rules. With a private field and a Withdraw method, the class checks the amount, so an invalid balance is impossible and rule changes happen in one place.
Common mistakes
Making every field public for convenience.
Validating in the calling code instead of inside the class, so a caller can forget the check.
Try it yourself
Add a minimum balance rule of Rs 500 to the account.
Write three unit tests that prove an invalid withdrawal does not change the balance.
Week 17
Designing a REST endpoint with DTOs
A REST API exposes resources such as courses and students through URLs and uses HTTP methods for the action. POST creates, GET reads, PUT replaces, PATCH changes part and DELETE removes. The API should accept and return DTOs (data transfer objects) rather than database entities, so that internal columns such as password hashes never leak and the database can change without breaking clients. Correct status codes tell the client what happened without reading the body.
1Client sends JSON
2Model binding to DTO
3Validation
4Map to entity and save
5201 Created or 400
A request becomes a DTO, is validated and is saved.
Step by step
Name the resource with a plural noun: /api/courses.
Create CourseCreateDto with only the fields a client may send.
Validate the DTO with data annotations.
Map the DTO to an entity, save it and return 201 Created with a Location header.
Return 404 when an id does not exist and 400 for invalid input.
In real life
A shop app lets a customer app create an order with items and an address. The server decides the order id, the price and the time, because the client should not be trusted with those.
Worked example
Problem. A client posts {"title":"","fee":-100} to /api/courses. What should the API return?
Solution. 400 Bad Request with a ProblemDetails body listing that Title is required and Fee must be zero or more. Nothing is saved to the database.
Common mistakes
Returning 200 OK with an error message in the body.
Exposing the entity class directly so that internal fields leak.
Try it yourself
List the endpoints, verbs and status codes for a Student resource.
Write a DTO for updating only the course fee and explain why it is safer than reusing the entity.
Try the questions
The same skills are asked at three levels: School (Classes 6–12), College and Professional. Switch the level and the language (English or Tamil), and say how sure you are before you check: knowing what you are unsure about is part of learning.
Classes 6–12: everyday examples, no prior knowledge. Practice only. Nothing here is graded or saved.
Question 1 / 4 · Explain what a program is
Which sentence best describes a computer program?
Projects
Institute Course and Enrolment API
Build and deploy a web API and admin page for a small training institute in Madurai that manages courses, students and enrolments. It must validate input, secure write operations, store data in a relational database and be covered by automated tests.
Tasks
Design a normalised schema for Courses, Students and Enrolments and create it with EF Core migrations.
Implement REST endpoints with DTOs, validation and correct status codes.
Protect create, update and delete endpoints with role-based authorization.
Write at least 15 unit and integration tests.
Containerise the app and deploy it, documenting the release steps.
Sample input
POST /api/enrolments {"studentId": 3, "courseId": 2} with an Admin token
Expected output
201 Created with the enrolment resource; the same request without a token returns 401; an unknown courseId returns 404.
How it is assessed
Criterion
Weight
Schema design and migrations
20%
API correctness, validation and status codes
25%
Security and secret handling
15%
Automated tests
20%
Deployment and documentation
20%
Stretch challenge: Add a fee-receipt endpoint that returns a PDF and rate-limit the login endpoint.
Order Analytics Console Tool
Create a C# console tool that reads a CSV of shop orders, validates every row, reports total sales per customer in rupees with LINQ and writes a clean summary file. Invalid rows must be reported, not crash the program.
Tasks
Define an Order record and parse the CSV with TryParse.
Report invalid rows with line numbers.
Group and total sales per customer using LINQ.
Write unit tests for the parsing and totalling code.
Sample input
1,Anu,1200.50
2,Bala,abc
3,Anu,300
Expected output
Anu 1500.50; one invalid row reported at line 2.
How it is assessed
Criterion
Weight
Correct totals
35%
Robust input handling
30%
Tests
20%
Code clarity
15%
Stretch challenge: Export the summary as JSON and add a command-line option for the date range.
How you are assessed
Each week: a short quiz mixing code reading, output prediction and one debugging item; a lab submission pushed to Git; and a trainer code review. Every fourth week adds an integrated checkpoint covering the module.
Practical work. Learners are assessed on running, tested code in a repository: console programs, SQL scripts, a working API with tests and a deployed capstone demonstrated live with questions on design decisions.
What trainers look for
Weight
Working, correct code
35%
Tests and debugging evidence
20%
Design quality and security awareness
20%
Git history and documentation
10%
Explanation and responsible AI use
15%
Where this can lead
Prepares you for junior C# and ASP.NET Core developer roles.
Prepares you for backend API and database-driven application work.
Builds the base for further study in cloud, microservices and enterprise .NET development.
These describe skills you will build. ADIVAS does not guarantee jobs, placement or salary.
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