AI coding agents are changing what it means to write software. Tasks that used to take an afternoon — tracing a bug across a large codebase, scaffolding a new service, reviewing a stack of pull requests — can now happen in a single focused session, with an agent that reads your code, runs your commands, and edits files alongside you. But getting real value from an agent requires more than installing it and typing a request. It requires understanding how the agent thinks, what context it has access to, and how to steer it when it heads in the wrong direction.
This course teaches developers how to use Claude Code effectively, whether you're new to software engineering or an experienced engineer who hasn't yet worked with AI coding agents. We start from first principles — what an agentic loop actually is, how the context window shapes what Claude can see, how tools and permissions determine what it can do — so that the techniques later in the course make sense rather than feeling like a list of tricks to memorize.
You'll learn how to install Claude Code across multiple environments (terminal, VS Code, JetBrains, Claude Desktop, and the web), and how to write prompts that get good results on the first try using approval mode, auto-accept, and Plan Mode. The core of the course is the Explore → Plan → Code → Commit workflow: a repeatable rhythm for breaking down a task, letting Claude propose an approach, reviewing the work as it happens, and landing it cleanly. We also cover code review with Claude Code and the context-management commands (/compact, /clear, /context) that keep long sessions productive.
The final section is about making Claude Code your own. You'll write a CLAUDE.md file so Claude remembers your project's conventions across sessions, build custom subagents and skills for tasks you repeat often, connect external systems through MCP servers, and write hooks that add deterministic guardrails around what Claude is allowed to do. By the end, you'll have a setup tailored to how you actually work — not a generic install.
Recommended prerequisites
Basic familiarity with a code editor and the command line. You'll also need a Claude account (Pro, Max, or Enterprise) or an API key. No prior experience with AI tools is assumed.
Who this is for
New developers entering software engineering who want AI-assisted workflows from the start, and experienced engineers curious about coding agents but who haven't taken the plunge yet. If you've tried a coding assistant before and found the results underwhelming, this course is designed to show you what changes when you work with an agent rather than against it.
