Research notes, sources and toolkit

This original guide was written by Codex for your library, with research checked on September 28, 2026. It is an original study guide, not an endorsement by any course provider. The plans, project exercises, suggested hours, readiness gates and job-search cadence are my synthesis.

How I chose the path

I compared official course prerequisites and curricula with engineering articles about deployment and evaluation, then inspected three current employer job descriptions. That supports a practical application-building focus, but it is a small, US-leaning sample. It does not establish hiring rates, salaries or a universal “best” curriculum. Adjust the target-role worksheet to your own location and constraints.

What is saved here

All 15 guide pages, the diagrams, the workbook and the editable templates work offline. The new course and video recommendations are links to their providers. Supporting downloads are available in the other three classes.

Research sources

1. CS50: Introduction to Programming with Python ↗

   Free OpenCourseWare; certificate options are separate.

2. CS50P: Functions, Variables ↗

   Official lecture, notes and exercises.

3. CS50P: Unit Tests ↗

   Official lecture, notes and exercises.

4. CS50: Introduction to Databases with SQL ↗

   Free OpenCourseWare; use selected units first.

5. GitHub: Hello World ↗

   Free guide to the repository and pull request workflow.

6. FastAPI: Tutorial ↗

   Free, maintained documentation.

7. Docker: Get started ↗

   Free documentation; product and hosting costs depend on usage.

8. Full Stack LLM Bootcamp: LLM Foundations ↗

   Free video; 2023 conceptual material. Model examples and APIs are dated.

9. Full Stack LLM Bootcamp: Augmented Language Models ↗

   Free video; 2023 conceptual material. Use current documentation for implementation.

10. Full Stack LLM Bootcamp: LLMOps ↗

    Free video; 2023 lifecycle concepts, not a current tool shopping list.

11. DeepLearning.AI: Building Systems with the ChatGPT API ↗

    Optional guided lab; indexed listing checked. Direct page blocked automated access; current access and pricing not confirmed.

12. DeepLearning.AI: Building and Evaluating Advanced RAG ↗

    Optional guided lab; indexed listing checked. Direct page blocked automated access; current access and pricing not confirmed.

13. Anthropic: Building effective agents ↗

    Engineering article, December 2024.

14. Anthropic: Demystifying evals for AI agents ↗

    Engineering article, January 2026.

15. Hugging Face: AI Agents Course ↗

    Free course; Python and basic LLM knowledge are prerequisites. Inference/hosting can incur costs.

16. Hugging Face: LLM Course ↗

    Free advanced extension; good Python required and introductory deep learning recommended.

17. Google: Machine Learning Crash Course ↗

    Free learning material. Study the concepts relevant to your project first.

18. Google: ML Crash Course prerequisites ↗

    Python and math preparation; calculus is optional for advanced topics.

19. DeepIntent: Applied AI Engineer ↗

    Employer posting reviewed September 28, 2026; may close or change.

20. Schonfeld: AI Engineer (Junior/Senior) ↗

    Employer posting reviewed September 28, 2026; may close or change.

21. Anthropic: Applied AI Engineer, Enterprise Tech ↗

    Employer posting reviewed September 28, 2026; experienced, customer-facing role.

Keep the plan current

Recheck job requirements monthly and SDK documentation when you build. Revisit an old lecture for concepts, not its historical model leaderboard. Change the plan if interviews or real users reveal a more important gap. Measure skill by what you can build and explain.