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Back End Web Development Graduate Certificate

Learn how to build and maintain the technology that powers the administrator side of a website.

  • Format

    Online with On-Campus Options

  • Number of Required Courses

    4

  • Tuition

    $13,360

  • Next Start Term: Spring 2025

    Registration is open through January 23, 2025

What You'll Learn

  • Learn to evolve simple, static websites into dynamic, database-driven web applications.
  • Master fundamental scripting languages like JavaScript, HTTP, Grails, AngularJS, Groovy.
  • Learn about vital technologies, processes, and platforms, such as object-oriented PHP, Laravel, basic server setup and management, version control with Git, dependency management, and Drupal 8.
  • Develop an understanding of the fundamentals of rapid application and plugin development; internationalization; testing, building, and deploying; security; performance tuning; and dynamic and static typing.

Our Community at a Glance

Join a community of tech faculty and peers and gain the skills to advance in or transition to a web development role.

  • 37

    Average Age

  • 86%

    Working Full Time

  • 14%

    Students Outside the U.S.

  • 1.5 years

    Average Time to Complete

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Register for Spring 2025

Enroll in your first certificate course this spring — no application required. Registration is open through January 23, 2025.

Certificate Courses

The professional graduate certificate in Back End Web Development requires four courses:

  • Required course (choose one course from select group)
  • Electives (choose any three courses from select group)

You can find courses by course group and term — fall, spring, or summer — in the certificate course search within DCE Course Search & Registration platform.

Earning Your Certificate

To meet the requirements for the certificate, you must:

  • Complete the four certificate courses for graduate credit.
  • Earn at least a B grade in each course.
  • Complete the courses within three years.

Learn more about pursuing a certificate and the process of requesting your certificate.

Prerequisites

This certificate assumes prior programming experience and familiarity with the content covered in CSCI 12 and CSCI 3. Students without this knowledge may wish to first pursue the Front End Web Development Certificate.

Build a Stackable Credential Pathway

Stackable credential pathways allow you to earn multiple credentials by completing courses that meet overlapping requirements. In the short term, you can earn a micro or graduate certificate. Once completed, those courses may count toward a master’s degree.

You can:

Stackable pathways offer an efficient, cost-effective way to earn short-term credentials to help fill immediate skill gaps and acquire specialized knowledge while building a foundation for long-term success that showcases your expertise in the field.

Learn how to plan a stackable credential pathway.

Cost

Affordability is core to our mission. When compared to our continuing education peers, it’s a fraction of the cost.

Our Tuition (2024–25 rate) $3,360 per course
Average Tuition of Peer Institutions $5,476 per course
Average Total Cost $13,340