Claude Certified Architect - Foundations

Make sound production tradeoffs across Claude Code, the Claude Agent SDK, the Claude API, and MCP. Developers and architects who design production Claude systems and can reason through ambiguous, scenario-based architecture decisions. Six or more months building with Claude Hands-on work with the Claude API and tool use Working knowledge of Claude Code, the Claude Agent SDK, and MCP Experience choosing between architectural alternatives under constraints Agentic Architecture and Orchestration Implement the tool-use lifecycle from stop reason to tool result Choose coordinator and subagent topologies Use Task, allowedTools, isolated context, parallelism, and forked sessions Enforce prerequisites, decompose concerns, and structure handoffs Use hooks for deterministic controls and normalization Choose sequential or adaptive decomposition Resume or fork without carrying stale context Tool Design and MCP Integration Write precise tool descriptions and boundaries Return structured and retry-aware MCP errors Manage tool distribution and tool choice Scope MCP configuration and resources Choose Claude Code file, shell, and search tools safely Claude Code Configuration and Workflows Design CLAUDE.md hierarchy, imports, rules, and memory Create project and user commands and Skills Apply path-specific rules Choose plan mode, direct execution, or Explore Use examples, test-driven iteration, and interviews Run headless CI with structured output and independent review Prompt Engineering and Structured Output State explicit evaluation criteria Use few-shot examples for consistent judgment Enforce schemas with tool…

Claude Certified Architect - Foundations: Make sound production tradeoffs across Claude Code, the Claude Agent SDK, the Claude API, and MCP.

This free community study path organizes 21 practical lessons in a deliberate order, then connects them to original diagnostics and practice. It does not issue a credential or reproduce protected exam questions.

Lessons in this path

1. Study the Decisions, Not the Vocabulary
2. Choose the Smallest Surface That Can Carry the Work
3. Spend Capability Where Failure Is Expensive
4. Turn a Request Into a Testable Contract
5. Put Each Fact in the Right Kind of Context
6. Validate the Claim, Not the Confidence
7. The Messages API Is a State Machine
8. Structured Output Is an Untrusted Contract
9. A Tool Loop Is Controlled Delegation
10. MCP Separates Capability From Host
11. The Agent SDK Is a Harness, Not Permission
12. Security Lives Outside the Prompt

9 more lessons continue in the interactive track.