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Course 2 of 3 Full-Stack Web Development Specialization

Backend Development: Node.js, Express, MongoDB & REST APIs

Go from client-server basics to secure, scalable backends - Node.js and Express servers, MongoDB databases, and REST APIs with JWT authentication - and learn to build the server side of modern web apps.

Enroll on Coursera
≈ 14 hours 3 modules Intermediate level Taught in English
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Board Infinity Board InfinityInstructor · 287 courses on Coursera
Course preview · 1:13

Learn by building

12 assignments and 2 discussion prompts on real backend work

Certificate included

Shareable on LinkedIn the day you finish

Built by industry experts

Board Infinity: 287 courses, 480,000+ learners on Coursera

6 Lakh+learners on our Coursera courses
10+domains covered
270+courses
57+specializations
01 About the course

The server side of modern web apps.

Three modules: server-side development, working with databases, and building and consuming APIs.

3
Modules
Servers to secure APIs
34
Video lessons
Short, project-based
12
Assignments
Practice and graded quizzes
14h
Total learning time
Self-paced, flexible deadlines

Backend Development: Node.js, Express, MongoDB & REST APIs covers the fundamentals of server-side development - from client-server architecture to building secure, scalable REST APIs with authentication and authorization. It's project-based throughout.

By the end, you can build Node.js applications with Express - routing, middleware and error handling - design and optimize MongoDB databases, and build RESTful APIs secured with JWT and role-based authorization, across 34 short video lessons, 9 readings and 12 assignments.

It's course 2 of Board Infinity's Full-Stack Web Development: PHP, HTML, CSS & JavaScript specialization on Coursera, for front-end developers going full-stack, aspiring backend developers and computer science students.

Inside the course
01Introduction to server-side development≈ 5h 02Working with databases≈ 4h 03Building and consuming APIs≈ 5h
02 Who it's for

Built for developers ready to own the backend.

If you want to build the servers, databases and APIs behind web apps, the course was written with you in mind.

Front-end devs

Front-end developers

Make the move to full-stack by building the APIs your interfaces call.

Career starters

Aspiring backend developers

Learn servers, databases and APIs in one structured path.

Engineers

Software engineers

Specialize in API design, authentication and authorization.

Students

Computer science students

Build database-driven web applications with a modern JavaScript stack.

03 What you'll learn

Four outcomes. A real backend.

Each module adds a layer, from how the web works to APIs that are secure enough to ship.

Module 1

Understand server-side architecture

How client-server architecture works, what happens when you enter a URL, and how to evaluate backend technologies.

Module 1

Build Node.js and Express apps

Set up Node.js projects, work with modules and packages, and build Express servers with routing and middleware.

Module 2

Design and optimize MongoDB

Choose between SQL and NoSQL, set up MongoDB Atlas, and use indexing, transactions and aggregations.

Module 3

Build secure REST APIs

Design RESTful endpoints, secure them with JWT and role-based access control, and consume them from front ends.

1:1 coaching · optional add-on

Build with 1:1 coaching from industry experts.

A dedicated coach from your target domain: someone who has done the job, hired for it, and knows exactly what it takes.

Book a demo session
  • A coach matched to your goal in 24 hours
  • A written roadmap you keep
  • Weekly sessions for as long as you want them

60-minute demo session · 100% refundable · no obligation to continue

Review your API design

Feedback on endpoints, status codes and error handling as you build.

Check your auth flow

A second pair of eyes on JWT handling and role-based access.

Build a portfolio project

Shape a full-stack project that shows hiring teams what you can do.

Aim it at a role

Which backend and full-stack roles this opens, and what to learn next.

2,000+Industry coaches
16Domains covered
4.8/5Average coach rating
48,000+Sessions delivered
04 Syllabus

Three modules, from your first server to secure APIs.

About 14 hours of material - Coursera estimates 1 week at 10 hours a week, fully self-paced. Every module lists its learning objectives, its content, and what you'll walk out with.

34 videos 9 readings 12 assignments ≈ 14 hours Download full syllabus
Learning objectives - by the end of this module you can:
  • Explain client-server architecture and what really happens when you enter a URL
  • Compare server-side languages and technologies
  • Set up a Node.js project and work with its core modules and packages
  • Build a simple Express server with routing and middleware
What's inside
12 videos58 min
3 readings90 min
4 assignments + discussion + 2 plugins145 min
Topics covered
Client-server architecture Server-side languages What happens when you enter a URL What is Node.js? Node.js project setup Modules & packages What is Express.js? A simple Express server Routing & middleware
You'll leave with: a working Node.js and Express foundation - from how the web works to your first server with routes and middleware.
Learning objectives - by the end of this module you can:
  • Compare types of databases, and choose between SQL and NoSQL
  • Set up MongoDB Atlas and use MongoDB with Node.js
  • Improve query performance with indexing and optimization
  • Protect data integrity with transactions, and analyze data with aggregations
What's inside
9 videos33 min
3 readings90 min
4 assignments105 min
Topics covered
Types of databases SQL vs NoSQL Introduction to MongoDB MongoDB Atlas setup MongoDB with Node.js Indexing & optimization Transactions Aggregation pipelines
You'll leave with: the judgment to choose the right database, and the skills to connect, query and optimize MongoDB from Node.js.
Learning objectives - by the end of this module you can:
  • Apply the principles of REST and design RESTful endpoints
  • Implement RESTful services with Express
  • Secure APIs with JWT authentication and role-based access control
  • Fetch data, handle API responses and errors, and integrate APIs in front-end applications
What's inside
13 videos48 min
3 readings90 min
4 assignments + discussion + plugin130 min
Topics covered
Principles of REST Designing RESTful endpoints RESTful services with Express Authentication vs authorization JWT authentication Role-based access control Fetching data from APIs Handling responses & errors Front-end integration
You'll leave with: secure REST APIs you can build with Express, protect with JWT and roles, and consume from a front end.
05 Tools & skills

Master the stack behind modern web backends.

The four tools you work with, and the skills you leave with.

Module 1

Node.js

JavaScript on the server - projects, core modules and packages.

Modules 1, 3

Express.js

Servers, routing and middleware, then full RESTful services.

Module 2

MongoDB

Document data in MongoDB Atlas, with indexing and aggregations.

Module 3

REST APIs & JWT

RESTful design secured with JWT and role-based access control.

Skills you leave with

Twelve concrete capabilities, grouped the way the work actually splits - the server, the database, and the API on top.

Server side

How backends are built and run.

  • Software architecture
  • Back-end web development
  • Express routing & middleware
  • Scalability

Databases

Storing and querying data well.

  • Database management
  • Database development
  • Performance tuning
  • Transactions & aggregations

APIs & security

Exposing data safely.

  • API design
  • Authentication & authorization
  • Secure coding
  • Front-end integration
Certificate

Proof you can link to.

Finish the graded work and Board Infinity issues a certificate through Coursera - with a public verification link and a one-click path onto your LinkedIn profile.

Issued on completion of the graded quizzes. Counts toward the Full-Stack Web Development specialization when you've finished all three courses.

On your profile in one click

Add it to your LinkedIn profile, resume or CV, where recruiters actually look.

Anyone can verify it

Its own verification link, so a hiring manager confirms it in seconds.

Earned, not attended

Awarded on graded quizzes in all three modules - it certifies what you know.

Two names on it

Board Infinity as the provider, Coursera as the platform.

06 Career impact

Every app needs a backend. Teams need people who can build one.

These are the roles that build on exactly this skill set.

Where these skills are in demand

Backend Developer

Building servers, databases and APIs - the role this course maps to most directly.

Node.js Developer

Writing server-side JavaScript with Node.js and Express.

Full-Stack Developer

Owning both the interface and the API behind it.

API Developer

Designing RESTful endpoints that other teams and apps depend on.

MERN Stack Developer

Building with MongoDB, Express and Node.js alongside a React front end.

Database Developer

Designing schemas, indexes and aggregation pipelines in MongoDB.

Application Security Engineer

Hardening APIs with authentication, authorization and secure coding.

Junior Software Engineer

Contributing to backend services on a product engineering team.

The honest comparison

What you're actually paying for

Every topic in this course exists free somewhere on the internet. Nobody is pretending otherwise. What a course adds is the order you learn it in, the practice that makes it stick, and something to show at the end.

What you get
This course
DIY with free content
A sequenced learning pathServer → database → API
3 modules that build on each other
Scattered tutorials, no sequence
Practice with feedbackLearning that sticks
12 practice and graded quizzes
Copy, paste, forget
Security built inNot an afterthought
JWT and role-based access control
Demo APIs with no auth
Expert-built contentIndustry knowledge and practice
Board Infinity's industry experts
Comment-section guesswork
Proof for recruitersVerifiable, on LinkedIn
Certificate with verification link
Nothing to show
07 The bigger path

More from the Full-Stack Web Development specialization.

This course stands on its own - but it's also the second step of a three-course path. Enrolling automatically enrolls you in the specialization.

Course 1

Web Development Mastery: HTML, CSS & JavaScript Fundamentals

Semantic HTML5, CSS layouts, Bootstrap, JavaScript and React components.

≈ 17 hours
View course
You're here Course 2

Backend Development: Node.js, Express, MongoDB & REST APIs

Node.js and Express servers, MongoDB design, and secure REST APIs with JWT.

≈ 14 hours · 3 modules
Back to top
Course 3

PHP Mastery: Build Web Apps

PHP fundamentals, OOP and MVC, database-driven apps with ORM, and authentication and deployment.

≈ 11 hours
View course
Related courses from Board Infinity
Go front end

Libraries and Frameworks for Frontend Development

Build the interfaces that consume your APIs, with modern front-end libraries and frameworks.

View course Go wider

.Net Full Stack Foundation

See how another major backend stack approaches the same problems.

View course Go mobile

Mastering iOS Development: Swift, SwiftUI, and Beyond

Build iOS apps that call the kind of authenticated APIs you build here.

View course

Board Infinity runs 270+ courses and 57 specializations on Coursera - browse the full catalogue.

Know exactly what you're signing up for.

3 modules · 34 lessons · 12 assignments · free PDF

08 FAQ

Common questions

Everything learners ask before enrolling, answered plainly.

About the course

You'll learn to build the server side of web apps. Module one covers client-server architecture, server-side languages, Node.js projects, modules and packages, and Express servers with routing and middleware. Module two covers database types, SQL vs NoSQL, MongoDB Atlas, using MongoDB with Node.js, indexing, transactions and aggregations. Module three covers REST principles, RESTful endpoints with Express, JWT authentication, role-based access control, and consuming APIs in front-end apps.

Coursera lists this as an intermediate-level course. Basic JavaScript, HTML and CSS help, and familiarity with the command line is useful. Course 1 of the specialization, Web Development Mastery: HTML, CSS & JavaScript Fundamentals, covers that ground.

The current enrollment options and price for your region are shown on the Coursera course page. The course is included with a Coursera Plus subscription, and Coursera's financial aid is available for eligible learners. Enrollment also includes the whole Full-Stack Web Development specialization track.

The three modules are estimated at about 5, 4 and 5 hours, with 34 video lessons, 9 readings and 12 assignments. Coursera's headline estimate is 1 week at 10 hours a week. It's fully self-paced - deadlines flex around your schedule.

Each module has three practice quizzes, one per lesson, and a one-hour graded quiz at the end - 12 assignments in all. Modules one and three also include a discussion prompt, and a reading after each lesson goes deeper into the topic.

No. This course is developed and offered by Board Infinity on Coursera. It is an independent educational resource, it is not official MongoDB preparation material, and it is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by MongoDB or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates.

Yes - this page is Board Infinity's own overview of our course. Enrollment, payment, video lessons, grading and the certificate all happen on Coursera, where the course is hosted. Think of this page as the detailed tour before you head there.

Career & certificate

Yes. Completing the graded quizzes earns you a shareable certificate from Board Infinity, issued through Coursera with its own verification link. You can add it to your LinkedIn profile, resume or CV, and the same completed work counts toward the full specialization certificate.

It supports backend developer, Node.js developer, API developer and full-stack developer roles, and gives front-end developers the server-side skills to work across the whole stack.

Two ways. The certificate goes in your LinkedIn Licenses & Certifications section via Coursera's one-click add. Just as valuable is naming what you can do: a line like “Built REST APIs with Node.js, Express and MongoDB - routing and middleware, indexing and aggregations, JWT authentication and role-based access control” gives interviewers something concrete to ask about.

Yes. The final module explains authentication and authorization, walks through implementing JWT authentication, and covers role-based access control - plus a discussion prompt on who should get access to what.

This is the second course of the specialization. Before it comes Web Development Mastery: HTML, CSS & JavaScript Fundamentals (~17 hours); after it, PHP Mastery: Build Web Apps (~11 hours). Completing all three earns the specialization certificate.

Want someone reviewing your API?

Board Infinity 1:1 coaching pairs you with a practitioner while you take the course.

See 1:1 coaching

Build the backend every web app depends on.

Three modules. Node.js, Express, MongoDB and secure REST APIs - and a certificate to show for it.

Enroll on Coursera

Backend Development: Node.js, Express, MongoDB & REST APIs · by Board Infinity · offered on Coursera

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