Build advanced Java data structures and backend engineering skills with Spring Boot, REST APIs, JPA, Hibernate and Spring Security - every concept demonstrated on screen, then graded.
By Board Infinity · Offered on Coursera
Collections Framework first, then Spring Boot, REST, JPA and security
Shareable on LinkedIn the day you finish
16 assignments across the three modules
Most Java courses teach data structures or Spring - rarely both, and almost never in the order a backend engineer actually needs them.
Data Structures & Backend with Java is an advanced course for developers who already write Java and understand object-oriented programming. It does not start at syntax. Module one opens directly on arrays, strings and the Java Collections Framework - List, ArrayList, LinkedList, Vector, Stack, Queue, Map, HashMap, LinkedHashMap, WeakHashMap, EnumMap, SortedMap, NavigableMap, TreeMap, Set, HashSet, EnumSet, LinkedHashSet, SortedSet, NavigableSet and TreeSet.
Module two turns to the framework the Java backend runs on: the Spring Framework and its architecture, environment setup, Maven, Spring Containers, Beans, scopes and bean lifecycle, dependency injection by constructor and setter, then Spring Boot - how it differs from Spring and Spring MVC, its architecture, and Spring Initializr.
Module three is the backend itself: RESTful web services with GET, POST, PUT and DELETE, path variables and full CRUD APIs; ORM with Hibernate and JPA, JPA architecture, annotations and persistent storage; then Spring Security - authentication, authorization and the security filter chain - finishing with a 120-minute final assignment.
The course assumes a working knowledge of Java and object-oriented programming. If one of these is you, it starts exactly where you are.
You write Java but have never built a service. Modules two and three take you from Spring fundamentals to a secured REST API with database persistence.
You have covered classes, inheritance and interfaces. This is the layer on top: the Collections Framework properly, then the framework every Java job lists.
Module one works through arrays, strings, lists, stacks, queues, maps and sets in Java - the structures technical interviews are built on - with a practice quiz after each.
You need dependency injection, Spring MVC, REST, JPA and Hibernate, and Spring Security in one sequence rather than five unrelated tutorials.
These are the four outcomes Coursera lists for the course - each one earned in the module where it is taught, then checked by a quiz.
Arrays, ArrayList, LinkedList, Stack, Queue, HashMap, TreeMap and TreeSet - what each one is for, and how the Collections Framework ties them together.
Dependency injection, Spring Beans and scopes, Maven and the Spring MVC architecture - plus where Spring Boot differs from Spring and Spring MVC.
Full CRUD operations over GET, POST, PUT and DELETE, then persistent database storage through JPA, Hibernate and ORM annotations.
Authentication, authorization and the security filter chain - the difference between an API that works and one that is safe to expose.
A dedicated coach who ships Spring Boot for a living - someone who can look at the stack trace you have stared at for an hour and tell you why.
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The bean that will not autowire, explained by someone who has seen it before.
Not just whether the endpoint responds - whether the design holds up.
Data-structure problems set for you, then reviewed, so the patterns become fluency.
Which Java path fits you - backend, full stack or platform - and what to learn next.
About twenty hours end to end, fully self-paced. Every module lists its learning objectives, every lesson inside it, and what you leave with.
This module introduces learners to fundamental data structures used in computer science, with a focus on Java. Through lectures, programming assignments and quizzes, learners develop an understanding of data structures and their implementation using Java and the Collections Framework.
This module introduces Spring and Spring Boot, two widely used frameworks in Java application development. Learners work through Spring architecture, environment setup, Maven, Spring Containers, Beans, Dependency Injection and Spring Boot fundamentals.
This module provides a comprehensive understanding of building RESTful web services using Spring Boot. Learners build and test REST APIs, implement CRUD operations, connect applications to persistent storage using JPA and Hibernate, and secure backend applications using Spring Security.
Lesson titles and durations are taken from the Coursera course page and reproduced as they appear there. Download the full syllabus as a PDF.
Java JDK 17+ and an IDE are the only things to install. Everything else is pulled in through Maven and Spring Initializr as you go.
Java Programming is the primary tool of the course - data structures, the Collections Framework and every backend class you write.
Introduced from first principles in module two - architecture, containers, beans, dependency injection and Spring Initializr.
The ORM layer of module three: Hibernate architecture and configuration, JPA architecture, annotations and persistent storage.
Either IDE works, on Java JDK 17 or later, with Maven and Spring Initializr for project setup.
The capabilities Coursera lists for this course, grouped the way backend work actually splits - the data structures, the framework, and the service you expose.
Holding data in a shape the rest of the system can use.
Turning classes into an application that runs and serves.
Exposing it safely, and making the data survive a restart.
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, your resume or CV, and your social media.
Issued on completion of the graded work across the three modules. This is a Coursera certificate for a Board Infinity course, not a vendor certification.
Filed under Licenses & Certifications, where recruiters actually look.
Its own verification link, so a hiring manager confirms it in seconds.
Awarded on 16 assignments, including the 120-minute final assignment.
The same work moves you through the Java FullStack Developer Specialization.
Data structures get you through the interview; Spring Boot, JPA and security are what the job is. These are the directions the curriculum supports.
The direct line. CRUD APIs, persistence through JPA and Hibernate, and a security filter chain are the daily work.
Dependency injection, beans and scopes, Spring MVC and Initializr - the vocabulary every Spring job description opens with.
Where the Collections Framework stops being trivia. Choosing between a HashMap and a TreeMap is a design decision, not a quiz answer.
Services, data access and authentication are the three layers this course covers, in that order.
The server half of the specialization: an Angular frontend needs exactly the REST APIs built here to talk to.
Data structures for the interview loop, a framework for the work that follows it. Outcomes still depend on your wider experience.
There are excellent free DSA playlists, Spring Boot tutorials, REST walkthroughs, Hibernate guides and Spring Security explainers. The problem is never the material - it is that they are five separate courses by five people, and nothing checks whether you actually learned it.
The course stands on its own. It also closes out a specialization that runs from Java fundamentals through an Angular frontend to the backend you build here.
Java fundamentals and object-oriented programming - the working knowledge this course assumes you already have.
View course Course 2The Angular frontend half of full-stack Java - the client that consumes the REST APIs you build in module three.
View course You are here Course 3Java data structures, Spring and Spring Boot, RESTful services, JPA and Hibernate persistence, and Spring Security.
View courseBoard Infinity runs 270+ courses and 57 specializations on Coursera - browse the full catalogue.
Everything learners ask before enrolling, answered from the Coursera course page.
Anyone can enroll on Coursera, but the course is listed at Advanced level and is written for learners who already have a working knowledge of Java and Object-Oriented Programming. Module one opens directly on Java data structures and the Collections Framework - it does not start from Java syntax fundamentals.
Yes. You should be comfortable with Java basics and object-oriented programming - classes, objects, inheritance and interfaces. If you are not there yet, Java Programming Fundamentals for Spring Boot Development, course 1 of the same specialization, covers that ground first.
No. Module two introduces Spring from the beginning - what the Spring Framework is, its architecture, environment setup, Maven, Spring Containers, Beans, scopes and dependency injection - before Spring Boot, REST, JPA and Spring Security follow in module three.
Four things, in this order. Build Java data structures including Arrays, ArrayList, LinkedList, Stack, Queue, HashMap, TreeMap and TreeSet using the Collections Framework. Develop Spring Boot backend applications with dependency injection, Spring Beans, Maven and Spring MVC architecture. Create RESTful APIs with full CRUD operations and integrate persistent database storage using JPA, Hibernate and ORM annotations. Apply Spring Security to implement authentication, authorization and secure API filter chains.
Java JDK 17 or later, and an IDE - IntelliJ IDEA or Eclipse. Beyond that the course works with Maven, Spring Initializr, the Spring Framework and Spring Boot, Hibernate, JPA and Spring Security. All of it is free, and the tooling is set up on screen as it is introduced.
Coursera's current guidance is about 2 weeks at 10 hours a week, across 3 modules: 8 hours for data structures, 5 for Spring and Spring Boot, and 7 for RESTful services and security - roughly 20 hours in total.
Yes. The schedule is flexible and fully self-paced - you set your own deadlines on Coursera and can reset them if you fall behind. The 2-week estimate assumes 10 hours a week; spreading it over a month or two changes nothing about your access.
Access begins as soon as you enroll on Coursera, and the course is fully online with no scheduled sessions. What you can open depends on your enrollment type: auditing shows most of the course material, while graded assignments and the certificate are part of the paid experience. Coursera shows the options at checkout.
Coursera lets you audit much of the course material at no cost. Graded assignments and the shareable certificate are part of the paid certificate experience, and the price is shown at checkout on the Coursera course page. It can vary by region, and it is included with a Coursera Plus subscription.
Subscribing to the specialization gives you access to every course in it, and you earn a certificate for each course you complete - including this one. Your subscription runs until you cancel, and Coursera shows the current terms at checkout.
Coursera offers financial aid or a scholarship to learners who cannot afford the fee, for eligible learning programs. You apply through the link on the course or specialization page, and applications are reviewed by Coursera rather than by Board Infinity.
Yes. Completing the graded work earns a shareable certificate issued through Coursera, with its own verification link. Coursera's one-click button adds it to the Licenses & Certifications section of your LinkedIn profile, and you can attach it to a resume or CV or post it on social media. It is a course certificate, not a vendor certification.
Module one is a full pass over the structures Java interviews draw on: arrays, strings, the Collections Framework, ArrayList, LinkedList, Vector, Stack, Queue, HashMap, LinkedHashMap, TreeMap, HashSet, LinkedHashSet and TreeSet, each with a practice quiz. It is useful preparation. It is not a guarantee of interview outcomes, and it is not a bank of questions asked by any specific company.
The curriculum points at Java Backend Developer, Spring Boot Developer, Java Developer, Backend Engineer, Full Stack Java Developer and Software Development Engineer roles. This course strengthens the Java and backend half of those profiles; what you actually land depends on your wider experience, portfolio and interview performance, and no course on its own qualifies you for a senior position.
The course itself includes Coursera's discussion forums, and module three has a discussion prompt - Looking Ahead: Ready for Real Backend Systems? - alongside a course check-in plugin in module one. One-to-one mentoring is not part of the Coursera course; Board Infinity offers 1:1 coaching separately, as an optional add-on.
Mainly the sequence and the checking. Free material on each of these topics is excellent, but DSA playlists, Spring Boot tutorials, REST walkthroughs, Hibernate guides and Spring Security explainers are written separately, by different people, with different conventions. Here it runs in one order - Java data structures, then Spring, Spring Boot, REST, JPA and Hibernate, then security - with 13 practice quizzes, 3 graded assessments and a shareable certificate at the end.
Board Infinity is an independent education provider. This course is an independent educational resource developed by Board Infinity and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, sponsored by or officially associated with Oracle Corporation or its subsidiaries or affiliates. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
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