Work in Progress — This page is under development. Details may change and the weekly schedule is tentative.
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CS 7180: Vibe Coding

AI-Assisted Software Engineering

Master AI-assisted development for Silicon Valley. Build production apps with AI—the right way.

Spring 2026Tue/Thu 3:00-4:40 PM PSTOakland CampusHybrid: In-Person + Zoom

Course Overview

This course trains master's level computer science students to become Silicon Valley-ready software engineers in the age of AI. Students will master AI-assisted development tools while maintaining professional engineering standards, learning to build high-quality, production-ready full-stack applications.

Building successful software with AI requires more than good prompting—it demands understanding how Large Language Models work, when to use which tools, how to evaluate AI-generated code systematically, and how to integrate AI into professional development workflows.

Hybrid Format: This course is offered in-person at Oakland Campus and via Zoom for remote students. The instructor has extensive experience teaching remotely, ensuring a great experience for all students regardless of location.

Why This Course?

  • Industry-Relevant: Tools and practices used in top tech companies
  • Portfolio-Focused: Build 3 production-ready applications
  • Comprehensive: LLM fundamentals, prompt engineering, evals, TDD, CI/CD
  • Balanced: Learn AI-assisted coding AND prove you can code without AI
  • Future-Proof: Master the workflow, not just current tools
Instructor

John Alexis Guerra Gómez

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Office Hours

By appointment via Slack

The Three AI Modalities

Students will master three distinct AI coding paradigms:

Modality 1: Claude Web

Best for: Architecture planning, learning, complex problem-solving

Skills: Claude Projects, artifacts, conversational iteration

Modality 2: Cursor IDE

Best for: Professional development, production code, daily workflow

Skills: Tab autocomplete, Composer, .cursorrules, YOLO mode

Modality 3: Claude Code

Best for: Automation, multi-file refactoring, DevOps

Skills: Terminal workflows, autonomous agents, script automation

Portfolio Projects

All projects are open topic—you choose what to build after getting instructor approval.

Project 1: Personal Utility App

Build a personal utility application that solves a real problem validated through Mom Test interviews.

  • 5+ user stories with CRUD operations
  • Basic test suite (50%+ coverage)
  • GitHub Actions CI pipeline
  • Deployed and publicly accessible
15% of gradeDue Week 6
Project 2: Full-Stack Application

Complete full-stack application using multiple AI modalities, Agile practices, TDD, and production-grade CI/CD.

  • User authentication (JWT/OAuth)
  • Test-Driven Development (80%+ coverage)
  • Comprehensive evaluation suite
  • 2 documented Agile sprints
20% of gradeDue Week 11
Project 3: Team Application

Team of 2-3 building complex, production-grade application with advanced AI techniques.

  • Parallel agentic programming
  • LLM-as-judge evaluation system
  • Enterprise CI/CD & monitoring
  • Security audit passed
20% of gradeDue Week 15

Weekly Schedule

Schedule is tentative and subject to change.

Week Topics
1 Introduction, Mom Test, Design Thinking, LLM Fundamentals
2 Modality 1: Claude Web, Requirements Gathering
3 Prompt Engineering Basics
4 Modality 2: Cursor IDE, TDD Introduction
5 Cursor Advanced, CI/CD Fundamentals
6 Project 1 Demos, Modality 3: Claude Code
7 Advanced Prompt Engineering
8 Context Engineering
9 Evaluations (Evals) Part 1
10 TDD + CI/CD Integration, Midterm: No-AI Challenge
11 Project 2 Demos, Agile/Scrum with AI
12 Parallel Agentic Programming
13 Advanced Full-Stack Patterns
14 Production Best Practices, Portfolio Building
15 Demo Day - Final Project Presentations

Grading

Component %
Participation 20%
Homeworks (6 assignments) 25%
Projects (3 major) 55%

Key Topics

  • LLM Fundamentals & Limitations
  • Multi-Modal AI Development
  • Prompt & Context Engineering
  • Evaluation Systems (Evals)
  • Test-Driven Development with AI
  • Professional CI/CD Pipelines
  • Agile Practices with AI
  • Parallel Agentic Programming

Technologies & Tools

Tech Stack
React / Next.jsNode.js / ExpressPostgreSQL / MongoDBJest / VitestPlaywright / CypressGitHub ActionsTailwindCSSTypeScript
Required Tools
  • Cursor IDE (free for 1 year with student account)
  • Claude.ai account (Pro recommended $20/month)
  • GitHub account
  • Node.js 18+ and npm
  • Git

Required Books

  • The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick
  • Designing for Growth by Liedtka & Ogilvie
  • Scrum by Jeff Sutherland

Resources

Communication

Slack is the main communication channel for this course. Canvas is used for assignment submissions and grades.

This course requires AI tool use but with strict guidelines: document all AI usage, understand all code submitted, never commit code you cannot explain. The Midterm No-AI Challenge tests fundamental programming ability.

CS 7180: Special Topics in AI | Northeastern University Oakland | Spring 2026
Vibe Coded with ❤️ by John