iSAQB® Foundation Level Certification (CPSA-F)

This part builds a shared understanding of what software architecture is and which role you take in it.

• Recognised definitions, goals and benefits of software architecture
• Tasks and responsibilities of architects inside the team
• Where architecture work sits in the development process

Here you work out where architecture takes its input from, before the first structure exists.

• Telling functional requirements and quality goals apart, and prioritising them
• Capturing constraints and influencing factors from the project context
• Identifying stakeholders and what they expect
• Sharpening requirements until they can carry design decisions

The longest part of the curriculum: turning requirements into structures that hold.

• Decomposing systems into building blocks and designing their interfaces
• Applying design principles, patterns and architecture styles deliberately
• Planning cross-cutting concerns such as persistence, security and error handling
• Justifying decisions together with their alternatives and consequences

An architecture only works when other people understand it, so this part practises making it visible.

• Producing building-block, runtime and deployment views
• Choosing notations and documentation structures that fit the audience
• Recording architecture decisions so they stay traceable
• Explaining designs to technical and non-technical stakeholders

You check whether an architecture really carries its quality goals.

• Applying scenario-based assessment methods
• Spotting risks and weak points in a design
• Judging quality attributes with suitable metrics

Examples make architecture knowledge tangible and bridge it into your daily work.

• Analysing real architectures and the design decisions behind them
• Following the link between requirements and the chosen solution
• Carrying the patterns into your own systems