Become an iOS Developer
Nanodegree Program Syllabus
Build an App for the iPhone and iPad
Before You Start
The journey to becoming an iOS developer begins in your imagination—that moment when you first dream
up a great idea for an app. This Nanodegree program will prepare you to publish your first iOS app, whether
you’re already programming or just beginning. As you master the Swift programming language and create a
portfolio of apps to showcase your skills, you’ll benefit from detailed code reviews, valuable career advice,
and coaching from professional iOS developers.
Prerequisites:
● You are self-driven and motivated to learn. Participation in this program requires consistently
meeting deadlines and devoting at least 10 hours per week to your work.
● Collaboration with peers and interactive feedback are critical to the success of the program. You
must be a committed and contributing participant of the community.
● Access to a Mac computer running macOS 10.12.6 or later
Educational Objectives: Students will master writing iOS apps in Swift as they build six portfolio-worthy
apps to demonstrate their expertise as an iOS Developer.
Length of Program:* 7 months, at 10 hours of coursework per week.
Frequency of Classes: 2 Terms. The first term is 3 months long, and the second term is 4 months long.
Textbooks required: None.
Instructional Tools Available: Video lectures, in-classroom mentor for the first two projects, technical
knowledge base for content- and project-related questions, code reviews for project submissions.
*This is a self-paced program, and the length is an estimation of total hours the average student may take to
complete all required coursework, including lecture and project time. Actual hours may vary.
Support Options
We are here to support you every step of the way.
The Study Group feature found in the Udacity classroom helps student, like you, connect with their peers,
mentors, and project reviewers. Students can also seek help, network, and collaborate with their classmates
throughout their program!
The Knowledge platform helps students engage with their peers & mentors, ask and answer questions, and
overcome learning roadblocks quickly.
While going through the program if students experience any issues or have questions regarding our product
offerings we encourage them to send us an e-mail at ios-support@udacity.com
TERM 1
Learn Swift Programming (Optional)
You will complete a series of coding exercises to test your understanding of Swift. There will be exercises for
variables, strings, if (else-if and else) statements, and functions.
Supporting Lesson Content: Learn Swift Programming
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Variables and Types ➔ Declare variables and constant values with basic Swift types like
Bool, Int, Double, and Float
➔ Access and modify values from variables and constants
➔ Debug compiler issues related to the incorrect use of variables
and constants
➔ Use escape characters and string interpolation to format variable
and constant values within strings.
Operators and ➔ Compute new values using existing variables and constants.
expressions ➔ Use comparison operators to determine equality between two
values.
➔ Use boolean operators to build expressions that use truth values.
Control Flow ➔ Write boolean expressions that convey decision making logic
➔ Combine boolean expressions with logical operators
➔ Utilize boolean expressions alongside if, else-if, and else
statements to control the flow of your code's execution.
➔ Use switch statements to run code based on multiple values of a
single variable.
➔ Use for, while, and repeat while loops to control the flow of your
code's execution.
Functions ➔ Encapsulating existing code into reusable functions
➔ Properly define and call functions
➔ Specify function parameters and return types
➔ Differentiate between values that are in-scope and out-of-scope.
➔ Correctly use local and external parameters
➔ Identify parameter types and return types.
Structures and ➔ Group multiple values together into structs.
Enum ➔ Create instances of structs.
➔ Add functions (known as methods) to structs.
➔ Access properties and call methods of structs.
➔ Define computed properties that calculate their value based on
other values.
➔ Define enums and assign raw values to different cases.
➔ Use enums in conjunction with switch statements.
Optionals ➔ Understand when a value can be nil and when to use an optional
type.
➔ Declare variables and constants as explicit or implicitly
unwrapped optionals.
➔ Unwrap optionals both safely and unsafely.
➔ Use optional chaining and the nil coalescing operator to safely
access optional values.
Strings ➔ Define and manipulate Strings using their built-in properties and
methods
➔ Perform common String operations like concatenation and
finding substrings
➔ Perform common String manipulation such as adding, removing,
and replacing substrings.
Collections ➔ Store unordered data of the same type using arrays.
➔ Access and modify array contents.
➔ Store pairs of keys and values using dictionaries.
➔ Access and modify dictionary contents.
➔ Store unordered data of the same type using sets.
Object Oriented ➔ Understand the difference between value and reference types,
Programming and how this applies to structs and classes.
➔ Make one class inherit the properties and methods of another
class.
➔ Understand polymorphism - how one type can be substituted for
another type, and how this relates to inheritance.
➔ Write classes that conform to the same protocol.
➔ Add additional functionality to classes using extensions.
Project 1: Pitch Perfect
You will create an iPhone app that records audio and plays it back using various audio filters and modes
including adjusted rate and pitch, echo, and reverb.
Supporting Lesson Content: Intro to iOS App Development with Swift
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Introduction and ➔ Navigate the major components of the Xcode development
Xcode environment including the Navigator, Debug Area, and Utilities
➔ Create an Xcode project for a new iOS application
➔ Express the goals and architecture of the Model View Controller
(MVC) design pattern
AutoLayout and ➔ Use Storyboards, Xcode’s visual editing tool, to position, size, and
Buttons configure user interface objects
➔ Link user interface objects in a Storyboard to their corresponding
controller using IBOutlets
➔ Specify callback functions called IBActions that are invoked as a
result of user interaction
➔ Create AutoLayout constraints to ensure UI elements are sized
and positioned correctly regardless of device size and dimensions
ViewController and ➔ Configure application state at the appropriate customizations
Multiple Views points in a view’s lifecycle
➔ Create and navigate multiple-view applications using a
UINavigationController
➔ Manipulate user interface objects by utilizing IBOutlets and
IBActions
Delegation and ➔ Write protocols to express functionality that can be adopted by
Recording Swift classes
➔ Use protocols to delegate the responsibilities of a particular task
or set of tasks to another object
➔ Create and interface with an AVAudioRecorder to capture and save
audio with an iOS device’s microphone
➔ Use segues to transition between views in an application
Playback and ➔ Create and configure StackViews which contain and automatically
Effects configure layout constraints for its subviews
➔ Playback audio using objects defined in the AVFoundation
framework
➔ Apply audio playback effects using audio nodes exposed by a
custom interface
Suggested Electives ➔ Version Control with Git
➔ GitHub & Collaboration
Project 2: MemeMe 1.0: The Meme Editor
You will create a first version of the MemeMe app that enables a user to take a picture, and add text at the
top and bottom to form a meme. The user will be able to share the photo on Facebook and Twitter and also
by SMS or email.
Supporting Lesson Content: UIKit Fundamentals
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Outlets and Actions ➔ Understand how to connect outlets and actions using only code
and graphically using storyboard
➔ Use core UIKit classes like UIButton, UILabel and UISwitch.
➔ Practice debugging problems with IBOutlets and IBActions
View Presentations ➔ See how Apple distinguishes between modal presentation and
and Segues navigation.
➔ Learn how to present views modally.
➔ Use powerful UIKit classes like UIImagePickerController,
UIAlertController and UIActivityViewController.
The Delegate ➔ Learn how delegates make important connections between the
Pattern model, view, and controller.
➔ Implement UIKit components that make use of the delegate
pattern, UITextField and UITextFieldDelegate.
➔ Demonstrate your understanding by building a series of challenge
apps.
Project 3: MemeMe 2.0: The Final Product
You will create an app that enables a user to take a picture, and add text at the top and bottom to form a
meme. The user will be able to share the photo on Facebook and Twitter and also by SMS or email. Memes
will appear in a tab view with two tabs: a table view and a collection view.
Supporting Lesson Content: UIKit Fundamentals
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Table Views ➔ Learn the essential UITableViewDelegate and
UITableViewDatasource methods.
➔ Explore the code for several apps with tables, and then
implement your own UITableView.
➔ Practice manipulating table cells.
Navigation ➔ Learn how iOS uses navigation stacks to manage multiple views
in an app.
➔ Create the navigation that enables a user to tap a row of a table
and view the details of an item.
➔ Learn navigation classes like UINavigationControll and
UIBarButtonItem.
Suggested Electives ➔ AutoLayout
TERM 2
Project 4: On the Map
You will create an app with a map that shows information posted by other students. The map will contain
pins that show the location where other students have reported studying. By tapping on the pin users can
see a URL for something the student finds interesting. The user will be able to add their own data by posting
a string that can be reverse geocoded to a location, and a URL.
Supporting Lesson Content: Network Requests and GCD
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Making a Network ➔ Express the flow of data from a client to a server when a client
Request makes an HTTP request
➔ Create a network request in Swift and receive and consume a
data response
➔ Switch execution from a background thread to a (main)
foreground thread to avoid blocking an app’s UI
➔ Abide by Apple’s App Transport Security protocol to ensure
user safety when access data over a network
➔ Download and display an image using a simple network request
Using Web Services ➔ Make requests to a web service (API) using documented
and APIs endpoints and parameters
➔ Make a GET request to access data stored on a remote server
➔ Use a web service to download JSON data
➔ Convert raw byte data into JSON-like data that can be
consumed by an app
Problem Set: JSON ➔ Extract values from JSON objects and arrays
Parsing ➔ Access data from a locally defined JSON file
Chaining ➔ Perform multiple network requests in sequence using callbacks
Asynchronous and closures
Requests
Authenticating ➔ Perform an authorization flow that mimics OAuth
Requests ➔ Authenticate a network request using tokens
➔ Secure network requests by ensuring the use of HTTPS
➔ Make a HTTP POST request to modify data stored by a remote
server
Improving Networking ➔ Refactor an existing application to separate network
with MVC functionality into its correct role within the MVC design pattern
➔ Create a usable interface that controllers can use to make
network requests
Closures Reloaded ➔ Create closures by assigning functions to a constant or variable
➔ Specify closure (function) types for use as values and
parameters
➔ Define functions which accept closure parameters
➔ Use type aliasing to simplify the use of complex types
➔ Define and use functions within functions
GCD and Queues ➔ Define and utilize queues for grouping related processes
➔ Run code asynchronously using Grand Central Dispatch
➔ Avoid common pitfalls by ensuring the use of the main thread
for situations involving UIKit and CoreData
Backgrounding ➔ Download large files from the network synchronously.
Lengthy Tasks ➔ Download large files from the network asynchronously.
➔ Use completion handlers to update the user interface after a
network request.
Suggested Electives ➔ iOS Debugging
Project 5: Virtual Tourist
You will create an app that downloads and stores images from Flickr. The app will allow users to drop pins
on a map, as if they were stops on a tour. Users will then be able to download pictures for the location and
persist both the pictures, and the association of the pictures with the pin.
Supporting Lesson Content: Data Persistence
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Simple Persistence ➔ Learn about simple persistence and how to save small pieces of
data.
➔ How to set user preferences, using NSUserDefaults.
➔ Practice setting simple preferences to an existing app.
iOS File System and ➔ Learn about the iOS File System, the “sandbox”.
Sandboxing ➔ See how to access these files using NSFileManager.
➔ Use the file manager to save and read a file.
Introducing Core Data ➔ Meet Core Data, Apple’s framework for managing the data layer.
➔ Explore what a data layer is.
➔ Convert a non-Core Data note-taking app to have a Core Data
model.
The Core Data Stack ➔ Set up the classes we need to get Core Data up and running.
➔ Use the stack to manage model object creation and deletion.
➔ Persist changes so that data stays put when you restart the app or
device.
Simpler Code with ➔ Enable user interfaces to reactively update whenever the model
Core Data changes.
➔ Set up an NSFetchedResultsController to observe data changes
and notify the UI.
➔ Modify a table view to work with a fetched results controller as its
data source.
➔ Turn on caching to reduce how often apps ask the store for data.
Rounding Out Core ➔ Update the data model and safely migrate user data between
Data versions.
➔ Work with multiple managed object contexts for different types of
tasks.
➔ Keep the user interface responsive by sending lengthy tasks to a
background queue.
Selective Electives ➔ Objective-C for Swift Developers
◆ Project 0-C: Interoperability Problem Set (Optional)
➔ Firebase in a Weekend
➔ Firebase Analytics
Project 6: You Decide!
This is your chance to let your iOS Developer skills shine! For this final project, you'll design your own iOS
app, taking the design from drawing board to App Store.
Supporting Lesson Content: Final Project
Lesson Title Learning Outcomes
Research ➔ Brainstorm app ideas and decide on an app and feature
list that is realistic and exciting
➔ Sketch UI storyboards and outline expected app use cases
and flows
➔ Research and experiment with APIs, web services, and
libraries that could be useful for an app idea
Build ➔ Adhere to a proven development process to create quality
iPhone and iPad apps.
➔ Build an app and collect user feedback
➔ Fix crashes and bugs to improve the quality of an app
Reflect ➔ Reflect on development, what has been learned, and what
should change for future development
➔ Monitor App Store feedback
Selective Electives ➔ Technical Interview Prep
➔ Mobile Design Patterns
