## Your Guide to Cyfrin Updraft Career Tracks Welcome to the next step in your Web3 journey. Now that you've completed the **Blockchain Basics** course, you're ready to choose a specialized learning path. On Cyfrin Updraft, we've designed Career Tracks—curated collections of courses—to provide a clear, step-by-step roadmap toward your specific career goals. Whether you're an aspiring developer, a future security auditor, or a non-technical professional looking to deepen your expertise, this guide will help you select the right track. You can explore all available options by visiting the "Career Tracks" section in the top navigation bar of the Updraft platform. ### Learning Paths for Non-Technical Professionals If your goal isn't to become a programmer but to excel in a role like sales, marketing, education, or management within the Web3 space, we have two excellent paths for you. #### The Blockchain Foundations Track This is the most direct and logical next step after completing Blockchain Basics. This track solidifies your foundational knowledge and introduces you to one of the most critical technologies in the ecosystem: Chainlink. * **Included Courses:** * **Blockchain Basics:** The course you have just completed. * **Chainlink Fundamentals:** This is a comprehensive, text-based course that provides a deep understanding of Chainlink's technology and services. While it is designed for a non-technical audience, please note that it contains an *optional* programming section that you can skip. This course is essential for anyone aiming to become an expert on Chainlink. #### Fundamentals of Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) We highly recommend this standalone course for everyone, regardless of their technical background. Zero-Knowledge technology is a significant and rapidly growing trend, and understanding its fundamentals is invaluable. * **Course:** `Fundamentals of Zero--Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs)` * **Key Features:** This course is **completely non-technical** and contains no coding. It provides a clear introduction to what ZKPs are, why they are essential for privacy and scalability, and how they function in practice. Taking this course will help you stay current with industry conversations and understand the hype surrounding ZK technology. ### Learning Paths for Developers If you are ready to start building on the blockchain, we have several technical tracks designed to make you a production-ready developer. #### Recommended Path: Solidity Smart Contract Developer This is our primary and most recommended track for anyone who wants to become a blockchain developer. It provides the essential skills to build, test, and deploy smart contracts on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM). * **Prerequisite:** Completion of the **Blockchain Basics** course. * **Track Curriculum (in order):** 1. **Solidity Smart Contract Development (Beginner):** Your foundational programming course for learning the Solidity language from the ground up. 2. **Foundry Fundamentals (Intermediate):** Learn to use Foundry, the industry-standard toolkit for efficient and robust smart contract development and testing. 3. **Advanced Foundry (Advanced):** Deepen your expertise by mastering complex concepts and advanced techniques within the Foundry framework. Upon completion, you will have the skills and confidence of a professional Solidity developer. #### Alternative Path: Vyper Smart Contract Developer If you have a background in Python, this track is an excellent alternative. Vyper is a Pythonic smart contract language that compiles to EVM bytecode, offering a familiar syntax for Python developers. #### Advanced Specializations After mastering the core **Solidity Smart Contract Developer** track, you can specialize further to target high-demand roles within the industry. Consider these advanced tracks as your next step: * **Smart Contract Security Auditor:** Learn to think like a hacker to find and mitigate vulnerabilities in smart contracts. This track is for those who want to specialize in Web3 security. * **DeFi Developer:** Dive into the world of decentralized finance. This track covers the protocols and patterns needed to build DeFi applications like those on Uniswap and Curve. * **Zero Knowledge (ZK) Developer:** For those ready for a challenge, this advanced track builds on your Solidity knowledge. It includes the technical course **Noir Programming and ZK Circuits**, preparing you to work with cutting-edge privacy and scaling solutions. * **Rust Programming Basics:** If you're interested in ecosystems beyond the EVM, such as Solana, this standalone course provides a solid foundation in the Rust programming language. ### Your Recommended Roadmap Summarized To make your choice simple, follow this guide: * **If you want to be a DEVELOPER:** 1. Begin with the **Solidity Smart Contract Developer** track. 2. After completion, choose a specialization: **Smart Contract Security Auditor**, **DeFi Developer**, or **Zero Knowledge (ZK) Developer**. * **If you are NON-TECHNICAL:** 1. Enroll in the **Blockchain Foundations** track and take the **Chainlink Fundamentals** course (you can skip the optional coding section). 2. Complete the **Fundamentals of Zero-Knowledge Proofs** course to round out your knowledge. If you still have questions about which path is right for you, please don't hesitate to ask for guidance in the Cyfrin Discord server or by starting a discussion on the Updraft platform. We are here to support your learning journey.