When I started learning Django framework to develop web applications, it was hard for me. Because Django is a complex Python backend framework and there are numerous tutorials available. It took me so much time to learn Django, because I did not know where to begin and how to start. In this tutorial, I will give you the best roadmap to learn Django as a beginner and become an advanced Python backend developer.
Why to Learn Django Framework
Nowadays Python has gained so much popularity. With Python, you can do almost all kinds of development jobs. For example, If you want to deal with data, especially data science, then Python is the best option. Currently, most web applications are trying to leverage user data to enhance their business and attract more users.
This is the reason several prominent websites and platforms like Instagram, Pinterest, The Washington Post, etc. use Django for various parts of their systems.
Is Django still relevant 2024? Absolutely. As per the StackOverflow survey, Django is the 6th popular web framework among beginner code learners (react and Node.js is on top).
Is it difficult to learn Django?
Learning Django, like any other skill, takes time. You won’t become a Django expert overnight. It’s completely okay to spend time to understand how all the parts of Django communicate together. With practice, you will start to see how it all works.
When I started learning Django, I spent lots of time just to understand how things are connected to each other. For example in Djanog, there are concepts called model, view, and template ( MVT ). How these things are connected? How to connect HTML element with a custom Python function in Django?
These are the small small things you need to understand clearly. Otherwise, if you just start to develop some web application project using Django framework( like the way I started learning), trust me you will end up spending lots of time not learning anything.
So I will suggest you just start from beginning. This is the reason I am writing this article to share with you the best learning path or roadmap to learn Django from scratch. Once you learn the basics then only you should move on to build some real-time projects, but not before that.
Roadmap to Learn Django
So now you have an idea why to learn the Django framework. Now let me give you the best roadmap to learn Django framework. These are the steps that helped me to understand the complete picture of Django, I think this will also help you to learn Django quickly and easily.
I will break the entire roadmap into some steps so that you can break your learning path easily to learn Django web framework of Python. By saying learning path I meant to say how much time you want to dedicate to a certain step. The more time you put in, the more quickly you will learn.
Knowledge in Python
Now the question is How much Python is required to learn Django? To learn Django you must have basic knowledge of Python. Django operates in very organized manner. So you should also have knowledge of functional programming and the Object-oriented Programming concept of Python.
If you want to make a website using Python, you don’t need to be a Python expert. Just understanding the basics of programming is enough. You don’t have to wait until you become an expert Python coder.
Remember, creating websites is not just about coding. It’s also about solving real problems, making user-friendly websites, and meeting your visitors needs.
As you start, you can learn and use advanced Python ideas step by step, depending on what your website needs. With each new thing you try or problem you solve, you’ll get better.
So, don’t worry about being an expert. Keep learning, and your skills will improve with every bit of code you write.
If you are new to Python and want to learn it by reading books, then you can read this article: 5 Best Books for Learning Python. If you like to learn Python by taking a course, then I will suggest you to take this Udemy course: Learn Python in 100 Days of Coding.
Setup Environment
While learning Python you may prefer to use Jupyter Notebook like me. But to develop a full-stack application with this Django framework, you need to use a proper Python IDE.
There are so many Python IDEs out there that you can use freely like Visual Studio Code, PyCharm, Sublime Text, Spyder, etc. I personally like Pycharm. That is the code editor IDE I use day to day for developing any large project.
Learn Frontent Technologies
Before you start learning Django, you must have some knowledge of frontend languages like HTML, CSS and JavaScript. I am not saying you need to have in-depth knowledge of those languages.
You just need to know the fundamentals concepts of various HTML elements. So that while developing any application, you will know what you need to search on Google. You can simply search on Google, copy the relevant code snippet, and paste it into the appropriate section of your code.
Learn Database Management of Django
Django is a MVT (Model View Template) framework. So to learn Django completely you must have clear concept of these three parts. First Part is the Model.
The Model represents the data structure and database schema of your application. In this Model only, you need to write all your Python codes in class and functional mode to connect and fetch data from databases.
In this model only you need to handle all your database operations like creating, retrieving, updating, deleting data, etc. This kind of configuration of the Django framework helps us simplify the database underneath, so you can work with data without having to write complex SQL queries.
Now there are various popular databases out there like in structured database (RDB: Relational Database): PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, and in unstructured databases (NoSQL) MongoDB, Redis. Which one you should learn?
If you are starting backend development or databases then I will suggest you to start with SQLite. Because it is easy to learn and integrate with Python.
Learn Views and URLs of Django
View is the most important component of the Django framework. It acts like a connection bridge between the Model (database) and the Template (frontend). Let’s say you clicked a button on the UI (frontend) of your application and the job you need to perform after clicking the button is to display some data from the databases.
In this case, Template file (UI or frontend file) will ask the View that a user clicked this button, what to do. Within the View, you are required to define the functions and necessary logic.
In this example, you have to write a function to ask Model that I need this data please provide it. Now Model will share the data information with View. Then finally View will reply to the frontend that user clicked that button then show him this data.
Learn Django Templates
The template is nothing but a fancy name of frontend development in Django. Here you need to write HTML, CSS, and JavaScript codes to make the user interface of your web application. You need to know the trick how to connect your frontend part with View component of Django. That’s it, nothing else.
So as I said in the last example that once a button is clicked, Template will fetch the data from Model via View component. You should know how to connect View component with your frontend (UI) component.
So in short Templates define how the data from the model is to be presented to the user. Django’s template language allows you to insert dynamic data from the view into HTML templates, creating dynamic web pages.
Django Admin Panel
Once you learned all of those three components, finally you need to learn Django Admin. It is like a special control panel for your website. It’s a part of the Django web framework that allows you to manage your website’s content and data without writing a lot of code.
One of the key strengths of Django is its built-in admin panel. What’s remarkable is that you don’t have to write a single line of code to create this admin interface. Django offers it right out of the box, and it serves as a powerful tool for effortlessly managing the content of your website.
Real-World Projects with Django
Once you feel comfortable with each component of Django framework, then the last step of this roadmap would be to start doing some projects. If you are just starting, I will suggest you to do some simple Django projects like, showing student information, employee details, login registration with django, etc. Then gradually you will gain confidence and then can go for some advanced projects like making a blog with Django, make e-commerce website etc.
FAQs
Before or after reading this article, some questions may be poking in your mind. Let me answer those in this frequently asked questions section.
Is Django enough to get a backend developer job?
No only Django is not enough to get a backend developer job. Along with Django, you must know Database, some knowledge in frontend technologies like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, etc. Then only you can face backend developer interviews.
What is the salary of Django developer?
As per Glassdoor, the average salary of a Django backend developer is ₹4,87,500. The range of salary is ₹3L – ₹6L/yr. But it completely depends on your experience and the knowledge you have.
I know some people who is having around 5 years of experience in Backend development and getting around 12 Lac per annum. It’s completely depend you how you prepare yourself and your salary negotiation skill.
Is Django easier than Nodejs or Java?
Different languages have some easy part and some harder part. What I felt is that if you already know C++ or Java then Nodejs will be easy to learn for you.
But if you are like me who does not know anything about Java, then I should say that Django will be easier to learn for you than Nodejs or any other backend framework.
What is the hardest part of Django?
In my opinion hardest part of Django is to learn how things are connected. You already know that in Django there are three components: Model, View and Template.
The difficult part of Django is know how these components are interelated and connected to each other. Once you understand this, everything in Django will be smooth for you.
What is the fastest way to learn Django?
To learn Django faster, I would say go with basics as I said in the Roadmap section. First you clear your basics then try to do some real-time projects.
Now question is where to learn those basics. It varies person to person. Some may like reading books, some people love to learn from blogs and someone prefer taking online courses or Youtube videos.
I personally like reading books and blogs. Besause I prefer to implement thing paralally while learning something. In courses they will show you the codes but you need to write those by yourself, it takes hours to complete any topic understanding deeply.
How Much Time Will It Take to Learn Django?
To become an expert Django backend developer, it may take around 6 months for doing some basic to advance projects. But to learn only basics I would say one to four week that’s what you need.
Keep Learning
In this article, I just shared my experience, the way or roadmap I followed for learning Python Djnago framework at my initial days of Django learning. If you are like me who want to know everything what is happening at the background and want to learn and implement at the same time then you should love the way I shared in this tutorial.
This is it for this article. If you have any comments or suggestions regarding this article, please let me know in the comment section below.
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Hi there, I’m Anindya Naskar, Data Science Engineer. I created this website to show you what I believe is the best possible way to get your start in the field of Data Science.