Learn more about Zero to Haskell

Haskell is the foundational coding language that Plutus (the smart contract language for Cardano) was developed from. Plutus uses the base language of Haskell to create high assurance code which eliminates typical object orientated code variables that cause errors. 

Haskell is a functional programming language used to create high assurance code. High assurance code is used in critical systems such as financial systems, aerospace, and medical where object-oriented programming languages (such as solidity, C#, java, etc) create instances that can cause unforeseen errors. The idea to move fast and break things works in most tech but within the financial industry, high assurance code is king.

This course is designed for novice programmers to learn Haskell as their first programming language. The course design is made to give students who attend each class the basic knowledge they need in order to be successful in the Plutus Pioneer Program. This course will give you the base knowledge needed to feel comfortable working with the Plutus APIs and documentation.

Zero to Haskell was designed by a Plutus Pioneer graduate who understands the specific struggles of learning Haskell as a first programming language - something the teacher of the course experienced. The coursework material covers subject matter that the IOHK (IOG) Plutus Pioneer team determined is excellent pre-requisite knowledge needed to be successful in the Plutus Pioneer Program.

Zero to Haskell guarantees acceptance into the Plutus Pioneer Program. All students who sign up will have forever access to the program and the teacher. This allows students to retake the course to shore up deficiencies in order to gain the base knowledge of Haskell required to be a successful Plutus Pioneer. This access includes past, present, and future course video access as well as access to the course teacher. 

Yes, Zero to Haskell will provide a certification of completion to all those who pass the course. 

Students are expected to attend or watch every class and lab session (2 per week for 10 weeks). While attending the class is critical, work at home is also key to acquire the necessary foundation for learning Haskell and Plutus. This accelerated program will require focused efforts from students but the reward will be worth it. Attending lab sessions and classes is critical not just for learning new concepts but also for helping you with exercises you may have struggled with during the week.

The final will be a developer test where you will be able to showcase your newly acquired skills by creating your very own Haskell program in the form of a game. 

Zero to Haskell is designed for students with zero previous knowledge of programming. No prerequisites are required.

Haskell is a programming language that is traditionally difficult for novice programmers to learn. The reason for the difficulty is that almost all open-source knowledge centers reference other programming languages to teach Haskell. Also, the concepts behind Haskell can be fairly abstract and having someone to explain them with live feedback and plain words can be the determining factor for success.

This course covers several Haskell subjects designated by IOHK (IOG) as critical for learning Plutus as well as Haskell developer environment set up. 

Specifically, Zero to Haskell covers: 

1. Basic Haskell syntax – ADT, type classes, function composition, higher order functions

2. Common techniques – recursion, folding, mapping

3. Commonly used libraries – MTL, containers, bytestrings, etc

4. Key concepts – funtor, applicative, monad, asynchronous programming via async package 

Zero to Haskell will provide developer environment setup instructions. We will also provide a discord channel for all students to work together, ask questions, and complete course work together. Students will also have direct access to the teacher via email, discord, and the live class and lab sessions.

Zero to Haskell will be taught in English but the teacher of the course also speaks Spanish and will be able to communicate effectively in that language. 

Cardano is one of the most trusted and robust blockchain ecosystems in the world. The main pain point within the Cardano ecosystem is a lack of Plutus developers. Zero to Haskell is here to fill that void. The Cardano ecosystem is expected to grow by 100x over the next decade, but the ecosystem will need Plutus developers. Zero to Haskell is the first step for you to gain the necessary education and experience to build a future career in the Cardano ecosystem. We guarantee that you will be accepted into the Plutus Pioneer Program to establish a future career within the Cardano ecosystem. Students have forever access to recorded material to continue to hone in their base knowledge deficiencies to shore up their Plutus skill base.

We currently accept several types of payments such as credit card, BTC, and ETH and we plan on accepting ada in the near future.

The Cardano ecosystem is one of the fastest growing crypto communities in the world and has been labeled consistently as one of the most developed ecosystems. But the major pain point for startups within Cardano is finding Plutus programmers to build applications and write smart contracts. Learning Haskell now and then Plutus will put you in a position to become an industry leader in the near future.

While Zero to Haskell is aimed at giving students the base knowledge to get into the official Plutus Pioneer Program, success within the Plutus Pioneer Programmer is critical. Plutus developers can expect to make in excess of $100k in the USA. This amount varies based on the company, your location, and experience. 

Yes. Seasoned programmers are encouraged to take this course as well. While there may be some redundancy in the dev environment setup - the base course work is critical for anyone who doesn’t already know Haskell. Even experienced developers should start the course from the beginning.