Claude Certified Developer (CCDV-F) Exam Prep & AI Agents

# Build Claude AI Agents with API, Agent SDK, MCP, Tools, Security & Multi-Agent Workflows
What you'll learn

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Prepare for the Claude Certified Developer - Foundations (CCDV-F) certification while building real-world Claude AI agents.
Understand the CCDV-F exam concepts and apply them through hands-on coding and practical projects.
Build AI agents from scratch using the Claude Messages API and understand the complete agentic loop.
Build and integrate custom tools and MCP servers to extend Claude agents with real-world capabilities.
Master the Claude Agent SDK, including agent configuration, built-in tools, custom tools, and agent workflows.
Implement hooks, guardrails, and security techniques to defend agents against dangerous actions and prompt injection.
Work with agent memory, sessions, context management, resume, fork, and compaction.
Build reliable agents using structured outputs, JSON schemas, validation, and structured tool results.
Strengthen your CCDV-F exam readiness through practical examples, exam-focused takeaways, and a complete real-world Repo & PR Review Agent project.
Requirements

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Basic Git and GitHub knowledge is helpful for following the Repo & PR Review Agent project.
No previous experience with Claude Agent SDK is required.
No advanced AI or machine learning background is required.
Description

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Prepare for the Claude Certified Developer - Foundations (CCDV-F) exam while building a real-world Claude AI agent from scratch.
This is a hands-on, build-along course that combines CCDV-F exam preparation with practical Claude agent development. Instead of learning isolated concepts or memorizing exam topics, you will build one continuously evolving Repo & Pull Request Review Agent and add new capabilities to it throughout the course.
The course takes you from the raw Claude Messages API all the way to the Claude Agent SDK, custom tools, MCP, hooks and security, subagents, memory and sessions, structured outputs, and Claude Agent Skills. Each section builds on the previous one, giving you both the practical implementation experience and the conceptual understanding needed for the CCDV-F exam.
What You Will Build
You will build a complete Repo & Pull Request Review Agent that evolves throughout the course.
You start by building a tool-using agent directly with the raw Claude Messages API. You will implement the agentic loop yourself, define tools using JSON, handle tool calls and tool results, understand message ordering, work with stop_reason, and see why the raw Messages API is stateless.
You then rebuild the same agent using the Claude Agent SDK. You will learn how query() works, understand the SDK's message types and ClaudeAgentOptions, explore built-in tools, and compare the SDK implementation with the hand-built API implementation.
From there, the agent grows layer by layer.
Custom Tools & MCP
Build a real custom tool and connect it to your agent using the Agent SDK's MCP capabilities. You will learn the core components of custom tools, including the tool name, Description

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, input schema, and handler.
Hooks, Guardrails & Security
Add practical security controls to the agent using Claude Agent SDK hooks. You will work with dangerous-command blocking, tool-output handling, evidence Requirements

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, and prompt-injection defense, including indirect prompt injection from untrusted content.
Subagents & Multi-Agent Orchestration
Transform the agent into a coordinator with specialized subagents. You will learn about isolated context, specialized instructions, tool restrictions, parallel work, and the architectural trade-offs involved in multi-agent systems.
Agent Memory, Sessions & Context
Learn the different concepts commonly described as agent memory, including CLAUDE, the memory tool, sessions, resume, fork, and context compaction. You will make the agent capable of continuing work across sessions.
Structured Outputs
Build validated tools and structured workflows that reduce unreliable free-text output. You will work with schemas, validation, structured findings, and reliable final review generation.
Claude Agent Skills
Create reusable SKILL files and chain multiple skills together so the agent can transform a completed review into a summary and then into a release note.
MCP in Depth
Connect your agent to an external MCP server and build your own standalone MCP server using the MCP Python SDK. You will understand how MCP extends agent capabilities and how standalone MCP servers can be used across MCP-compatible clients.
Claude Agent Architecture
Before starting the hands-on build, you will also learn the three major ways of building Claude agents
Raw Messages API - you control the agent loop.
Claude Agent SDK - the SDK manages the agent loop.
Managed Agents - Anthropic manages the runtime.
You will understand the differences between these approaches, what each layer provides, and how to think about choosing the right architecture.
What You Will Learn

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Build a tool-using Claude agent from scratch using the raw Messages API.
Understand the complete agentic loop and Claude API mechanics.
Work with tool definitions, tool calls, tool results, messages, and stop reasons.
Build and configure agents with the Claude Agent SDK.
Create and integrate custom tools.
Understand and build MCP integrations and standalone MCP servers.
Implement hooks, guardrails, and security controls.
Defend agents against direct and indirect prompt injection.
Design and orchestrate specialized subagents.
Work with agent memory, sessions, resume, fork, and context compaction.
Build structured, validated agent outputs.
Create and chain reusable Claude Agent Skills.
Understand the differences between the raw API, Agent SDK, and Managed Agents approaches.
Apply these concepts to a complete real-world Repo & Pull Request Review Agent.
CCDV-F Exam Preparation
The course is designed around the published Claude Certified Developer - Foundations (CCDV-F) exam blueprint and includes exam-focused takeaways throughout the build.
Topics covered across the course include
Agent Architecture
Agent Construction with Claude
Agent Patterns and Frameworks
Claude API Mechanics
Claude Application Design
Tools and MCPs
Claude Hooks
Guardrails and Safe Deployment
AI Application Security
Agentic Customization
Claude Code Operation
Each relevant section connects the practical implementation back to the corresponding exam concepts, so you learn the material by building and applying it rather than relying only on memorization.
Who this course is for

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Developers preparing for the Claude Certified Developer - Foundations (CCDV-F) certification.
Python developers who want to learn how to build real-world AI agents with Claude.
Software engineers who want hands-on experience with the Claude Messages API and Claude Agent SDK.
AI developers who want to understand agentic loops, tools, MCP, hooks, guardrails, and agent architecture.
Developers who want to learn subagents and multi-agent orchestration through practical projects.
Engineers who want to build agents with memory, sessions, context management, structured outputs, and Skills.
Developers who want practical experience building and extending Claude-powered applications.
Professionals who want to strengthen both their Claude development skills and CCDV-F exam knowledge.
Students who prefer learning through real code, debugging, and hands-on projects instead of theory-only lectures.
Anyone who wants to prepare for the CCDV-F exam while building a complete Repo & PR Review Agent step by step.
Homepage

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