Software Design Patterns

CS 437 is about recognizing that most design problems you'll face have already been solved, and learning the vocabulary—creational, structural, behavioral patterns plus the SOLID principles underneath them—that lets you reach for the right solution instead of reinventing it badly. You'll refactor existing code, implement the classic Gang of Four patterns, mine patterns out of real open-source repositories, and ship a term project alongside a midterm. It sits downstream of CS 319 (software engineering), turning the "how do I structure this?" instinct from a vague feeling into something you can actually justify in a code review.