1.2 Study Map
Key Takeaways
- Start with simple Claude API workflows before adding autonomous agents.
- Practice real Claude Code and MCP setup, not just definitions.
- Learn how to evaluate reliability, cost, latency, and safety trade-offs.
- Build small projects that force schema, tool, and retrieval decisions.
Build a Practical Prep Plan
The fastest way to learn Claude architecture is to build small production-style systems. Do not begin with a large autonomous agent. Start with a single call, add retrieval, add structured output, then add tools and evaluation only when the use case needs them.
Four-Week Foundation Plan
| Week | Focus | Deliverable |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | API and prompts | Reliable single-call workflow |
| 2 | Tools and schemas | Validated structured output |
| 3 | MCP and Claude Code | Local integration workflow |
| 4 | Agents and reliability | Evaluated agent prototype |
Evidence of Readiness
You should be able to explain why a workflow is safer than an agent for predictable tasks, when routing beats prompt chaining, how MCP exposes external context, why least privilege matters for tools, and how evals catch regressions before production users do.
Practice Project Ideas
Build a support triage router, a document Q&A flow with citations, a tool-calling data lookup, and a small agent with bounded turns. For each project, write a short design note explaining the pattern choice, tool permissions, validation method, and fallback behavior. That habit mirrors architecture exam reasoning.
What is the best early project for CCA-F preparation?