Core Foundations of PHP
History and role of PHP in web development
Setting up environment (XAMPP, WAMP, MAMP, Docker)
PHP syntax, variables, constants, and data types
Control structures (if-else, switch, loops)
Functions (built-in and user-defined)
Error handling and debugging basics
Working with Data
Strings, arrays, and array manipulation
Superglobals ($_GET, $_POST, $_SESSION, $_COOKIE)
File handling (reading/writing files)
Handling forms and user input
Working with JSON and XML
Object-Oriented PHP
Classes, objects, properties, and methods
Constructors, destructors, and access modifiers
Inheritance, abstraction, and interfaces
Traits and namespaces
Magic methods (__get, __set, __call, etc.)
Autoloading and PSR standards
Database Integration
Introduction to MySQL and relational databases
PDO and MySQLi
Prepared statements and SQL injection prevention
CRUD operations
Database design and normalization
Using ORM tools (Doctrine, Eloquent in Laravel)
Advanced PHP Concepts
Sessions and cookies management
File uploads and handling
Error and exception handling
Regular expressions in PHP
Working with APIs (REST, SOAP)
Dependency management with Composer
Security in PHP
Input validation and sanitization
Password hashing and encryption
CSRF and XSS prevention
SQL injection protection
Secure file handling and authentication systems
PHP Frameworks and CMS
Introduction to frameworks (Laravel, Symfony, CodeIgniter)
Laravel deep dive (routing, controllers, Eloquent ORM, Blade templates)
Symfony components and MVC structure
Understanding CMS (WordPress, Drupal, Joomla)
Custom theme and plugin development in WordPress
Testing and Debugging
Unit testing with PHPUnit
Test-driven development (TDD) in PHP
Debugging tools (Xdebug, var_dump, error logs)
Static analysis tools (PHPStan, Psalm)
Performance Optimization
Caching strategies (OPcache, Redis, Memcached)
Profiling PHP applications
Reducing memory and CPU overhead
Writing efficient SQL queries
Load balancing and scalability
PHP in Modern Development
PHP 8+ features (JIT, union types, attributes)
Using PHP with Docker and containers
Building APIs with PHP
Microservices with PHP frameworks
Integrating PHP with frontend frameworks (React, Vue, Angular)
Real-World Projects
Building a blog/CMS from scratch
Creating a RESTful API with PHP
Developing a small e-commerce site
Building a role-based authentication system
Contributing to open-source PHP projects
Career Growth with PHP
Best practices for clean and maintainable code
Following PHP-FIG and PSR standards
Exploring full-stack development with PHP + JS
Freelancing and enterprise career paths in PHP
Continuous learning through documentation, forums, and conferences
Learning PHP deeply is not just about coding websites it’s about understanding how PHP integrates with databases, frameworks, security practices, and modern development trends. By following this roadmap step by step, you can evolve from a beginner to an advanced PHP developer capable of building scalable, secure, and high-performance applications. With consistent practice, real-world projects, and exploration of advanced frameworks, PHP can open doors to freelancing, startups, and enterprise-level opportunities.
