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GitHub Copilot Bootcamp

Published by O'Reilly Media, Inc.

Intermediate content levelIntermediate

Harness generative AI to write, review, and refactor code

What you’ll learn and how you can apply it

  • Use GitHub Copilot confidently to generate, complete, and refactor code across multiple languages and frameworks
  • Write effective prompts and comments that guide Copilot to produce accurate, structured, and context-aware code suggestions
  • Integrate Copilot into real-world workflows, including testing, documentation, and multifile projects with version control
  • Boost productivity and code quality by combining Copilot with tools like linters, formatters, and advanced code search

Course description

As AI tools become increasingly integrated into the software development workflow, understanding how to use them effectively is essential for staying productive and competitive in the industry. To that end, Shaun Wassell guides you through a hands-on immersion into GitHub Copilot, where developers will learn how to harness generative AI to write, review, and refactor code more efficiently.

This focused two-day bootcamp is designed to deliver deep yet immediate and practical value. By concentrating on real-world coding exercises and Copilot-driven workflows, you’ll quickly gain the confidence to integrate AI assistance into your daily development tasks. You’ll walk away not just knowing what Copilot can do, but how to use it strategically to code faster, debug smarter, and collaborate more effectively in modern engineering environments.

What you’ll learn and how you can apply it

  • Use GitHub Copilot confidently to generate, complete, and refactor code across multiple languages and frameworks.
  • Write effective prompts and comments that guide Copilot to produce accurate, structured, and context-aware code suggestions.
  • Integrate Copilot into real-world workflows, including testing, documentation, and multi-file projects with version control.
  • Boost productivity and code quality by combining Copilot with tools like linters, formatters, and advanced code search.

This live event is for you because...

  • You’re a developer looking to level up your productivity by integrating AI tools like GitHub Copilot into your daily workflow.
  • You want to write better code, faster, and learn how to prompt Copilot effectively for different languages and use cases.
  • You’re curious about real-world applications of Copilot in testing, documentation, and full-stack development.
  • You’re ready to move beyond basic autocomplete and fully leverage Copilot as a coding assistant and problem-solving partner.

Prerequisites

  • Visual Studio Code installed (latest version recommended)
  • GitHub account with access to GitHub Copilot (individual or enterprise license)
  • Git installed and configured

Recommended preparation:

Recommended follow-up:

Schedule

The time frames are only estimates and may vary according to how the class is progressing.

Day 1

Getting started with GitHub Copilot (90 minutes)

  • What is GitHub Copilot and how does it work?
  • Installation and setup in VS Code
  • Navigating the GitHub Copilot interface
  • Q&A
  • Break

Copilot’s capabilities (80 minutes)

  • What options do I have for writing code?
  • Autocomplete capabilities
  • The command window
  • GitHub Copilot chat
  • Generating code from comments
  • Break
  • Q&A

Prompt engineering for developers (70 minutes)

  • Understanding intent and context in prompts
  • Writing effective comments and function headers
  • Controlling code structure and format through prompts
  • Using Copilot in different programming languages
  • Q&A

Day 2

Copilot in real-world scenarios (85 minutes)

  • Generating boilerplate and config files
  • Working with third-party libraries
  • Using Copilot in test-driven development
  • Break
  • Q&A

Advanced workflows and productivity tips (85 minutes)

  • Using Copilot with Git and version control
  • Multifile project support
  • Using Copilot with frameworks (e.g., React, Flask, Express)
  • Code search and Copilot combo
  • Pairing Copilot with linters and formatters
  • Break
  • Q&A

Deep dives and special use cases (65 minutes)

  • Generating unit and integration tests
  • Copilot for data science and notebooks
  • Copilot for documentation and markdown
  • Demo of mini app with frontend and backend snippets

Wrap-up (5 minutes)

Your Instructor

Shaun Wassell

Shaun Wassell is a lifelong programmer and problem-solving addict. His goal is to help people build incredible software and solve meaningful problems by mastering the art of software development. For the past 2+ years, he's been a trainer at CBT Nuggets, and focuses on creating high-quality web development and certification content. You can check out his extensive collection of React, Angular, Python and JavaScript courses, as well as a huge amount of other software- and IT-training content at cbtnuggets.com.

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Skills covered

  • GitHub Copilot
  • Refactoring
  • Python
  • Test-Driven Development (TDD)