Overview
What this challenge is about.
Reverse-Engineer a 22-Year-Old COBOL Batch Pipeline. Advanced challenge in analysis. Analyzing real datasets and building models that drive decisions, earn a...
The Brief
What you'll do, and what you'll demonstrate.
Reverse-engineer a 22-year-old COBOL batch pipeline into a dependency graph and critical-job documentation a modern team can hand off from.
This is not a data exercise. It is the work an analyst does when stakeholders need answers from messy data. That distinction matters to every hiring manager who has seen candidates describe statistical methods and none who have extracted insight from messy, real-world data.
When you finish, you will have something most graduates do not: a real-world deliverable, verified by Ewance, that you can show to a hiring manager and say "I did this. Here is the proof."
Earning criteria — what you'll demonstrate
- Reverse-engineer a legacy batch pipeline using static analysis + interviews
- Build a dependency graph that a modernization vendor can quote against
- Run impact analysis prioritized by fan-out and regulatory criticality
- Recommend a strangler-fig sequencing with risk + cost bands
Program Fit
Where this fits in your program.
Sharpens the same skills your degree expects you to demonstrate.
Software Evolution and Maintenance
Master · Software Engineering
Strong alignment
This challenge maps to Software Evolution and Maintenance at the Master level. It sharpens the same practical skills your coursework expects — but in a real industry context with actual constraints and deliverables.
Skills
Skills you'll demonstrate.
Each one shows up on your verified credential.
- Reverse Engineering
Apply reverse engineering to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
- Legacy Systems
Apply legacy systems to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
- Dependency Analysis
Apply dependency analysis to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
- Impact Analysis
Apply impact analysis to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
- Documentation
Apply documentation to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
- Strangler Fig
Apply strangler fig to solve real industry problems and demonstrate production-level capability.
Careers
Career paths this challenge builds toward
Completing this challenge demonstrates skills that transfer directly to these roles: