API Gateway / Integration Architect
API Integration Architects design the connectivity layer between enterprise systems, ensuring reliable, secure, and observable data flow across organisational boundaries. Their English covers writing integration design documents, explaining rate-limiting and transformation policies to consuming teams, and presenting enterprise integration patterns to stakeholders. This path equips you with the vocabulary and phrasing to lead these conversations confidently.
Topics covered
- API Gateway Patterns
- Service Mesh
- Enterprise Integration Patterns
- Rate Limiting & Throttling
- Transformation & Mediation Policies
- iPaaS & Low-code Integration
Vocabulary spotlight
4 terms every API Gateway / Integration Architect should know in English:
A technique that restricts the number of requests a client can make to an API within a defined time window
"The gateway enforces rate limiting of 1,000 requests per minute per API key."
The process of transforming, enriching, or routing messages between disparate systems at an integration layer
"The ESB performs mediation to convert SOAP payloads into REST JSON before forwarding them."
A client-supplied unique identifier that allows a server to recognise and safely ignore duplicate requests
"Including an idempotency key ensures the payment is processed exactly once even if the request is retried."
A messaging pattern in which a single published message is delivered to multiple subscribing consumers simultaneously
"The order-placed event uses fanout to notify the warehouse, billing, and analytics services in parallel."
📚 Vocabulary Reference
Key terms organised by category for API Gateway / Integration Architects:
Gateway & Mesh
Integration Patterns
Policies & Security
iPaaS & Protocols
Recommended exercises
Real-world scenarios you'll practise
- Writing an integration design document for onboarding a new third-party payment provider.
- Explaining rate-limiting and quota policies to a partner development team.
- Presenting a service-mesh adoption proposal to an enterprise architecture board.
- Documenting transformation and mediation policies for an internal API catalogue.