🎓 Study Matcher

A full-stack web application connecting university students with study partners based on shared courses.

🚀 Features

• Secure Authentication: JWT-based login system with encrypted passwords
• Course Management: Add and remove courses you need help with
• Smart Matching: Find study partners taking the same courses
• User Profiles: Manage your academic information
• Search & Filter: Find students by name, major, or courses

🛠️ Tech Stack

Frontend:

• React
• Axios
• Vite

Backend:

• Node.js
• Express
• PostgreSQL
• JWT (jsonwebtoken)
• bcrypt

🌐 Live Deployment

Production App:

• Frontend: https://study-matcher-nine.vercel.app
• Backend API: https://study-matcher-backend.onrender.com

For Local Development: See installation instructions below ⬇️

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📦 Installation

Prerequisites

• Node.js (v14 or higher)
• npm

Backend Setup

1. Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/SohamxP/study-matcher.git
cd study-matcher

2. Install dependencies

npm install

3. Start the backend server

node server.js

Backend runs on http://localhost:3000

Frontend Setup

1. Navigate to frontend directory

cd frontend

2. Install dependencies

npm install

3. Start the development server

npm run dev

Frontend runs on http://localhost:5173

🎯 API Endpoints

Authentication

• POST /api/users/register - Register new user
• POST /api/users/login - User login

Users

• GET /api/users - Get all users
• GET /api/users/search - Search users with filters
• PUT /api/users/:id - Update user (protected)
• DELETE /api/users/:id - Delete user (protected)

Courses

• POST /api/users/:id/courses - Add course (protected)
• DELETE /api/users/:id/courses/:courseName - Remove course (protected)

Matching

• GET /api/matches/:courseName - Find study partners by course

📸 Screenshots

Login & Registration

User Dashboard

Find Study Partners

🔒 Security Features

• Passwords hashed with bcrypt (10 salt rounds)
• JWT token-based authentication
• Protected routes requiring valid tokens
• Authorization checks (users can only modify their own data)
• Input validation on all endpoints

🚧 Future Enhancements

• Real-time chat between matched students
• Email notifications for new matches
• Calendar integration for study sessions
• Mobile app version
• User ratings and reviews

👨‍💻 Developer

Soham Panchal
Computer Science Student | University of Texas at Arlington

📄 License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.