Common Helper

Landing Page
Bottom of the Landing Page
Country selection page
Upload transcript page
Report page
Report page cont.
Report page cont.

Inspiration

International students often face difficulties understanding how their academic achievements translate to the U.S. education system. Converting grades, identifying course equivalencies, and calculating GPA can be complex and time-consuming. Common Helper was created to simplify this process, empowering students to accurately represent their academic records in U.S. terms.

What it does

Common Helper is an intelligent transcript analysis platform that helps students:
Convert international grades to U.S. grade equivalents
Instantly calculate cumulative GPA on a 4.0 scale
Map international courses to U.S. AP subject equivalents
Provide percentage match with subject equivalency and highlight topic similarities and differences
Generate comprehensive academic reports for easy understanding and submission
Download detailed conversion summaries for personal records or applications'

Key Features

Accurate GPA conversion tailored to U.S. standards
Course equivalency mapping with percentage match (40%-100%)
Subject analysis detailing topic similarities and differences
User-friendly interface with mobile responsiveness
Comprehensive downloadable academic reports

How we built it

Frontend: React with TypeScript: Robust component development Vite: Fast and optimized build performance Tailwind CSS: Clean, responsive styling React Router: Seamless navigation between pages Custom Hooks: Efficient state management

Backend: Node.js: Server handling file uploads and conversion logic OpenAI API: AI-powered subject extraction, analysis, and GPA calculation Supabase: Database for storing educational systems, syllabuses, and user data RESTful API Architecture: Smooth integration between frontend and backend

Challenges we ran into

AI Training: Parsing PDFs to accurately extract subjects and grades required fine-tuning AI prompts and handling edge cases. Database Integration: Connecting Supabase to store and retrieve syllabus and conversion data was initially complex. Frontend-Backend Communication: Ensuring seamless data flow, especially with file uploads and AI response handling, took significant debugging. UI Refinements: Creating a clean and responsive interface that works across devices was challenging but rewarding.

What we learned

Effective use of AI for document parsing and subject mapping Integrating various technologies (Node.js, OpenAI API, Supabase) in a single cohesive application Importance of clear communication and division of tasks in a team project Handling file uploads and processing large data asynchronously

What's next for Common Helper

Expand support for more international education systems Add user authentication for saving progress and reports Improve AI analysis for more nuanced subject equivalency Incorporate user feedback to refine the interface and features Develop a mobile app version for greater accessibility