MatchUP

chatbot interface

Inspiration

The inspiration behind MatchUP stemmed from the pressing need to address the persistent gender inequality that women face in the workforce. After researching global statistics and hearing personal stories of women navigating workplace barriers like unconscious bias, microaggressions, and limited mentorship opportunities, it became clear that many lacked the support networks necessary to advance their careers. We were particularly moved by the United Nations' report highlighting the stark differences in workforce participation and wage disparities between men and women. This drove us to create a platform that not only connects women with peers but also provides the tools, resources, and mentorship needed to overcome these challenges. Our goal with MatchUP is to empower women by fostering a community where they can grow, collaborate, and achieve their career aspirations without feeling isolated or unsupported.

What it does

MatchUP is a web app designed to help women overcome gender inequality in the workforce by connecting, seeking advice, and expanding their networks. The platform fosters a supportive community where women can connect with others, share insights, and collaborate to achieve their career goals. MatchUP offers curated job boards, personalized resources, and a chatbot for career advice, making it easier for users to find opportunities and guidance. Built using Streamlit for a smooth, multi-user experience and MongoDB for secure data management, MatchUP ensures that users can seamlessly navigate the app. By providing an all-in-one platform, MatchUP helps women build their networks, gain valuable insights, and access resources tailored to their unique challenges in the workforce.

How we built it

We built MatchUP using Streamlit for its efficiency in handling dynamic, multi-user applications. The front-end was developed with HTML and CSS to create a smooth, accessible user interface. For the back-end, we used MongoDB to securely store user data, while Python powered the app’s core functionalities. We also integrated a Streamlit chatbot and the Cohere's API to provide users with real-time career advice and support. This blend of technologies ensures a scalable, user-friendly platform that empowers women+ to connect, grow, and succeed in the workforce.

Challenges we ran into

Some challenges we ran into was learning how to use Streamlit, MongoDB, and the Cohere API, as all of our team members are beginner coders who are first time users of these tools.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're proud that we successfully implemented MongoDB to store and fetch user data as this was the first time any of our team members had used a database. We're proud of our perseverance when implementing Streamlit and Cohere into our chatbot, which is something we haven't worked on before.

What we learned

We learned how to maximize efficiency, divide work properly, and collaborate as a team. We learned to use resources, such as documentation, to implement new tools and frameworks. We gained proficiency in GitHub to ensure seamless integration among the team.

What's next for MatchUP

We believe MatchUP has strong potential for success. We'd like to continue to work on this project after the hackathon, expanding its features, testing the product out through our target users, and even turning it into an app. We'd like to add a feature to display events for women+ and add a map feature to discover connections nearby. At conferences, we'd like users to be able to see other users who are attending, so they can quickly find women+ to connect with.