Student on the Go

Inspiration

I built Student on the Go because I understand how hard it can be to balance college, work, and everything else happening in life. Between school, EMT shifts, and learning to become a software developer, knowing when an assignment is due is only part of the problem. I also need to know when I can actually work on it.

I started learning to code in the back of an ambulance between calls. That experience helped inspire this project: a planner for students who have to fit school around real responsibilities.

What it does

Student on the Go turns syllabus deadlines into a study plan built around the student’s availability.

Students can paste syllabus text or upload a text file or PDF, review the extracted assignments, and add their classes and work commitments. They can estimate how much time an assignment needs and choose their study days and session lengths.

The planner uses deadlines and available time to schedule study sessions around those commitments. Larger assignments can be broken into steps such as research, outlining, drafting, and revising. Students can track completed sessions and reschedule unfinished work.

When there is not enough available time, the app warns the student so they can adjust their plan.

How I built it

I built the application with React, TypeScript, and Vite, managed the code through GitHub, and deployed it on Render.

The scheduling logic considers assignment deadlines, estimated effort, study preferences, and fixed commitments. I also added syllabus extraction, multiple pages for planning and assignments, and university color themes.

I used AI coding tools to help develop features and troubleshoot problems. I reviewed the changes, tested the scheduling and syllabus logic, and checked the production build as the project developed.

Challenges I faced

One challenge was handling different syllabus formats. PDF extraction can break lines or separate assignment names from their dates, so students need a chance to review the information before importing it.

Scheduling was another challenge. A plan needs to account for overlapping commitments, limited study time, and missed sessions. It also needs to recognize when a deadline cannot realistically be met with the time available.

Making the app comfortable to use on a phone took additional work, especially with scrolling, navigation, and calendar layouts.

What I learned

I learned that building a useful planner takes more than putting assignments on a calendar. The difficult part is understanding how someone’s day actually works.

I also learned to question AI-generated code, test the behavior, and keep simplifying the interface. Every feature should help a student understand what to do next.

What’s next

I want to improve onboarding, add accounts and calendar integration, and test the planner with more real syllabuses.

My goal is to help students spend less time organizing their workload and more time making progress.

Built With

• copilot
• css
• github
• html
• react
• render
• router
• typescript
• vite