Inspiration
Finding a good place to study on campus can take time, especially when you need somewhere quiet, a group-friendly space, or a library with available seating. We wanted to make that search easier for Stony Brook students.
What it does
StudySignal helps students explore campus study spaces, check recent availability reports, compare quiet and group options, find active study groups, and get directions. It also brings campus transit and study-break planning into the same hub. Reports are shown as helpful signals, not live occupancy counts or guaranteed seats.
How we built it
We built the interface with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, with campus maps and building information to help students explore locations. Cloudflare Workers and D1 provide the backend for shared reports and study-group data. The app also uses Stony Brook transit information and published campus sources.
Challenges we ran into
The hardest part was making availability useful without implying more certainty than the data supports. Student reports can become outdated, browser location access depends on permissions and device support, and static previews cannot sync shared data across devices.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We brought campus maps, study-space discovery, directions, transit, and study groups into one student-focused app. We’re proud that the building view puts practical information close to where students need it.
What we learned
We learned that useful campus tools depend on clear data freshness and limitations, not just a polished map. We also learned how frontend hosting, backend APIs, and a shared database each affect whether updates appear across devices.
What’s next for StudySignal
Next, we want to improve report freshness and trust, make study-group coordination easier, and strengthen the deployed backend so shared activity works reliably across devices.
Log in or sign up for Devpost to join the conversation.