Inspiration
In many universities, roommate swap is done through a bed-for-bed exchange portal. We found, in the case of New York University, that while the portal provides basic functionality, the interface is less than intuitive - information about available swaps is displayed in text, and residents must scroll through a long list of listings before finally reaching desired entry, regardless of their preferences. There is no way to filter the listings based on user criteria, nor is there any visualization of the listing itself. Housing is a basic need for college students, and a comfortable living environment greatly aids in academic and social success. We would like to ensure every student has the opportunity to attain that goal by reimagining the bed-for-bed swap portal.
What it does
A resident may want to use bed-for-bed swap for various reasons, including undesired location, excessive cost, and change in room type preferences. STAHP is a portal designed for a resident to filter out listing that does not fit these criteria. This removes unnecessary information from the user, enabling a more efficient swapping experience.
In the introduction screen of the bed-for-bed swap portal, user is greeted with a simple form that asks for their preference for target room, such as cost range, location, and room type. Based on this information, listings that match the criteria is displayed. User may then see the location of the room within the building to visualize its layout. Room layout is not part of the criteria because each room in a residence hall is unique and it is difficult to devise a clear-cut scheme for categorization. Finally, user submit a request to swap beds when they decided on a room.
How I built it
This is a simple web application built with HTML, CSS and javascript. Housing inventories are queried using NYU Housing API, available here: https://housing.nyu.edu/api. In the case of integration with a university housing portal, a server-side language such as PHP will be required.
Log in or sign up for Devpost to join the conversation.