Final Project Proposal
25 Mar 2026
Overview
The Problem
Incoming freshmen and transfer students at UH Mānoa often feel overwhelmed during their first weeks on campus. They struggle to navigate the large campus, find important resources, deal with culture shock, and make safe housing decisions, which makes their transition stressful and difficult.
The Solution
Mānoa Buddy is a Next.js web application built with React and Bootstrap 5 that acts as a friendly onboarding companion for new UH Mānoa students. It offers an interactive campus map with a first-week checklist, an anonymous “Ask a Local” Q&A, Hawaiian culture quick guides, a roommate compatibility quiz, and an off-campus housing safety checker.
Names of the Proposers
- Noah Nguyen
Mockup Page Ideas
- Home/Landing Page: Welcoming hero banner with UH Mānoa branding and quick start buttons.
- Campus Map Page: Interactive map with first-week checklist and resource pins.
- Ask a Local Page: Anonymous Q&A forum for new student questions.
- Culture Guide Page: Hawaiian language basics and culture shock resources.
- Housing Helper Page: Roommate quiz and off-campus housing safety checker.
- User Dashboard: Personalized checklist and saved resources (the “special sauce”).
Use Case Ideas
- A new freshman follows the interactive checklist while exploring the campus map.
- A transfer student posts an anonymous question and receives answers from upperclassmen.
- An incoming student takes the roommate compatibility quiz before choosing housing.
- A student checks the safety rating of off-campus apartments near campus.
- After logging in, users see personalized progress and tailored recommendations.
Beyond the Basics
The special sauce is the personalized user experience after registration and login. Each user creates a profile with their status (freshman/transfer), major, and interests. The app uses this data to customize the checklist, highlight relevant resources, and personalize recommendations. All progress and saved items are stored persistently so the app feels like a personal guide tailored to each new student.
Use of AI: Grammarly was used to correct mistakes in grammar to make ideas more clear. Grok was also used to help suggest how to format parts of the markdown (adding bulllet points, bold lettering, etc), and also suggest use case and mockup page ideas.