App to check whether one course can be transferred from one college to another with credit

[gaborszita]

Project description

I've had numerous issues in college that I didn't know whether one course would transfer to another college. I emailed counselors and the admissions office, but most of the time they weren't very helpful and answered that they aren't able to guarantee that I will be able to transfer the course with credit. However, lots of times students were in fact able to transfer courses, but the college didn't tell this anyone "officially". This can be due to many reasons, such as not wanting to transfer the course for everyone or discouraging students from taking a huge amount of courses at another institution and then transferring it to them. However, there's a high probability, even if not 100%, that if one student was able to transfer the course, another student will also be able to. This app will allow students to share what courses they were able to transfer. It will be similar to Assist, but it will be an unofficial course transfer info site rather than an official one.

Relevant Technology

This will be a web app, so any web app stack would work, such as MEAN, MERN, or LAMP. I'd prefer a stack using Node.js+Express.js+MongoDB, but others would also be fine.

Complexity and required time

Complexity

• [ ] Beginner - This project requires no or little prior knowledge of the technolog(y|ies) specified to contribute to the project
• [x] Intermediate - The user should have some prior knowledge of the technolog(y|ies) to the point where they know how to use it, but not necessarily all the nooks and crannies of the technology
• [ ] Advanced - The project requires the user to have a good understanding of all components of the project to contribute

Required time (ETA)

• [ ] Little work - A couple of days
• [ ] Medium work - A week or two
• [x] Much work - The project will take more than a couple of weeks and serious planning is required

Categories

• [ ] Mobile app
• [ ] IoT
• [x] Web app
• [x] Frontend/UI
• [ ] AI/ML
• [x] APIs/Backend
• [ ] Voice Assistant
• [ ] Developer Tooling
• [ ] Extension/Plugin/Add-On
• [ ] Design/UX
• [ ] AR/VR
• [ ] Bots
• [ ] Security
• [ ] Blockchain
• [ ] Futuristic Tech/Something Unique

[KaKi87]

Is that a country-specific problem ? What's the data source for it ?

[gaborszita]

Is that a country-specific problem ? What's the data source for it ?

1. I don't think it has be specific to one country, but I think it would be very useful mainly in the United States. It could be used in any country that has a similar course-transferring system between colleges as in the US.
2. What do you mean by data source?

[tianalemesle]

It could be used in any country that has a similar course-transferring system between colleges as in the US.

Could you share some documentation that is understandable for anyone who never heard of this ? Is there a country list ?

What do you mean by data source?

Where to find the info about whether one course would transfer to another college ?

[stitchless]

It may be a good idea to start a little more broad.

Can collage A transfer any credits to collage B, this avoids the initial issues of having to figure out which credits do transfer and which don't There is also the issue that you will not always get 100% of the credits when it is transferable.

This also assumes how collages determine allowed credit transfers is publicly available, and deterministic by the application without changing too often. Otherwise, at best this could give you a starting point to open communications with your target collage. Sort of like a likelihood score that the collage may accept your credits.

I like it.

[shimonbrandsdorfer]

Are there some institutions who provide API or other data sources?

If so, you can have a few levels of verification.

Also, consider credibility of the reporters.

[marcantoineg]

From what I understand of this project, we'd like users to send information about what course from what scholar entity is equivalent and transferable to which other scholar entity given their experience. That would be the first part of the app that should be focused on to build a relevant data set.

A good first step would be to gather information about the colleges/universities so user can choose from an established list.

It would also be good to get programs/courses information per college/university. This data should be updated each semester/year to make sure it's still relevant.

Given the two previous points are implemented, a user should then be able to say "I was at X school, in Y program & I transferred to Z school getting credits for A, B, C courses." It's important to know that this data would only be "pertinent" for a few years until programs change.

I think it's important to note (as @shimonbrandsdorfer did) that the credibility of the data sent to the app is crucial to make predictions eventually. So, make sure bots can't submit irrelevant data.

Ultimately, the end goal would be for a user to enter which school they are attending right now with their program/completed courses and what other schools would credit the courses that were done. This second part could only be started once the platform has enough data.