How I Built a Full Stack Student Discussion Platform from Scratch

In the digital age, effective communication is the backbone of any educational institution. Yet, many universities still struggle with fragmented communication tools, outdated portals, and inconsistent engagement between students, faculty, and club members.

Sidhi Naresh Sai Aravind, a passionate Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) student at Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technologies (RGUKT), RK Valley Campus, recognized this recurring challenge at his university and took it upon himself to solve it. Blending his technical skills with a deep understanding of student needs, he set out to build a real-time university discussion platform, a centralized hub designed to improve communication, collaboration, and access to information across the academic community.

In this blog, he shares how he transformed an idea into a fully functional platform, the technologies he used, challenges he overcame, and how this project helped him define his career direction in tech.

About Myself

As a Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) student at IIIT RGUKT RK Valley, I saw this challenge as an opportunity. I set out to build a real-time university discussion platform, blending my technical skills with a deep understanding of student needs, a central hub for announcements, events, discussions, and collaborations. 

In this blog, I’ll take you through my journey, from identifying the problem to deploying the platform, and how it shaped my career in tech.

Problem Statement – Fragmented Communication in Universities

During my second year, I noticed a recurring problem: important academic updates, club announcements, and discussions often went unnoticed. Some messages were shared on WhatsApp, others via email, and many updates simply got lost in the noise.

There was no single platform that united:

• Students from different departments
• Faculty and administrators
• Club coordinators and alumni

This challenge inspired me to develop a student communication platform that was secure, real-time, and accessible to everyone across the university.

Conceptualizing the Online Discussion Platform

I wanted the platform to be more than just another forum or messaging app. It had to serve as a complete university collaboration system that met the following goals:

• Centralized announcements
• Real-time communication
• Role-based access control
• Personalization and notifications
• Modern UI/UX and mobile-friendly interface

This gave rise to the concept of a University Discussion & Collaboration Platform, a full-stack web application designed specifically for academic ecosystems.

Features of the Online Discussion Platform

Here’s a detailed look at the key features I built:

• Role-Based Access System: Each user logs in based on their role: Student, Faculty, Admin, Club Coordinator, or Alumni. Each role has specific access to discussions, groups, and event tools. Supabase Authentication with JWT made it secure and scalable.
• Real-Time Chat and Announcements: I integrated real-time messaging so that students and faculty could engage in discussions without needing to refresh the page. Whether it’s a club meeting or an academic update, everyone stays in the loop.
• Event Calendar & Personalized Feed: An integrated calendar allows users to view upcoming university events. The personalized feed shows relevant announcements, posts, and discussions based on user role and subscriptions.
• Smart Notifications: Notifications are critical for engagement. I implemented instant updates using Supabase’s real-time database triggers, which notify users about new events, replies, or announcements.
• Secure Login and Authentication: Using Supabase Auth, I ensured that user login was secure with proper session handling and role-based data access.

Tech Stack Used in Building a Full Stack Project

For anyone looking for web development projects for college students, here’s the exact tech stack I used:

Component	Technology Used
Frontend	HTML, CSS, JavaScript
Backend	Node.js, Express.js
Authentication	Supabase Auth (JWT)
Database	Supabase Realtime + PostgreSQL
Hosting	Vite + GitHub Pages
Version Control	Git + GitHub

This stack gave me flexibility, scalability, and the ability to integrate real-time functionalities with ease.

Challenges Faced in Building Online Discussion Platform

Building this real-time university discussion platform was a rewarding experience, but it came with its fair share of challenges. As a student juggling academics and coding, I encountered several technical and design hurdles that tested both my problem-solving and time-management skills. Here’s a breakdown of the major challenges I faced and how I overcame them:

• Managing Multiple User Roles: Designing access levels for each user type was tricky. I used Supabase policies to enforce strict access rules and validate user sessions via JWT.
• Implementing Real-Time Features: Pushing live notifications without lag was a challenge. Supabase’s subscription feature allowed me to watch specific tables for changes and push updates instantly to the frontend.
• Designing a Clean UI/UX: Users don’t engage with ugly platforms. I went through several iterations, learning from modern UI trends and user feedback to build a visually appealing and intuitive interface.
• Security Concerns: Handling login sessions, data visibility, and database access policies taught me best practices in security and API design.

Skills Learnt in Building a Full Stack Project

This project turned out to be more than just another coding assignment. It helped me develop a diverse skill set, including:

• Practical full-stack development
• Project planning and time management
• UI/UX design fundamentals
• Real-time database integration
• Security implementation
• Working with authentication and authorization systems

It also gave me confidence in presenting technical solutions, debugging production issues, and collaborating with potential users for feedback.

Conclusion

Before this project, I was unsure whether to pursue AI, cybersecurity, or mobile app development. This experience gave me clarity; I love building full-stack systems that solve real problems.

Here’s how this project helped shape my future:

• Built a portfolio-worthy project
• Earned shortlisting in internships due to hands-on experience
• Discovered a passion for web development and backend systems
• Enrolled in relevant certifications and developer communities

For students looking to break into tech, nothing beats building something real and useful.

Whether you’re a first-year student or in your final semester, don’t underestimate what you can achieve with a laptop and curiosity. This project was my stepping stone into the real tech world, and I hope it inspires you to start something too.

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