ExploringU

A structured career clarity assessment that maps your thinking patterns to real academic majors and career paths.

• Live: exploringu.com
• Source: github.com/LaneyCommits/FutureFit

Tech stack

Layer	Technology
Backend	Django 4.2 + Django REST Framework
Frontend	React 19 + Vite 8
Database	PostgreSQL (production) / SQLite (local)
Auth	Token-based (DRF authtoken)
Hosting	DigitalOcean App Platform (Dockerfile)
Styling	Custom CSS design system (Plus Jakarta Sans, sage palette)

Project structure

config/             Django settings, URLs, WSGI
apps/
  quiz/             Questions, choices, scoring, results
  careers/          Personality types, majors, jobs
  users/            Auth, profiles, dashboard
frontend/
  src/
    api/            API client
    pages/          Landing, quiz, results, login, register, dashboard
    components/     Navbar, brand, quiz UI, insight carousel
    hooks/          useAuth, useQuiz, useMediaQuery
.do/app.yaml        DigitalOcean App Platform spec (optional)
Dockerfile          Production image: build SPA → Gunicorn + WhiteNoise
docker-compose.yml  Local dev: Django `runserver` + Vite dev server

Local development

Prerequisites

• Python 3.11+ (matches the production Docker image)
• Node.js 18+ (20.x is used in Docker)

1. Backend

python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
cp .env.example .env # edit as needed
python3 manage.py migrate
python3 manage.py seed_careers
python3 manage.py seed_quiz
python3 manage.py runserver

Django runs at http://127.0.0.1:8000.

2. Frontend

cd frontend
npm install
npm run dev

Or from the repo root:

npm install && npm run dev

Vite serves the app at http://localhost:5175 (see frontend/vite.config.js). API requests are proxied to Django when you use the dev server.

Docker (local)

docker compose up --build

• API: http://127.0.0.1:8000 — migrate, seed_careers, and seed_quiz run on the API container startup.
• Frontend: http://localhost:5175 — Vite inside Docker uses VITE_API_PROXY_TARGET=http://api:8000 so the proxy hits the Compose service name, not localhost.

Deployment (DigitalOcean App Platform)

1. PostgreSQL database

Use any managed Postgres (e.g. Neon) and copy the connection string for DATABASE_URL.

2. Create the app

1. In App Platform, choose Create App and connect GitHub.
2. Select repo LaneyCommits/FutureFit, branch main.
3. DigitalOcean can build from the Dockerfile; you can optionally use the checked-in .do/app.yaml as a starting spec.
4. Set HTTP port to 8080 (the Dockerfile exposes this; Gunicorn binds 0.0.0.0:${PORT:-8080}).

3. Environment variables

Variable	Value
DJANGO_SECRET_KEY	Random 50+ characters (secret)
DJANGO_DEBUG	False
DATABASE_URL	Postgres URL (secret)
ALLOWED_HOSTS	exploringu.com,www.exploringu.com (comma-separated)
CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS	https://exploringu.com,https://www.exploringu.com
SECURE_SSL_REDIRECT	true (default when DEBUG=False; see .env.example)

On deploy, the container runs migrations, seeds careers/quiz data, then starts Gunicorn.

4. Custom domain

Add your domain in the app settings, point DNS as DigitalOcean instructs (often a CNAME), and TLS is provisioned automatically.

How production is served

• Multi-stage Dockerfile: npm ci / npm run build for the React app, then copy frontend/dist into the Python image.
• Gunicorn serves Django; /api/* and /admin/ are handled by Django.
• WhiteNoise serves static assets from the Vite build.
• SPA fallback: unmatched paths return frontend/dist/index.html so client-side routes work.

API endpoints

Method	URL	Auth	Description
GET	/api/quiz/questions/	Public	Quiz questions and choices
POST	/api/quiz/submit/	Public	Submit answers, get results
GET	/api/careers/types/	Public	Personality archetypes
GET	/api/careers/recommendations/	Public	Majors and jobs for a type
POST	/api/users/register/	Public	Register (username + password)
POST	/api/users/login/	Public	Login, returns token
GET	/api/users/me/	Token	Current user
GET	/api/users/dashboard/	Token	Saved results / history

Quiz system

• Ten weighted questions, four choices each.
• Server-side multi-archetype scoring (no client-side scoring logic).
• Six archetypes: Systems Thinker, Analytical Solver, Creative Builder, People Strategist, Explorer, Impact Visionary.
• Results include profile copy, behavioral insights, thinking style, majors, and career directions.

User flow

1. Landing — start the assessment (no account required).
2. Quiz — ten steps, one question at a time.
3. Results — full report with personality, majors, and careers.
4. Register / login — save results and use the dashboard.
5. Dashboard — saved profiles and history.

Environment variables

Copy .env.example to .env for local development.

Variable	Default (local)	Description
DJANGO_SECRET_KEY	Dev fallback	Django secret
DJANGO_DEBUG	True	Debug mode
DATABASE_URL	(empty → SQLite)	Postgres DSN
ALLOWED_HOSTS	(see settings)	Extra hosts, comma-separated
CORS_ALLOWED_ORIGINS	(see settings)	Extra origins, comma-separated
SECURE_SSL_REDIRECT	true when DEBUG=False	Redirect HTTP→HTTPS

License

Private project.