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StudyBuddy – Find Your Study Match
A research-driven case study for a product that helps international grad students find compatible study partners by course, timezone, and study style.
StudyBuddy Dashboard Preview
Project Summary
Role
Product Manager
Timeline
3 Months (6 Weeks)
Stack
React, Figma, FigJam, PostgreSQL
Status
Concept + Mockups (no MVP built)
The Problem
International grad students often lack access to study partners who match their academic goals, course timelines, and working styles. Timezone mismatches and social hesitations make collaboration difficult.
Discovery & Personas
Conducted 5 interviews with international grad students. Discovered pain points around scheduling, motivation, and location.
Aaish - Night Owl
CS Graduate Student
- Studies late nights due to timezone differences
- Frustrated by lack of dedicated study partners
- Prefers focused, minimal conversation sessions
Lisa - Morning Person
MBA Student
- Early morning study sessions work best
- Feels isolated studying alone consistently
- Enjoys collaborative discussion-based learning
Product Vision
The goal is to design a lightweight, self-serve platform that helps students match with ideal study partners based on shared academic and behavioral criteria.
Match by Coursework
Course and degree-level study groups
Filter by Timezone
Opt-in reminders and gentle nudges
Study Style Preferences
Match study approaches and goals
User Flows & Interface
The core user journey was mapped and translated into high-fidelity mockups using Figma. This section illustrates the intended experience and layout.
Onboarding Page
Welcome flow with course selection and study preferences setup
Profile Section
User profile with study preferences, timezone, and mentoring settings
Focus Mode
Focused study session interface with timer and participant tracking
Resources Sharing
Academic resource sharing system with upload and point rewards
What I Learned
Early personas shaped feature prioritization before UI
"Study style" is a highly emotional matching factor (not just scheduling logic)
Clarity of user flow prevents overengineering in early prototyping
See a Built Case Study?
StudyBuddy was research-only. For a full product build with analytics and deployment, check out BudgetPal.