🧭 ROIScholar - STEM Education Loan Clarity Platform

Clear Costs. Real ROI. Smart STEM Decisions.

📸 Screenshots

🏠 Landing Page

🧮 Loan Architect (Calculator)

📊 University Comparison

📋 Problem Statement

Why do STEM students face education loan anxiety from unclear costs in 2026?

Students struggle with:

Unclear Costs: Hidden fees, living expenses, insurance, visa costs are not transparent.
Biased Information: Loan agents may push high-commission products with misleading terms.
Complex ROI: Break-even is difficult to estimate with varying international salaries.

🎯 Solution

ROIScholar is a transparent, data-driven platform that helps STEM students understand education loan costs and ROI for international degrees.

✨ Core Features

Feature	Description	Problem Solved
Loan Calculator	Real-time EMI, amortization, total interest	Unclear costs
ROI Simulator	Break-even analysis, 5-year net gain	Complex ROI
University Compare	Side-by-side cost and salary comparison	Biased information
Scenario Saver	Save and load loan scenarios	Decision tracking
Application Tracker	Multi-step form with progress save	Process clarity

🏗️ Project Structure

📁 Complete Folder Structure

ROIScholar/
├── backend/
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── config/
│   │   │   ├── database.js
│   │   │   ├── passport.js
│   │   │   └── redis.js
│   │   ├── controllers/
│   │   │   ├── applicationController.js
│   │   │   ├── authController.js
│   │   │   ├── loanController.js
│   │   │   ├── roiController.js
│   │   │   ├── scholarshipController.js
│   │   │   └── universityController.js
│   │   ├── middleware/
│   │   │   ├── auth.middleware.js
│   │   │   ├── error.middleware.js
│   │   │   ├── rateLimiter.js
│   │   │   ├── upload.middleware.js
│   │   │   └── validation.middleware.js
│   │   ├── models/
│   │   │   ├── Application.model.js
│   │   │   ├── Loan.model.js
│   │   │   ├── SalaryData.model.js
│   │   │   ├── Scholarship.model.js
│   │   │   ├── University.model.js
│   │   │   └── User.model.js
│   │   ├── routes/
│   │   │   ├── application.routes.js
│   │   │   ├── auth.routes.js
│   │   │   ├── loan.routes.js
│   │   │   ├── roi.routes.js
│   │   │   ├── scenario.routes.js
│   │   │   ├── scholarship.routes.js
│   │   │   └── university.routes.js
│   │   ├── services/
│   │   │   ├── calculatorService.js
│   │   │   ├── emailService.js
│   │   │   ├── exchangeRateService.js
│   │   │   └── salaryService.js
│   │   ├── utils/
│   │   │   ├── constants.js
│   │   │   ├── helpers.js
│   │   │   ├── logger.js
│   │   │   ├── seed.js
│   │   │   └── validators.js
│   │   ├── validations/
│   │   │   ├── application.validation.js
│   │   │   ├── loan.validation.js
│   │   │   └── user.validation.js
│   │   ├── seed/
│   │   │   ├── salaryData.js
│   │   │   └── scholarshipData.js
│   │   └── app.js
│   ├── .env
│   ├── .env.example
│   ├── .eslintrc.js
│   ├── package.json
│   ├── render.md
│   └── server.js
├── frontend/
│   ├── public/
│   │   ├── favicon.ico
│   │   ├── index.html
│   │   ├── logo.png
│   │   └── robots.txt
│   ├── src/
│   │   ├── assets/
│   │   │   ├── fonts/
│   │   │   ├── icons/
│   │   │   └── images/
│   │   ├── components/
│   │   │   ├── Application/
│   │   │   │   ├── MultiStepForm.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── ProgressBar.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Step1Personal.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Step2University.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Step3Loan.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── Step4Documents.jsx
│   │   │   ├── Calculator/
│   │   │   │   ├── AmortizationTable.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── InterestChart.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── LoanCalculator.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── LoanSummaryCard.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── MultiStepLoanForm.jsx
│   │   │   ├── Compare/
│   │   │   │   ├── ComparisonTable.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── CompareTable.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── CostBreakdown.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── FilterBar.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── UniversityCard.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── UniversitySelectionBar.jsx
│   │   │   ├── Layout/
│   │   │   │   ├── Footer.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Layout.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Navbar.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── Sidebar.jsx
│   │   │   ├── ROI/
│   │   │   │   ├── BreakEvenChart.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── ROIMetrics.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── ROISimulator.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── SalaryInput.jsx
│   │   │   ├── UI/
│   │   │   │   ├── Button.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Card.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── CurrencyToggle.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Input.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Loader.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Modal.jsx
│   │   │   │   ├── Toast.jsx
│   │   │   │   └── Tooltip.jsx
│   │   │   └── University/
│   │   │       ├── UniversityCard.jsx
│   │   │       ├── UniversityDetails.jsx
│   │   │       └── UniversityGrid.jsx
│   │   ├── features/
│   │   │   ├── auth/
│   │   │   │   ├── authAPI.js
│   │   │   │   └── authSlice.js
│   │   │   ├── loan/
│   │   │   │   ├── loanSlice.js
│   │   │   │   └── loanUtils.js
│   │   │   ├── roi/
│   │   │   │   ├── roiSlice.js
│   │   │   │   └── salaryData.js
│   │   │   ├── university/
│   │   │   │   ├── universityData.js
│   │   │   │   └── universitySlice.js
│   │   │   └── ui/
│   │   │       └── uiSlice.js
│   │   ├── hooks/
│   │   │   ├── useAuth.js
│   │   │   ├── useDebounce.js
│   │   │   ├── useLoanCalculator.js
│   │   │   ├── useLocalStorage.js
│   │   │   ├── useROISimulator.js
│   │   │   └── useTheme.js
│   │   ├── pages/
│   │   │   ├── ApplicationTracker.jsx
│   │   │   ├── CalculatorPage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── CompareUniversities.jsx
│   │   │   ├── Dashboard.jsx
│   │   │   ├── LandingPage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── LoginPage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── NotFoundPage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── ProfilePage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── RegisterPage.jsx
│   │   │   ├── ROISimulatorPage.jsx
│   │   │   └── ScholarshipsPage.jsx
│   │   ├── services/
│   │   │   ├── api.js
│   │   │   ├── applicationService.js
│   │   │   ├── authService.js
│   │   │   ├── currencyService.js
│   │   │   ├── loanService.js
│   │   │   ├── scholarshipService.js
│   │   │   ├── storage.js
│   │   │   ├── universityHelpers.js
│   │   │   └── universityService.js
│   │   ├── styles/
│   │   │   ├── globals.css
│   │   │   ├── tailwind.css
│   │   │   └── themes.css
│   │   ├── utils/
│   │   │   ├── calculators.js
│   │   │   ├── constants.js
│   │   │   ├── formatters.js
│   │   │   ├── validation.js
│   │   │   └── validators.js
│   │   ├── App.jsx
│   │   ├── AppRoutes.jsx
│   │   ├── main.jsx
│   │   └── store.js
│   ├── .env
│   ├── .env.example
│   ├── .eslintrc.js
│   ├── .prettierrc
│   ├── index.html
│   ├── package.json
│   ├── vite.config.js
│   └── README.md
├── .dockerignore
├── .env.example
├── .gitignore
├── docker-compose.yml
├── Dockerfile
├── LICENSE
├── package.json
└── README.md

🚀 Tech Stack

🎨 Frontend

Technology	Version	Purpose
React	18.2.0	UI Framework
Vite	4.4.0	Build Tool
Tailwind CSS	3.3.0	Styling
Material UI	5.14.0	Component Library
Redux Toolkit	1.9.0	State Management
React Router	6.14.0	Routing
Formik	2.4.0	Form Handling
Yup	1.2.0	Validation
Recharts	2.7.0	Charts and Graphs
Axios	1.4.0	API Calls
React Hot Toast	2.4.0	Notifications
React Helmet	6.1.0	SEO

⚙️ Backend

Technology	Version	Purpose
Node.js	20.x	Runtime
Express	4.18.0	Web Framework
MongoDB	6.0	Database
Mongoose	7.3.0	ODM
JWT	9.0.0	Authentication
Bcrypt	5.1.0	Password Hashing
Redis	7.0	Caching
Winston	3.9.0	Logging
Jest	29.5.0	Testing
Supertest	6.3.0	API Testing

🛠️ DevOps and Tools

Docker
GitHub Actions
Vercel
Render or Heroku
MongoDB Atlas
Redis Cloud

📦 Installation and Setup

✅ Prerequisites

Node.js 20 or higher
MongoDB 6 or higher
Redis 7 or higher
Git

📥 Clone Repository

git clone https://github.com/raunak2015/roiScholar.git
cd roiScholar

🔧 Backend Setup

cd backend
npm install
cp .env.example .env

Update backend .env values:

PORT=5000
MONGODB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/roischolar
JWT_SECRET=your_super_secret_key
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379

npm run seed
npm run dev

💻 Frontend Setup

cd frontend
npm install
cp .env.example .env

Update frontend .env values:

VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:5000/api

npm run dev

🐳 Docker Setup (Alternative)

docker-compose up --build

Application URLs:

Frontend: http://localhost:5173
Backend API: http://localhost:5000
MongoDB: localhost:27017
Redis: localhost:6379

🎮 Usage Guide

🧪 Development Mode

# Terminal 1
cd backend
npm run dev

# Terminal 2
cd frontend
npm run dev

# Terminal 3 (if local services)
mongod
redis-server

🏭 Production Build

cd frontend
npm run build

cd ../backend
npm start

Optional PM2:

pm2 start backend/server.js --name roischolar-backend
pm2 serve frontend/dist 5173 --name roischolar-frontend --spa

✅ Testing

cd backend
npm test

cd ../frontend
npm test

cd ..
npm run test:e2e

📡 API Endpoints

Live Documentation: Postman API Hub

🔐 Authentication

Method	Endpoint	Description
POST	/api/auth/register	User registration
POST	/api/auth/login	User login
POST	/api/auth/logout	User logout
GET	/api/auth/verify	Verify JWT token

🧮 Loan Calculator

Method	Endpoint	Description
POST	/api/loan/calculate	Calculate EMI and amortization
GET	/api/loan/scenarios	Get saved scenarios
POST	/api/loan/scenarios	Save loan scenario
DELETE	/api/loan/scenarios/:id	Delete scenario

📈 ROI Simulator

Method	Endpoint	Description
POST	/api/roi/calculate	Calculate ROI and break-even
GET	/api/roi/salary-data	Salary data by country
GET	/api/roi/history	ROI history

🎓 Universities

Method	Endpoint	Description
GET	/api/universities	List all universities
GET	/api/universities/:id	University details
POST	/api/universities/compare	Compare universities
GET	/api/universities/search	Search universities

🗄️ Database Schema

👤 User Model

{
	name: String, // required
	email: String, // required, unique
	password: String, // required
	preferences: {
		defaultCountry: String,
		defaultDegree: String,
		theme: String
	},
	savedScenarios: [LoanSchema],
	createdAt: Date
}

💸 Loan Model

{
	userId: ObjectId, // ref: 'User'
	university: String,
	tuition: Number,
	livingCosts: Number,
	loanAmount: Number,
	interestRate: Number,
	tenure: Number,
	emi: Number,
	totalInterest: Number,
	savedAt: Date
}

🔧 Environment Variables

🖥️ Frontend (.env)

VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:5000/api
VITE_GOOGLE_ANALYTICS_ID=UA-XXXXX-X
VITE_SENTRY_DSN=your_sentry_dsn

🧰 Backend (.env)

NODE_ENV=development
PORT=5000
MONGODB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/roischolar
REDIS_URL=redis://localhost:6379
JWT_SECRET=your_super_secret_key_here
JWT_EXPIRE=30d
EMAIL_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
EMAIL_USER=your_email@gmail.com
EMAIL_PASS=your_app_password
RAPIDAPI_KEY=your_rapidapi_key

🚢 Deployment

▲ Frontend on Vercel

npm i -g vercel
cd frontend
vercel --prod

☁️ Backend on Render

Backend URL: https://roischolar-backend.onrender.com
Create render service configuration.
Connect repository to Render.
Enable deploy on push to main.

🐳 Docker Deployment

docker build -t roischolar-frontend ./frontend
docker build -t roischolar-backend ./backend
docker run -p 5173:5173 roischolar-frontend
docker run -p 5000:5000 roischolar-backend

⚡ Performance Optimization

Implemented:

Code splitting with lazy loading
Redis caching for API responses
Image optimization with WebP
Debounced search inputs
Virtualized lists for large datasets
CDN for static assets

Recommended:

Add service workers for PWA
Add Brotli compression
Add database indexing strategy
Add API rate-limit analytics

🛡️ Security Features

JWT authentication with refresh tokens
Password hashing with bcrypt
XSS protection
CORS configuration
Rate limiting
Helmet security headers
Input sanitization
NoSQL injection hardening

🧪 Testing Coverage Targets

Statements > 90%
Branches   > 85%
Functions  > 90%
Lines      > 90%

Coverage commands:

cd backend && npm run test:coverage
cd frontend && npm run test:coverage

📜 Scripts Reference (Root)

{
	"scripts": {
		"dev": "concurrently \"npm run dev:backend\" \"npm run dev:frontend\"",
		"dev:backend": "cd backend && npm run dev",
		"dev:frontend": "cd frontend && npm run dev",
		"build": "npm run build:frontend && npm run build:backend",
		"build:frontend": "cd frontend && npm run build",
		"build:backend": "cd backend && npm run build",
		"test": "npm run test:backend && npm run test:frontend",
		"docker:up": "docker-compose up",
		"docker:down": "docker-compose down",
		"seed": "cd backend && npm run seed"
	}
}

🤝 Contributing

Fork the repository.
Create a branch: git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature
Commit changes: git commit -m "Add AmazingFeature"
Push branch: git push origin feature/AmazingFeature
Open a pull request.

📄 License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.

👥 Team

Project Lead: Your Name
Frontend Developer: Team Member
Backend Developer: Team Member
UI/UX Designer: Team Member

🙏 Acknowledgments

Salary data: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Glassdoor, Levels.fyi
University data: Official websites and QS rankings
Exchange rates: ExchangeRate-API
Icons: Heroicons and Font Awesome

📞 Contact and Support

Project: https://github.com/raunak2015/roiScholar
Demo: https://roischolar.vercel.app
Backend API: https://roischolar-backend.onrender.com
Video Demo: https://youtu.be/eNbowG9-8i4
Figma Design: Figma Link
Issues: GitHub Issues
Email: support@roischolar.com

🎯 Roadmap

✅ Phase 1 (MVP) - Completed

Loan calculator with EMI
Basic ROI simulation
University comparison table

🚧 Phase 2 (Current) - In Progress

User authentication
Save and load scenarios
Multi-step application form

📅 Phase 3 (Planned)

Real-time exchange rates
Scholarship finder
Community Q and A forum
Mobile app (React Native)
AI-powered loan recommendations

⚡ Quick Start

npm install
cd frontend && npm install
cd ../backend && npm install
cp .env.example .env
cd ../frontend && cp .env.example .env
cd .. && docker-compose up --build

Visit: http://localhost:5173

Built for STEM students worldwide to make education loan decisions clear, unbiased, and data-driven.

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 169 Commits
backend		backend
frontend		frontend
screenshots		screenshots
.dockerignore		.dockerignore
.env.example		.env.example
.gitignore		.gitignore
Dockerfile		Dockerfile
README.md		README.md
docker-compose.yml		docker-compose.yml
package.json		package.json

Folders and files

Latest commit

History

Repository files navigation

🧭 ROIScholar - STEM Education Loan Clarity Platform

📸 Screenshots

🏠 Landing Page

🧮 Loan Architect (Calculator)

📊 University Comparison

📋 Problem Statement

🎯 Solution

✨ Core Features

🏗️ Project Structure

📁 Complete Folder Structure

🚀 Tech Stack

🎨 Frontend

⚙️ Backend

🛠️ DevOps and Tools

📦 Installation and Setup

✅ Prerequisites

📥 Clone Repository

🔧 Backend Setup

💻 Frontend Setup

🐳 Docker Setup (Alternative)

🎮 Usage Guide

🧪 Development Mode

🏭 Production Build

✅ Testing

📡 API Endpoints

🔐 Authentication

🧮 Loan Calculator

📈 ROI Simulator

🎓 Universities

🗄️ Database Schema

👤 User Model

💸 Loan Model

🔧 Environment Variables

🖥️ Frontend (.env)

🧰 Backend (.env)

🚢 Deployment

▲ Frontend on Vercel

☁️ Backend on Render

🐳 Docker Deployment

⚡ Performance Optimization

🛡️ Security Features

🧪 Testing Coverage Targets

📜 Scripts Reference (Root)

🤝 Contributing

📄 License

👥 Team

🙏 Acknowledgments

📞 Contact and Support

🎯 Roadmap

✅ Phase 1 (MVP) - Completed

🚧 Phase 2 (Current) - In Progress

📅 Phase 3 (Planned)

⚡ Quick Start

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