Extra Credit

For every 2 things you complete from the list below you can earn 1 extra credit point with a maximum of 2 extra credit points for the group project.

1. Innovative problem selection

i. A clearly defined target audience
ii. Evidence that the problem exists (brief research, interviews, or validation)
iii. Explanation of why existing solutions are insufficient
iv. Clear differentiation from a basic tutorial-style app
v. Intentional testing of application with target audience and recording of observation

Deliverable other than your code base: You will include a section in the project report summarizing how these goals were met.

Grading Specifications:

Criteria	Below Expectations	Meets Expectations
Target audience	Audience is vague or unspecified.	Target audience is clearly defined and appropriate.
Evidence the problem exists	No validation or evidence provided.	Brief validation included (research, interviews, or user feedback).
Why existing solutions are insufficient	No comparison to existing solutions.	Clearly explains gaps/limitations in existing solutions.
Differentiation from tutorial app	Feels like a generic tutorial/CRUD app with minimal originality.	Clearly differentiated with unique scope, features, or workflow.
Testing with target audience	No target-audience testing or observations recorded.	Tested with target audience; observations recorded and summarized.

2. Creativity of the Website from the UI/UX perspective

i. Cohesive visual design (e.g.: consistent color themes, palette)
ii. Clear flow and intuitive navigation
iii. Custom styling beyond minor CSS tweaks
iv. Engaging UI elements (e.g.: animations, custom logos, dynamic feedback)
v. Accessibility considerations (e.g.: color contrasts)

Deliverable other than your code base: You will include a section in the project report summarizing how these goals were met.

Grading Specifications:

Criteria	Below Expectations	Meets Expectations
Visual design	Inconsistent colors/theme across pages.	Cohesive, consistent color theme/palette throughout.
Flow & navigation	Navigation is confusing; key tasks are hard to find/complete.	Clear flow; intuitive navigation for core tasks.
Custom styling	Only minor CSS tweaks; looks mostly default.	Noticeable custom styling beyond defaults.
UI engagement	Little/no interactivity or feedback; generic visuals.	Engaging elements (animations, custom logo/branding, dynamic feedback).
Accessibility	Poor contrast/readability; accessibility ignored.	Basic accessibility considered (readable contrast, clear labels).

3. Responsible GenAI Integration

i. Add a small AI-powered feature to the application. It could be used to:

• Summarize information
• Make recommendations based on user input
• FAQ assistant using chatbot feature
  

ii. You may use generative AI tools to complete this task.

Deliverable other than your code base: Include a genAI_usage_extra_credit.txt file that includes all the prompts and responses from your interaction with the tool.

Grading Specifications:

Criteria	Below Expectations	Meets Expectations
AI-powered feature implemented	No AI feature, or feature is incomplete/non-functional.	A working AI feature is implemented (summary, recommendations, or FAQ/chatbot).
Integration with app	Feature is isolated or not integrated into the UI/app flow.	Feature is integrated into the application UI with a clear user flow (input → AI output).
Usefulness & alignment	Output is generic/unhelpful or unrelated to user input/app context.	Feature produces relevant output based on user input/context and adds clear value.
Reproducibility	Cannot consistently demo; setup/run steps missing.	Can be reliably demoed; setup/run steps are documented (e.g., in README).
GenAI tool usage (allowed)	GenAI usage is unclear or not documented.	GenAI tools may be used; usage is transparent and briefly documented (what tool + what it was used for).

4. Professional Organization and Documentation of repository

In addition to organizing the repository as directed in the directory structure above, the following are completed:

• .gitignore properly ignores node_modules, .env, and other build artifacts.
• No random files lurking in the repository
• Minutes of the meeting files are diligently maintained, each week after TA meetings, and contain all the following information:
  • Decisions made
  • Alternative actions/options discussed
  • Follow-up items, including agreed-on roles and responsibilities
• README.md is well formatted, technically sound and contains all the below information:
  • Brief Application description
  • Contributors - In this case, it will be the team Members
  • Technology Stack used for the project
  • Prerequisites to run the application - Any software that needs to be installed to run the application
  • Instructions on how to run the application locally.
  • How to run the tests
  • Link to the deployed application

Grading Specifications:

Criteria	Below Expectations	Meets Expectations
.gitignore hygiene	node_modules, .env, or build artifacts are tracked/committed OR .gitignore is missing/ineffective.	.gitignore correctly ignores node_modules, .env, and common build artifacts; no such files are tracked.
Repository cleanliness	Random/unused files or folders present (e.g., temp files, duplicates, “finalfinal”, unrelated downloads).	Repository is clean and intentional; no random or unnecessary files present.
Meeting minutes maintained weekly	Minutes missing for one or more weeks OR not updated after TA meetings.	Minutes are present and updated weekly after TA meetings.
Minutes content quality	Minutes are vague/incomplete; missing required elements.	Each week’s minutes include: decisions made, alternatives discussed, and follow-up items with roles/responsibilities.
README.md completeness	README missing one or more required sections OR key info is unclear/incorrect.	README includes all required sections: app description, contributors, tech stack, prerequisites, run locally, run tests, deployed link.
README.md quality & formatting	Poor formatting; hard to follow; technically inaccurate instructions.	Well formatted, technically sound, and easy to follow (clear headings, steps, and commands as needed).