Husky Pals

Husky Pals was a project that aimed to solve a problem at UConn. Since UConn is a large university with about 19,000 students on the main campus, I observed that students felt more isolated since COVID and needed a pathway to make friends. In the app, students can input information such as which dorm they lived in, their major, favorite dining hall, and clubs, allowing others to search for them with filters. Students can ask question such as: Do I want to join this club? Do I want to change my major? Do I want to live in another dorm? Once they matched with someone, they can text within the app. One feature would allow users to see a seating map of each dining hall. They can text, “Meet me at table 5 at South Dining Hall.” Creating an initial virtual connection with a real person that had purpose and intention was meant to “break the ice,” and provide a context to meeting someone rather than having dinner with a stranger. The concept of meeting people based on common interests later inspired my Honors Senior thesis work, Gated.