Interview-prep AI App

A full-stack web app to help users prepare for technical interviews using AI-powered question generation, practice sessions, and user session management. This repository contains a TypeScript/Node backend and a React + Vite frontend.

Note: This project is under active development. Bug fixes and feature improvements are being implemented regularly. Some features may be in progress or subject to change.

Table of contents

• Project overview
• Screenshots
• Features
• Architecture
• Routes (high-level)
• Environment variables
• Setup & run
• Contributing
• Where to look in the code

Project overview

This project helps users prepare for technical interviews by:

• Managing users and authentication
• Creating and storing interview questions
• Creating practice sessions (timed/mock interviews)
• Generating AI-driven question suggestions and answer previews

The repository is split into two main folders:

• backend/ — TypeScript Node server (API, DB models, controllers, services)
• frontend/ — React + Vite app (UI, pages, components)

Screenshots

Landing Page

The landing page provides an introduction to the application, featuring a clean and modern design that welcomes users and highlights the key features of the interview preparation platform.

Application Interface

After logging in, users are presented with the main dashboard interface where they can manage their interview practice sessions, view questions, and access AI-powered features.

Learn More

For users who want to dive deeper into the platform's capabilities, the Learn More section provides detailed information about advanced features, best practices, and tips for effective interview preparation.

Features

• User authentication (signup, login, protected routes)
• CRUD for questions (create, read, update, delete)
• Create and manage interview practice sessions
• AI-powered assistance (question generation / response previews)
• File upload support (profile pictures or session attachments)
• Middlewares: request logging, auth checking, error handling

Architecture

• Backend: Express (TypeScript), controllers -> services -> models, with a utilities folder for common helpers and error handling.
• Frontend: React + TypeScript (Vite) with a component-based structure. Pages for Landing, Auth, Dashboard, and Interview Prep.

Routes (high-level)

The backend exposes a set of route groups. See backend/src/routes/ for the exact implementations. Typical endpoints by group include:

• /api/auth

  • POST /signup — create a new user
  • POST /login — login and receive a JWT
  • GET /me — get current user (protected)

• /api/questions

  • GET / — list questions
  • POST / — create a question (protected)
  • GET /:id — get question details
  • PUT /:id — update a question (protected)
  • DELETE /:id — delete a question (protected)

• /api/sessions

  • GET / — list practice sessions (user-specific)
  • POST / — create a practice session (protected)
  • GET /:id — session details
  • PUT /:id — update session
  • DELETE /:id — remove session

There is also an AI-related controller/service used to generate question prompts and AI responses (see backend/src/controllers/aiController.ts and backend/src/services/aiService.ts). The AI endpoints may be embedded in other route groups or exposed under a dedicated path (inspect src/routes for exact paths).

Note: The above list is a high-level overview. For exact route signatures and request/response shapes, open the corresponding files in backend/src/routes and backend/src/controllers.

Environment variables

Put environment variables in backend/.env (do not commit secrets). The code expects some common variables; verify exact names in backend/src/utils/env.ts. Typical variables used by this project:

• MONGO_URI — MongoDB connection string
• PORT — server port (e.g. 4000)
• JWT_SECRET — secret used to sign JSON Web Tokens
• NODE_ENV — development | production
• GEMINI_API_KEY — (if AI service uses Gemini Ai or change according to your api key)

Setup & run

Quick start — run backend and frontend in two terminals.

1. Backend

cd backend
npm install
# Check package.json for the dev/start scripts (e.g. "dev" runs ts-node-dev or nodemon)
npm run dev

2. Frontend

cd frontend
npm install
npm run dev
# Open the URL shown by Vite (usually http://localhost:5173)

Notes:

• If npm run dev doesn't exist for either package, inspect package.json for the appropriate start command (e.g. start, serve, build).
• Ensure the backend PORT and frontend API base URL (if configured) match or set the frontend to proxy the backend.

Development tips

• Backend API files to inspect and modify:

  • backend/src/index.ts — server entry
  • backend/src/routes/* — route registration
  • backend/src/controllers/* — request handlers
  • backend/src/services/* — business logic
  • backend/src/models/* — Mongoose models

• Frontend files to inspect and modify:

  • frontend/src/main.tsx and frontend/src/App.tsx — app entry and routing
  • frontend/src/pages/* — page components
  • frontend/src/components/* — UI components
  • frontend/src/utils/axios.ts — central axios instance (adjust baseURL if needed)

Where to look for exact API details

• Exact route handlers and HTTP methods: backend/src/routes/
• Request/response shapes: backend/src/controllers/ and backend/src/types
• Auth middleware and token generation: backend/src/middlewares/authMiddleware.ts and backend/src/utils/generateToken.ts

Contributing

• Fork the repo and open a PR with a clear description.
• Keep API changes backward-compatible or document breaking changes.