🚀 Mentorly – AI-Powered Barter-Based Mentoring Platform

Mentorly is a full-stack AI-powered mentoring platform built on a barter-based learning ecosystem, where users can both teach and learn through structured 1:1 sessions. The platform supports unified role switching, AI-driven mentor discovery, real-time video call, and a gamified badge system to encourage active participation.

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📌 Table of Contents

• Features
• Tech Stack
• Prerequisites
• Installation
• Configuration
• Usage
• Project Structure
• Queue & Badge Processing
• Contributing
• Contact

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✨ Features

• 🔄 Unified Role Switching
  IUsers can seamlessly switch between Mentor and Learner roles without creating separate accounts.

• 🤝 Barter-Based Learning Ecosystem
  Teach a skill to earn learning credits and use them to book sessions with other mentors.

• 🧠 AI-Driven Mentor Discovery
  Intelligent mentor recommendations powered by AI based on:

  • Skills
  • Learning goals
  • Experience level
  • Session feedback

• 📅 1:1 Session Management

  • Book mentoring sessions
  • Accept/Reject requests
  • Track session history
  • Leave structured feedback

• 🏅 Gamified Badge System
  Achievement badges awarded based on:

  • Completed sessions
  • Positive feedback
  • Community participation

• 💬 Real-Time Communication
  Live chat between mentors and learners for seamless coordination.

• 📊 Admin Dashboard

  • Manage users
  • Monitor sessions
  • View engagement metrics
  • Moderate platform activity

• 🔍 Advanced Search
  Search mentors by:

  • Skill
  • Rating
  • Experience
  • Availability

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🛠 Tech Stack

Frontend

• React.js
• Redux Toolkit / Zustand
• Tailwind CSS
• ShadCN UI

Backend

• Node.js
• Express.js
• REST APIs

Database

• MongoDB (Mongoose)

AI

• Google Gemini AI (mentor discovery & recommendations)

Real-Time

• Socket.IO

Queue System

• BullMQ
• Redis (Badge processing & async tasks)

DevOps

• Docker
• Docker Compose

Deployment

• Render / Vercel

🏗 Architecture Overview

The platform follows a modular MVC architecture:

• Controllers → Handle API requests
• Services → Business logic & AI integrations
• Models → MongoDB schemas
• Routes → API endpoints
• Middleware → Auth & error handling
• Queue Workers → Badge processing & async tasks

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📋 Prerequisites

• Node.js (v16 or higher)
• npm or yarn
• MongoDB (local or cloud)
• Openrouter API key

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🚀 Installation

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/viv756/mentorly.git
cd mentorly

Install dependencies

Backend

cd server
npm install

Frontend

cd client
npm install

⚙️ Configuration

Create a .env file in both backend and frontend directories.

Backend .env

PORT=8000
NODE_ENV=development

MONGO_URI=your_mongodb_url

JWT_ACCESS_SECRET=secret
JWT_REFRESH_SECRET=secret

FRONTEND_ORIGIN=http://localhost:5173

OPEN_ROUTER_API_KEY=openrouterkey

CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=cloudinary_name
CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=cloudinary_api_key
CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=cloudinary_api_secret

AGORA_APP_ID=agora_app_id
AGORA_APP_CERTIFICATE=agora_app_certificate

REDIS_URL=redis_url

Frontend .env

VITE_API_BASE_URL=http://localhost:8000

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💻 Usage

Development

Start Backend

npm run dev

Start Frontend

npm run dev

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🐳 Docker Support

Mentorly supports Dockerized development and deployment, making setup consistent and environment-independent.

Prerequisites

• Docker
• Docker Compose

Run the Project Using Docker

docker-compose up --build

This will start:

• Frontend (React)
• Backend (Node.js / Express)
• MongoDB

Stop Containers

docker-compose down

| Service  | Description              | Port  |
| -------- | ------------------------ | ----- |
| frontend | React Application        | 5173  |
| backend  | Express API              | 8000  |
| mongodb  | MongoDB Database         | 27017 |
| redis    | Redis (BullMQ Queue)     | 6379  |

📁 Project Structure

mentorly/
├── backend/
│   ├── controllers/        # API controllers
│   ├── routes/             # Route definitions
│   ├── models/             # Mongoose schemas
│   ├── services/           # Business logic & AI logic
│   ├── middleware/         # Auth & error handling
│   ├── queues/             # BullMQ queue definitions
│   ├── workers/            # Queue workers (badge processing)
│   └── server.js           # Entry point
│
├── frontend/
│   ├── components/         # Reusable UI components
│   ├── pages/              # Route-level components
│   ├── store/              # State management
│   ├── hooks/              # Custom hooks
│   └── main.jsx            # Entry point
│
├── docker-compose.yml
├── .env.example
└── README.md

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🏅 Queue & Badge Processing

• The platform uses BullMQ + Redis for asynchronous badge processing:
• When a session is completed:
• A job is added to the queue
• Worker processes achievements
• Badge is awarded if criteria is met
• User is notified in real-time
• This ensures:
• Non-blocking API responses
• Scalable background processing
• Clean separation of concerns

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🤝 Contributing

1. Fork the project
2. Create your feature branch

git checkout -b feature/AmazingFeature

3. Commit your changes

git commit -m "Add AmazingFeature"

4. Push to the branch

git push origin feature/AmazingFeature

5. Open a Pull Request

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📧 Contact

Vivek

GitHub: https://github.com/viv756

Project Live Link: 👉 https://mentorly-u5qn.onrender.com/