Whats in the Bag?
The Concept
Empowering traditional graduation-level classrooms with digital technology and turning one-way monologues into discussion-driven learning spaces. It’s about shaping an environment where learning feels more engaging, connected, and thoughtfully led.
How did it all start?
When the Question Hit Me
As a student, I never could really outperform. After years of self blame, just for a moment. I could dare to question the system itself to realise the fact that i had been a silent victim. The educational setup didn’t evolve with how things have changed outside. I felt it was time to see some change in this space.
I believed digitalising the education system could turn things around in favour! But the real question was, where do we even begin, and who do we start with?
That’s when we mapped out every user group involved in the system like the students, professors, admin, parents and simply began primarily with students asking questions to uncover what wasn’t working.
Q. On an average day in class, how much of the lecture do you actually follow and understand? *
Q. When do you find yourself completely lost in class? What’s usually happening at that time? *
Q. What led you to choose engineering? Was it your decision, or did someone influence it? *
Q. Did you clearly understand the course structure, subjects, and expectations when you joined? *
Q. What was your biggest concern or fear towards the end of your graduation? *
Q. Have you ever faced a backlog during your graduation? Can you share what led to it? *
Q. Can you walk me through your experience with placement support and what felt missing? *
Q. When you think about the subjects you couldn’t clear on time, what do you think went wrong? *
Q. How confident did you feel about landing a job through campus placements? Why? *
Q. How do you usually prepare for subjects you’ve failed or missed earlier? *
What Did We Discover?
Listening Deeply
Once we had the questions in hand, the next step was simply to listen. We reached out to over 60+ engineering students and asked them what they had actually been through. Every response carried a clue, a pattern, a struggle, a blind spot that needed attention.
We sat with all the answers, mapped them, grouped them, and started seeing connections. The image below captures how we clustered responses to remove clutter and bring clarity. The image below reflects that synthesis process. And just beneath it, you’ll find the key insights we derived — the ones that shaped the direction of our solution.
Insights
Only 30–40% of Class Understood
Most students grasped less than half of what was taught, citing one-way lectures with little real-world context.
42% Chose Engineering by Compulsion
Parental pressure, societal expectations, or lack of exposure led most to choose engineering.
53% Feel Lost During Lectures
Students often zoned out during lengthy sessions, unclear delivery and pace mismatch were recurring issues.
“ Most lectures felt like reading a manual out loud. I’d nod, pretend to take notes, but my mind had already shut off. No one asked if we were with them. I didn’t feel dumb, just disconnected. And that stayed with me longer than the subject ever did. ”
Ritika Sharma
(Final Year, CSE)
Backlog Recovery is a Struggle
Those with backlogs struggled to catch up. No guided support system, no personalised path to relearn or revise.
68% Lacked Curriculum Clarity
Few had a full picture of course structure or semester flow, many entered with zero idea of what lay ahead.
Less than 18% Landed Jobs Through Campus
Placement rates were low. Most left college feeling unprepared, unsupported and unsure.
71% Faced Backlogs
More than two-thirds experienced at least one backlog, driven by unclear teaching, pressure, or weak foundation.
“ I didn’t choose engineering, I just didn’t know what else was out there. Everyone said it’s safe. But safe for what? I kept waiting for clarity about the syllabus, the path, the future. Instead, it felt like walking through fog, ticking boxes, hoping it would all make sense someday. ”
Nikhil Patil
(3rd Year, Mechanical Engineering)
How Did We Solve?
Designing for Change
Once the patterns became clear, it was time to act. We began translating these insights into tangible solutions starting with the students, but never stopping there.
Our aim wasn’t just to create a digital interface, but to reimagine the experience of learning itself. So, we designed an application that helps students make sense of what they’re learning, track their progress, and stay on course.
But fixing the student experience wasn’t enough. To really shift the system, we needed every stakeholder to see value i.e professors, parents, and admins included. So we dug deeper, ran similar research with professors, parents, and admins to shaped features and workflows for each of them based on user specific goals and tasks.
For the Students
A Digital Ecosystem that Simplifies Student Life with Learning Convenience, Clarity, Career Direction & Smarter Recovery Paths.
Solution :
Turned lectures into interactive learning
Gave them a way to track their own journey
Introduced career awareness early
Made backlogs easier to recover from
Brought curriculum clarity upfront
Created space for preparation and revision
Introduced career awareness early
Made backlogs easier to recover from
Brought curriculum clarity upfront
Created space for preparation and revision
Tasks :
Check performance metrics
View attendance trends
Explore career options and receive nudges
Study digital content and reference materials
Revisit past posts, questions, and responses
Ask doubts and receive peer/professor replies
Track backlogs and recovery progress
View semester plans and course flows
Follow updates via notice board
Stay updated with current affairs and career options
Task Flows :
Select Subjects
Open Notice Tab
Open Explore
Open News Tab
Browse latest News
Go to Dashboard
Go to Profile
Tap on Attendance
Tap on Performance
View Calendar
Close
Swipe Through Report Cards
Select Professor
Check Slots
Apply
Receive Confirmation Update
Choose to study
Explore
Check Attendance
View Notice Board
News
Check Performance
Seek Appointment
Select Chapters
Browse Shoutouts
Tap to Expand
Tap to Expand
Close
Close
Choose Career/Role
Read Details
Bookmark
Plan Later
View Content
Ask Doubts
Appreciate
For the Professors
We designed a mobile-first interface that reduced instructional chaos and boosted teaching clarity and letting professors plan better, teach smarter, and stay in sync with their students’ progress.
Solution :
Turned lectures into two-way conversations
Gave real visibility into class performance
Enabled better planning
Introduced feedback loops
Minimized chaos across systems
One place to upload lecture notes, assignments, tests, and resources
Made backlogs easier to recover from
Tasks :
View and manage lecture timetable
Mark attendance (daily or per session)
Post lectures, resources, and assessments
Moderate discussions and reply to student queries
Enter results and grade submissions
Track engagement and clarity through student data dashboards
View semester plans and course flows
Task Flows :
View Upcoming Classes
View Past Classes
Request Change in Schedule
View Deadlines
Apply Extension
View Doubts
Respond to Doubts
Select Branch
Select Section
Start Marking
Check Latest News
Post on Notice Board
Check / Request Appointments
Accept / Reject / Postpone Appointments
Select Branch
Select Section
Select Semester
Select Subjects
Upload Marks
Choose to study
Share Course Content
Notice Board
Check Milestones
Take Attendance
Appointments
Upload Marks
Splash to Successful Sign Up!
Home Screen
Time Table
Take Attendance
Milestones
Teach
For the Parents
We built a mobile-first interface that gave parents timely visibility into their child’s attendance, academic progress, and important updates — creating a reliable bridge between home and campus, without disrupting student autonomy.
Solution :
Built a dedicated parent interface
Kept them informed at the right moments
Respected student independence
Aligned goals between home and campus
Built a dedicated parent interface
Kept them informed at the right moments
Respected student independence
Aligned goals between home and campus
Tasks :
Check child’s attendance, performance, and improvement
Get updates via notice board (events, meetings, deadlines)
View academic calendar and examination timeline
Pay tuition and fee installments
Receive periodic nudges and reports
Send and receive messages from faculty/admin
Task Flows :
View and Swipe through the Attendance Calendar
View and Swipe through Report Cards
View Latest Updates
Select Professor
Check Availability
Apply
View Fee Related Details
See Due Dates
Proceed through Payment gateway
Check Attendance
Notice Board
Pay Fee
Check Performance
Seek Appointment
Parents Home Screen
Score Card View
Attendance View
Notice Board
For the College Management / Admin
We built a central control system that simplified student and faculty operations by making it easier to manage tasks, track performance, and coordinate institution-wide workflows with clarity.
Solution :
Offered control from a central dashboard
Enabled smarter faculty and subject allocation
Streamlined academic coordination
Made institutional reporting effortless
Minimized chaos across systems
Designed for proactive decision-making
Offered control from a central dashboard
Enabled smarter faculty and subject allocation
Tasks :
Manage student admissions and onboarding
Monitor student performance and backlog status
Approve pending requests or validations
Assign academic/admin tasks (eg., schedules)
Create and manage timetables
Host and promote events, publish messages
Collect and manage fee payments
Block inactive students or delete outdated records
Task Flows :
Set Available Admissions
View Received Applications
Respond with Feedback
Assign Tasks
Set Deadlines
Approve News before getting published
Post on Notice Board
Approve Leave Applications
Approve Extensions
Edit Time Table
Browse using Search Bar
Apply Filter and view Student Details
Check Complaints
Respond & Address
Select Profile
Write a Message
Send
Receivables
Spends
Collections
View Fee Related Details
Admissions
Notice Board
Check Students Performance
Handle Complaints
Message
Fund Flow
Fund Flow
Design Time Table
Check Pending Approvals
Dashboard View
How Could It Work?
Success Scope
What would success have looked like for each of the users? If successful, this solution could have transformed the academic experience for every user group involved.
For Students : Clarity, confidence and control. They could enter each semester with awareness of the path ahead, backed by tools for preparation, revision, and backlog recovery. Learning would feel structured and interactive, not chaotic.
For Professors : A smoother and effective way to teach. Lecture planning, doubt resolution, assessments, and feedback loops would become intuitive. Less time juggling tasks, more time teaching with impact.
For Parents : Real-time visibility into attendance and academic progress reducing the information gap without overstepping boundaries. A quiet but powerful way to stay involved.
For College Admins : One control centre to streamline academic coordination from student onboarding to fee management and performance insights. Decisions could be data-driven, not delayed.
Why Did It Fail?
Key Learnings
Hard truths, deeper insights, and what it really taught me. Despite solving real problems, this platform wasn’t adopted and that failure became one of my most transformative design experiences.
Mobile Phone Restrictions on Campus : Many colleges had restrictions on phone usage within the campus. Using the platform meant violating that rule — which managements weren’t willing to do.
Professors' Belief Systems & Comfort Levels : Not all professors were comfortable or open to interacting with students at the level the application enabled. Many followed strict protocols and didn’t see value in deviating from that.
Offline-Centric Content Ecosystem : Uploading course content onto the platform required several prerequisite steps, as the majority of existing material was still in traditional physical formats like books, papers, and handouts.
Perceived Workload in Digitisation : Translating content into digital formats was seen as a major workload. Many professors were not technically skilled and viewed the change as burdensome.
Fear of Reduced Class Attendance : Faculty believed that digital access to content would further reduce in-person attendance — as it removed the formal “fear of missing out.”
Existing Informal Ecosystems : Students had already created class- and branch-specific Facebook groups to socialise and share academic updates informally, on demand.
Rise of WhatsApp for File Sharing : Around the same time, WhatsApp was beginning to allow document/file sharing — which diluted the perceived need for a new, dedicated platform.
Perceived Privacy Breach for Students : Giving parents real-time access to students' marks and attendance was viewed as a privacy breach by many — especially by students.
8 College Collaborations
Engaged directly with 8 institutions to understand gaps, test hypotheses, and validate needs on-ground.
70+ Stakeholder Interviews
From students to deans, conducted over 70 contextual interviews to map goals, fears, and workflows.
1 Mission — Systemic Change
Aimed not just to design a product, but to challenge how academic coordination was fundamentally approached.
272+ Days of Work
Spanning close to an year of relentless research, prototyping, and evolution outside my day job.
5 User Archetypes Mapped
Designed for students, professors, parents, admins, and decision-makers — each with a tailored journey.
10+ Design Iterations
Each version was rebuilt on real feedback and on testing what worked, discarding what didn’t.
Thank You!
For scrolling this far, giving your time, attention, and curiosity to this story.
I truly hope it gave you something to think about, something to take away or simply a better sense of how I work and what I care about.
Catalyst - Idea management portal
StateStreet
Ideas were dropping off, reviews took forever and it was time to rethink the system. I led a full-cycle rebuild powered by research and iteration that changed everything.
I Submissions soared
I Reviewers returned.
I Delays dropped
Catalyst - IMP
StateStreet
Ideas were dropping off, reviews took forever and it was time to rethink the system. I led a full-cycle rebuild powered by research and iteration that changed everything.
I Submissions soared
I Reviewers returned
I Delays dropped