Introduction
Hi! I'm Allison Schulman. My pronouns are she/her.
I'm a Software Engineer located in New Haven, Connecticut looking for a full-time role to kick start my engineering career. Prior to New Haven, I lived in San Francisco, California for 10 years before moving home to Connecticut last year to be closer to family.
Here on my portfolio, you can read more about me and my recent projects. I'm passionate about web development and excited to find a role where I can work with a team, learn as much as possible, and grow my career. Thanks for stopping by and please feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn or GitHub!
About Me
I graduated from the Bloc/Thinkful Online Web Development program in July 2021 where I learned skills in frontend and backend development over the course of nine months. To complete the program, I built two full-stack applications that can be found below.
My diverse work experience spans over 10 years in multiple industries. I have a Bachelor's Degree in Environmental Biology from the University of Connecticut and worked as a researcher in UConn's Ecology and Evolutionary Biology laboratory after graduation, where I researched tapeworms in sharks and rays and wrote and published a scientific paper describing a new species of tapeworm. In 2012, after spending my entire life in Connecticut, I decided to move to San Francisco, California in search of adventure and more career opportunities. My first job in SF was as an Account Manager for a local, sustainable meat company, where I sold meat wholesale to restaurants, markets, and caterers in the Bay Area. After 1.5 years, I took my sales experience to a technology company, and worked in sales and sales operations for 3+ years, where I consulted with prospective clients on software solutions and wrote proposals in response to RFPs. Most recently, I worked at a healthcare non-profit and managed a Resource Center space and Case Management Team where we provided support to individuals in the healthcare safety net and helped them find housing, employment, education, and training opportunities.
In 2020, I moved home to Connecticut to be closer to my family. As I considered the next phase in my career, I became curious about web development and enrolled in Bloc's online program. I'm thrilled to be challenging myself, building applications, and gaining new skills. I'm looking forward to joining a team and diving deeper into web development ASAP!
In my free time, I run a small business designing and making beaded jewelry. I handle all aspects of the business as the sole owner and producer, including designing, creating, marketing, sales, and customer service. It is a part-time passion project and creative outlet, but it gives me so much joy and appreciation for design. I also like to go hiking, backpacking, and paddleboarding, and I love music and attending live concerts at cool venues.
Areas of interest:
- Science
- Environmental sustainability
- Music & entertainment
- Design
- Social justice & equality
- Health & wellness
- BLM, LGBTQ, & Women's Rights
Skills & services:
- React
- JavaScript ES6
- HTML5 & CSS3
- jQuery
- Express servers
- Node.js
- PostgreSQL
- RESTful APIs
Projects
THORNBERRY: Wildlifer Tracker App
Thornberry was my second capstone project for the Bloc/Thinkful Web Development course. It is a wildlife tracker application that nature lovers can use to keep track of animal sightings. Users can upload information about the animal, location, date, notes, and a photo through the Cloudinary Widget. Inspiration for this application came from my parents' need to keep track of bird and bear activity in their backyard. This application was built to meet the specifications laid out by the Bloc/Thinkful course.
The front end of this project was built in React, using Router, class components, state, props, vanilla CSS, and the Cloudinary Widget. An API was created that handled all promises necessary to interact with the back-end API database.
The back end of this project was built using Node.js, Express, PostgreSQL, and Knex. RESTful APIs were used along with middleware including Morgan, Express.json, Helmet, and CORS. CORS was implemented to ensure connection between the front end application and back end API.
SETBREAK: Concert Tracker App
Setbreak was my first capstone project for the Bloc/Thinkful Web Development course. It is a concert tracker application that music fans can use to keep track of concerts they've attended. Users can upload details about the concert including artist, venue, date, highlights, and notes. Inspiration for this application came from my friends' desire to recount concerts from the past year. This application was built to meet the specifications laid out by the Bloc/Thinkful course.
The front end of this project was built in React, using Router, class components, state, props, and vanilla CSS. An API was created that handled all promises necessary to interact with the back-end API database.
The back end of this project was built using Node.js, Express, PostgreSQL, and Knex. RESTful APIs were used along with middleware including Morgan, Express.json, Helmet, and CORS. CORS was implemented to ensure connection between the front end application and back end API.
BOOKWORM: NYT Bestseller App
Bookworm is an application that allows readers to quickly and easily access book recommendations from the New York Times Bestseller lists. Users enter a date and receive a list of ten books, five fiction and five non-fiction, from the NYT Bestseller List from that date. Inspiration for this application came from being a voracious reader and wanting access to quick recomemndations.
This project was my first experience integrating with a third party API; the New Yorks Times Books API. I drafted a proposal, write users stories, created user flows and wireframes, implemented a minimum viable project (MVP), gathered user feedback, iterated, and styled the final version with vanilla CSS.
NEW ENGLAND TRIVIA: Quiz App
The New England Trivia application is an interactive 8-question quiz that users can take for fun to quiz themselves on New England Trivia. Inspiration for this application came from growing up in New England.
This was my first experience building an interactive quiz application from scratch. It was my first time using jQuery to create event listeners and alter web pages. Project requirements included user experience, technical, and process requirements.