CommUnity — Social Platform for International Student Integration
A mobile-first social platform to address the severe cultural isolation faced by international students relocating to new countries.
Overview
International students face a critical challenge existing social platforms fail to address: severe cultural isolation when relocating to a new country. Platforms like Facebook and WhatsApp exist for broad networking, but they don't help students find people from their specific hometown or region who can provide authentic cultural understanding and practical guidance. This gap increases stress and reduces academic performance during the crucial first year abroad.
Research Insights
- Students struggle to find their hometown community, relying on fragmented Facebook groups.
- They lack critical local knowledge — transit, banking, groceries, part-time jobs.
- They hesitate to connect with strangers online without verification systems.
Solution & Process
I led end-to-end product development for CommUnity, a mobile-first platform connecting international students with verified community members from their hometown or region.
Product Definition
- Conducted primary research through structured surveys and customer interviews to validate the problem.
- Developed a product strategy: vision statement, value proposition and competitive positioning via verified cultural matching and geo-location connections.
- Wrote a detailed PRD with user personas, 30+ user stories across 4 epics, and success metrics.
- Designed low-fidelity wireframes and ran usability testing with 5 participants across 5 task flows.
Go-to-Market & Roadmap
- Positioning framework and freemium pricing model with targeted advertising.
- Defined KPIs: 500 user acquisition / month, 30%+ MAU, 4.5+ CSAT, 10% free-to-premium conversion.
- Set OKRs targeting 500+ active users across 5 pilot communities within 6 months.
- Created a phased 6-week roadmap: auth, profiles, discovery, messaging, events and safety.