UpLink

🚀 Find Your Next Opportunity

A full-stack job board platform built with Next.js — connecting job seekers with employers through an SEO-optimized, server-rendered interface with in-app resume building, smart job alerts, and role-based dashboards.

Live Demo · Report Bug · Request Feature

📑 Table of Contents

About The Project
Key Features
Tech Stack
Getting Started
Environment Variables
Project Structure
Pages & Routes
API Reference
Database Models
Authentication & Authorization
Contributing
License

📖 About The Project

UpLink is a full-stack MERN job board platform built with Next.js 16 (App Router). It connects job seekers with employers through a clean, modern interface that is fully server-rendered for SEO — meaning job listings and company profiles are indexed by Google.

The platform supports three distinct user roles, each with a dedicated dashboard:

👤 Job Seeker	🏢 Employer	🛡️ Admin
Browse & apply for jobs	Post & manage job listings	Platform-wide oversight
Build a resume in-app	Track applicants per listing	Approve company registrations
Set up smart job alerts	Update applicant statuses	Manage users, jobs & categories
Bookmark jobs for later	View hiring analytics	Moderate company reviews

The project leverages Next.js App Router capabilities — SSR/SSG for SEO, API route handlers (no separate backend), edge middleware for auth, generateMetadata for dynamic meta tags, and next/image for optimized image delivery.

✨ Key Features

🔍 Job Seekers

Browse all jobs with search, filter (category, type, location, salary, remote), and sort
View SEO-optimized job detail pages (server-rendered)
Apply with in-app or uploaded resume + cover letter
Resume Builder — multi-step form with live preview → generates downloadable PDF
Track all applications with real-time status updates
Bookmark/save jobs to apply later
Smart Job Alerts — set keywords & categories → get email notifications via Resend when matching jobs are posted
Leave company reviews with ratings

🏢 Employers

Register a company with logo, description, industry, and social links
Post job listings with Tiptap rich text editor for descriptions
Manage listings — edit, pause, close, or delete
View all applicants per job with downloadable resumes
Update applicant status pipeline: pending → reviewed → shortlisted → rejected → hired
Employer dashboard with analytics — total jobs, applicants, and application trends (Recharts)

🛡️ Admins

Platform-wide dashboard with aggregate stats and charts
Manage all users (seekers + employers) — roles & status
Approve or reject company registrations
Moderate all job posts and company reviews
CRUD for job categories

🛠️ Tech Stack

Category	Technology	Purpose
Framework	Next.js 16 (App Router)	SSR/SSG, API routes, middleware, image optimization
UI Library	React 19	Component-based UI
Styling	Tailwind CSS v4	Utility-first CSS
Animations	Framer Motion	Page transitions & micro-interactions
Authentication	NextAuth.js v5 (Auth.js)	Credentials + Google OAuth, JWT sessions
Database	MongoDB + Mongoose 9	Document-based data storage with ODM
Data Fetching	TanStack Query v5 (client) / `fetch` (server)	Caching, loading states, auto refetch
Forms	React Hook Form + Zod	Validated forms with shared client/server schemas
Rich Text	Tiptap 3	Job description editor (bold, lists, links, headings)
Charts	Recharts	Dashboard analytics visualizations
State Management	Zustand	Resume builder & filter state
File Upload	Cloudinary + Multer	Resume PDFs & company logos
PDF Generation	@react-pdf/renderer	In-app resume → downloadable PDF
Email	Resend + React Email	Job alert & welcome email notifications
Date Utilities	date-fns	Date formatting & manipulation
Notifications	React Hot Toast	Success/error toasts
Icons	React Icons	UI iconography
Deployment	Vercel	Full-stack hosting (frontend + API routes)

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

Node.js ≥ 18.x
npm ≥ 9.x (or yarn / pnpm)
MongoDB instance (MongoDB Atlas recommended)
Google Cloud project with OAuth credentials
Cloudinary account (Sign up free)
Resend account (Sign up free)

Installation

Clone the repository

git clone https://github.com/yourusername/uplink.git
cd uplink

Install dependencies
```
npm install
```
Set up environment variables

Create a .env file in the root directory (see Environment Variables below).
Start the development server
```
npm run dev
```
The app will be available at http://localhost:3000.

Build for Production

npm run build
npm start           # Start the production server

🔐 Environment Variables

Create a .env file in the project root with the following variables:

# ─── MongoDB ──────────────────────────────────────
MONGODB_URI=mongodb+srv://username:password@cluster.mongodb.net/uplink?retryWrites=true&w=majority

# ─── NextAuth ─────────────────────────────────────
NEXTAUTH_URL=http://localhost:3000
NEXTAUTH_SECRET=your_nextauth_secret_key

# ─── Google OAuth ─────────────────────────────────
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your_google_client_id
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your_google_client_secret

# ─── Cloudinary ───────────────────────────────────
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=your_cloud_name
CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=your_api_key
CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=your_api_secret
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=your_cloud_name
NEXT_PUBLIC_CLOUDINARY_UPLOAD_PRESET=your_unsigned_preset

# ─── Resend (Email) ──────────────────────────────
RESEND_API_KEY=your_resend_api_key
RESEND_FROM_EMAIL=alerts@yourdomain.com

⚠️ Important: Never commit your .env file to version control. It is already included in .gitignore.

📁 Project Structure

uplink/
├── app/                                # Next.js App Router
│   ├── layout.jsx                      # Root layout — fonts, providers, toaster
│   ├── globals.css                     # Global styles & Tailwind imports
│   ├── not-found.jsx                   # Custom 404 page
│   ├── loading.jsx                     # Global loading UI
│   │
│   ├── (public)/                       # 🌐 Public pages (SSR/SSG)
│   │   ├── layout.jsx                  #    Navbar + Footer wrapper
│   │   ├── page.jsx                    #    Home / Landing page (SSG)
│   │   ├── about/page.jsx             #    About page (SSG)
│   │   ├── jobs/
│   │   │   ├── page.jsx               #    All jobs listing (SSR)
│   │   │   └── [id]/page.jsx          #    Job detail (SSR + generateMetadata)
│   │   └── companies/
│   │       ├── page.jsx               #    All companies (SSR)
│   │       └── [id]/page.jsx          #    Company profile (SSR + generateMetadata)
│   │
│   ├── (auth)/                         # 🔑 Auth pages (centered layout)
│   │   ├── layout.jsx                  #    Centered card layout
│   │   ├── login/page.jsx             #    Login (credentials + Google)
│   │   └── register/page.jsx          #    Register (with role selection)
│   │
│   ├── dashboard/                      # 👤 Job Seeker area
│   │   ├── layout.jsx                  #    Sidebar + content layout
│   │   ├── page.jsx                    #    Dashboard home — stats & activity
│   │   ├── applications/page.jsx       #    My applications tracker
│   │   ├── saved/page.jsx             #    Bookmarked jobs
│   │   ├── alerts/page.jsx            #    Job alert preferences
│   │   ├── profile/page.jsx           #    Edit profile, skills, experience
│   │   └── resume/page.jsx            #    Resume builder (multi-step)
│   │
│   ├── employer/                       # 🏢 Employer area
│   │   ├── layout.jsx                  #    Sidebar + content layout
│   │   ├── dashboard/page.jsx         #    Employer dashboard — stats & charts
│   │   ├── company/page.jsx           #    Edit company profile
│   │   └── jobs/
│   │       ├── page.jsx               #    Manage posted jobs
│   │       ├── new/page.jsx           #    Post new job
│   │       └── [id]/
│   │           ├── edit/page.jsx      #    Edit existing job
│   │           └── applicants/page.jsx #    View applicants per job
│   │
│   ├── admin/                          # 🛡️ Admin area
│   │   ├── layout.jsx                  #    Sidebar + content layout
│   │   ├── page.jsx                    #    Admin dashboard — platform stats
│   │   ├── users/page.jsx             #    Manage all users
│   │   ├── companies/page.jsx         #    Approve/reject companies
│   │   ├── jobs/page.jsx              #    Moderate job posts
│   │   ├── categories/page.jsx        #    Manage job categories
│   │   └── reviews/page.jsx           #    Manage company reviews
│   │
│   └── api/                            # ⚡ API Route Handlers
│       ├── auth/[...nextauth]/route.js #    NextAuth handler
│       ├── jobs/                       #    Jobs CRUD + apply
│       ├── applications/              #    Application tracking
│       ├── companies/                 #    Companies + reviews
│       ├── profile/route.js           #    User profile
│       ├── resume/route.js            #    Resume data
│       ├── saved/route.js             #    Saved/bookmarked jobs
│       ├── alerts/                    #    Job alert preferences
│       ├── categories/               #    Job categories (admin)
│       ├── users/                    #    User management (admin)
│       ├── upload/route.js            #    Cloudinary file upload
│       └── admin/                    #    Admin stats & company approval
│
├── components/                         # React Components
│   ├── ui/                             #    Reusable primitives (Button, Input, Badge, Modal, etc.)
│   ├── shared/                         #    Navbar, Footer, Sidebars, Providers
│   ├── home/                           #    Landing page sections
│   ├── jobs/                           #    JobCard, Filters, Search, ApplyModal
│   ├── companies/                      #    CompanyCard, Header, Reviews
│   ├── resume/                         #    ResumeBuilder, StepNav, Preview, PDF
│   ├── dashboard/                      #    Seeker dashboard components
│   ├── employer/                       #    Employer dashboard components
│   └── admin/                          #    Admin dashboard components
│
├── lib/                                # Server-side utilities
│   ├── auth.js                         #    NextAuth v5 config (providers, callbacks)
│   ├── db.js                           #    MongoDB singleton connection
│   ├── cloudinary.js                   #    Cloudinary upload helper
│   ├── resend.js                       #    Resend email client
│   ├── templates/                      #    React Email templates
│   └── utils.js                        #    Shared utility functions
│
├── models/                             # Mongoose schemas (9 models)
├── schemas/                            # Zod validation schemas (shared client + server)
├── hooks/                              # Custom React hooks (TanStack Query wrappers)
├── store/                              # Zustand stores (resume builder, filters)
├── public/                             # Static assets & logos
├── middleware.js                        # Next.js edge middleware (auth + role protection)
├── next.config.mjs                     # Next.js configuration
├── postcss.config.mjs                  # PostCSS configuration
├── package.json
└── .gitignore

🗺️ Pages & Routes

🌐 Public Pages — Server-Rendered for SEO

Page	Route	Rendering	Description
Home	`/`	SSG	Hero, featured jobs, top companies, how it works, stats
All Jobs	`/jobs`	SSR	Full job listings with search, filter, and pagination
Job Detail	`/jobs/[id]`	SSR	Individual job info, requirements, apply button — SEO meta
All Companies	`/companies`	SSR	Browse all approved companies
Company Profile	`/companies/[id]`	SSR	Company info, open positions, reviews — SEO meta
About	`/about`	SSG	Platform story and mission

🔑 Auth Pages

Page	Route	Description
Login	`/login`	Credentials + Google OAuth sign-in
Register	`/register`	Account creation with role selection (Seeker / Employer)

👤 Job Seeker Dashboard

Page	Route	Description
Dashboard	`/dashboard`	Overview stats, recent applications
My Applications	`/dashboard/applications`	All applications with status tracking
Saved Jobs	`/dashboard/saved`	Bookmarked jobs list
Job Alerts	`/dashboard/alerts`	Manage keyword/category alert preferences
Profile	`/dashboard/profile`	Edit personal info, skills, experience, education
Resume Builder	`/dashboard/resume`	Multi-step form → live preview → downloadable PDF

🏢 Employer Dashboard

Page	Route	Description
Dashboard	`/employer/dashboard`	Job stats, applicant chart, recent applications
Company Profile	`/employer/company`	Edit company info, logo, social links
Manage Jobs	`/employer/jobs`	All posted jobs with edit/pause/delete
Post New Job	`/employer/jobs/new`	Create job listing with Tiptap rich text editor
Edit Job	`/employer/jobs/[id]/edit`	Modify existing listing
View Applicants	`/employer/jobs/[id]/applicants`	Applicants per job with status management

🛡️ Admin Dashboard

Page	Route	Description
Dashboard	`/admin`	Platform-wide stats and analytics
Manage Users	`/admin/users`	All users with role/status controls
Manage Companies	`/admin/companies`	Approve or reject company registrations
Manage Jobs	`/admin/jobs`	Moderate all job posts
Manage Categories	`/admin/categories`	CRUD for job categories
Manage Reviews	`/admin/reviews`	Moderate company reviews

📡 API Reference

All API routes live under app/api/ and are served from the same Next.js deployment — no separate backend server required.

Access Levels: 🌐 Public · 👤 Seeker · 🏢 Employer · 🛡️ Admin · 🔒 Authenticated

🔑 Auth — `/api/auth`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`*`	`/api/auth/[...nextauth]`	🌐 Public	NextAuth.js handler (login, callback, session)

💼 Jobs — `/api/jobs`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/jobs`	🌐 Public	Get all jobs (`?search`, `?category`, `?type`, `?location`, `?salary`, `?remote`, `?page`, `?limit`)
`POST`	`/api/jobs`	🏢 Employer	Create new job post
`GET`	`/api/jobs/[id]`	🌐 Public	Get single job detail
`PATCH`	`/api/jobs/[id]`	🏢 Employer (owner)	Update job post
`DELETE`	`/api/jobs/[id]`	🏢 Owner / 🛡️ Admin	Delete job post
`POST`	`/api/jobs/[id]/apply`	👤 Seeker	Apply for job

📋 Applications — `/api/applications`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/applications`	👤 Seeker	Get my applications
`PATCH`	`/api/applications/[id]`	🏢 Employer	Update application status

🏢 Companies — `/api/companies`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/companies`	🌐 Public	Get all approved companies
`POST`	`/api/companies`	🏢 Employer	Create company profile
`GET`	`/api/companies/[id]`	🌐 Public	Get company detail + open jobs
`PATCH`	`/api/companies/[id]`	🏢 Employer (owner)	Update company
`GET`	`/api/companies/[id]/reviews`	🌐 Public	Get company reviews
`POST`	`/api/companies/[id]/reviews`	👤 Seeker	Submit a review

👤 Profile — `/api/profile`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/profile`	👤 Seeker	Get my profile
`PATCH`	`/api/profile`	👤 Seeker	Update profile (skills, experience, education)

📄 Resume — `/api/resume`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/resume`	👤 Seeker	Get my resume data
`POST`	`/api/resume`	👤 Seeker	Save resume builder data

🔖 Saved Jobs — `/api/saved`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/saved`	👤 Seeker	Get bookmarked jobs
`POST`	`/api/saved`	👤 Seeker	Bookmark a job
`DELETE`	`/api/saved`	👤 Seeker	Remove bookmark

🔔 Job Alerts — `/api/alerts`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/alerts`	👤 Seeker	Get my job alerts
`POST`	`/api/alerts`	👤 Seeker	Create new alert (keywords + categories)
`PATCH`	`/api/alerts/[id]`	👤 Seeker	Update alert
`DELETE`	`/api/alerts/[id]`	👤 Seeker	Delete alert

📂 Categories — `/api/categories`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/categories`	🌐 Public	Get all categories with job counts
`POST`	`/api/categories`	🛡️ Admin	Create category
`PATCH`	`/api/categories/[id]`	🛡️ Admin	Update category
`DELETE`	`/api/categories/[id]`	🛡️ Admin	Delete category

👥 Users — `/api/users`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/users`	🛡️ Admin	Get all users
`PATCH`	`/api/users/[id]`	🛡️ Admin	Update role or status
`DELETE`	`/api/users/[id]`	🛡️ Admin	Delete user

📊 Admin — `/api/admin`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`GET`	`/api/admin/stats`	🛡️ Admin	Platform-wide stats for dashboard
`PATCH`	`/api/admin/companies/[id]/approve`	🛡️ Admin	Approve or reject company registration

☁️ Upload — `/api/upload`

Method	Endpoint	Access	Description
`POST`	`/api/upload`	🔒 Auth	Upload file to Cloudinary — returns URL

🗄️ Database Models

The application uses 9 Mongoose models with a normalized MongoDB schema:

┌──────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐     ┌──────────────┐
│    User      │────▶│   Profile    │     │   Category   │
│              │     │  (seeker)    │     │              │
│  role:       │     └──────────────┘     └──────┬───────┘
│  jobseeker   │                                 │
│  employer    │     ┌──────────────┐     ┌──────▼───────┐
│  admin       │────▶│   Company    │────▶│     Job      │
│              │     │  (employer)  │     │              │
└──────┬───────┘     └──────┬───────┘     └──────┬───────┘
       │                    │                    │
       │             ┌──────▼───────┐     ┌──────▼───────┐
       │             │   Review     │     │ Application  │
       │             └──────────────┘     └──────────────┘
       │
       ├────▶ SavedJob (user + job ref)
       └────▶ JobAlert (keywords + categories)

Model	Key Fields	Description
User	name, email, password, role, photoURL, isActive	User accounts — `jobseeker`, `employer`, `admin`
Profile	skills, experience[], education[], links	Job seeker extended profile
Company	name, logo, description, industry, size, isApproved	Employer company profile with admin approval
Job	title, description (HTML), category, type, salary, location, deadline	Job listings posted by employers
Application	job, applicant, resumeURL, coverLetter, status	Job applications with status pipeline
SavedJob	user, job	Bookmarked jobs (user ↔ job reference pair)
JobAlert	user, keywords[], categories[]	Email alert subscriptions
Category	name, slug, icon, jobCount	Job categories with associated counts
Review	company, user, rating, comment, isApproved	Company reviews with admin moderation

🔐 Authentication & Authorization

Auth Flow

┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐     ┌─────────────┐
│   Browser    │────▶│  NextAuth   │────▶│   MongoDB    │────▶│  JWT Token  │
│              │     │  Providers  │     │  User Lookup │     │  (session)  │
│  Login Form  │     │             │     │  or Create   │     │             │
│  Google SSO  │     │ credentials │     │              │     │ role stored │
│              │     │ google      │     │              │     │ in token    │
└─────────────┘     └─────────────┘     └─────────────┘     └──────┬──────┘
                                                                    │
                    ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────▼──────┐
                    │                 Next.js Middleware                   │
                    │                                                      │
                    │  /dashboard/*  → requires jobseeker role             │
                    │  /employer/*   → requires employer role              │
                    │  /admin/*      → requires admin role                 │
                    │  /login        → redirects if already logged in      │
                    └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Providers

Credentials — Email + password (bcrypt hashed)
Google OAuth — One-click Google sign-in

Session Strategy

JWT-based sessions — role (jobseeker | employer | admin) embedded in the token
Server components: access session via auth() from lib/auth.js
Client components: access session via useSession() from next-auth/react

Route Protection

Edge Middleware (middleware.js) — intercepts requests before page loads, checks auth + role, redirects unauthorized users
API Routes — additionally verify session via auth() for protected endpoints

🧩 Key Technical Highlights

⚡ Next.js App Router SSR on job & company pages for Google indexing SSG on static pages (Home, About) for instant loads `generateMetadata` for dynamic SEO meta tags API route handlers — no separate Express server Edge middleware for auth at the CDN level `next/image` for optimized image delivery	📝 Resume Builder Multi-step form (Personal → Experience → Education → Skills → Links) Live preview panel that updates in real-time `@react-pdf/renderer` generates downloadable PDF PDF uploaded to Cloudinary, URL stored in profile State managed with Zustand store
🔔 Smart Job Alerts Seekers define keywords + categories New job posts trigger alert matching Email notifications sent via Resend API React Email templates for rich HTML emails	✅ Shared Validation Zod schemas in `schemas/` folder Shared between client (React Hook Form resolver) and server (API route validation) Single source of truth for all validation rules Type-safe error messages

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Here's how you can help:

Fork the repository
Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add amazing feature')
Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
Open a Pull Request

Please make sure to follow the existing code style, use the Zod schemas for any new validation, and test your changes thoroughly.

📄 License

Distributed under the MIT License. See LICENSE for more information.

Built with ❤️ using Next.js, React, MongoDB, and Tailwind CSS

⬆️ Back to Top

Name		Name	Last commit message	Last commit date
Latest commit History 8 Commits
app		app
components		components
hooks		hooks
lib		lib
models		models
public		public
schemas		schemas
store		store
.gitignore		.gitignore
README.md		README.md
eslint.config.mjs		eslint.config.mjs
jsconfig.json		jsconfig.json
middleware.js		middleware.js
next.config.mjs		next.config.mjs
package-lock.json		package-lock.json
package.json		package.json
postcss.config.mjs		postcss.config.mjs

Folders and files

Latest commit

History

Repository files navigation

UpLink

🚀 Find Your Next Opportunity

📑 Table of Contents

📖 About The Project

✨ Key Features

🔍 Job Seekers

🏢 Employers

🛡️ Admins

🛠️ Tech Stack

🚀 Getting Started

Prerequisites

Installation

Build for Production

🔐 Environment Variables

📁 Project Structure

🗺️ Pages & Routes

🌐 Public Pages — Server-Rendered for SEO

🔑 Auth Pages

👤 Job Seeker Dashboard

🏢 Employer Dashboard

🛡️ Admin Dashboard

📡 API Reference

🔑 Auth — /api/auth

💼 Jobs — /api/jobs

📋 Applications — /api/applications

🏢 Companies — /api/companies

👤 Profile — /api/profile

📄 Resume — /api/resume

🔖 Saved Jobs — /api/saved

🔔 Job Alerts — /api/alerts

📂 Categories — /api/categories

👥 Users — /api/users

📊 Admin — /api/admin

☁️ Upload — /api/upload

🗄️ Database Models

🔐 Authentication & Authorization

Auth Flow

Providers

Session Strategy

Route Protection

🧩 Key Technical Highlights

⚡ Next.js App Router

📝 Resume Builder

🔔 Smart Job Alerts

✅ Shared Validation

🤝 Contributing

📄 License

About

Topics

Resources

Uh oh!

Stars

Watchers

Forks

Releases

Packages 0

Uh oh!

Contributors

Uh oh!

Languages

🔑 Auth — `/api/auth`

💼 Jobs — `/api/jobs`

📋 Applications — `/api/applications`

🏢 Companies — `/api/companies`

👤 Profile — `/api/profile`

📄 Resume — `/api/resume`

🔖 Saved Jobs — `/api/saved`

🔔 Job Alerts — `/api/alerts`

📂 Categories — `/api/categories`

👥 Users — `/api/users`

📊 Admin — `/api/admin`

☁️ Upload — `/api/upload`

Packages