🎓 Capstone — The Redemption Project
Track 2: Vibe-Coder Level-Up · The whole B.U.I.L.D. Method, applied
Your graduation. Take an app you previously vibe-coded — yes, the messy one you're a little embarrassed by — and bring it all the way up to Right. This is where "I made a thing" becomes "I'm a developer."
Why an old project (not a new one)?
Because the gap between your old work and developer-grade work is the entire curriculum, made visible. Rebuilding something real teaches more than any fresh tutorial, and the before/after is undeniable proof — to others and to yourself.
The five passes
Run your chosen app through every letter of B.U.I.L.D.:
1. 🧠 Understand (L1)
Document what every major part does. Remove dead code. No black boxes remain.
2. 🎨 Interface (L2)
De-template the UI with deliberate design choices. Make it responsive. Make it accessible (keyboard, alt text, contrast, semantic HTML).
3. 🔒 Lock It Down (L3)
Run the full Security Audit Checklist. Secrets to env vars. Validate input. Enforce auth on the backend. Lock the database. Audit dependencies.
4. 📦 Document, Test & Deploy (L4–L7)
Add a README. Put it in Git with a clean history. Test the critical path. Run Lighthouse and fix the worst issue. Deploy it live with env vars set in prod.
5. 📊 Present the before/after audit
Score the app on the Code Review Rubric before and after. Share:
- The two scores (and the jump)
- One thing that scared you and how you fixed it
- The live link + the repo
🏆 You graduate when…
- The app scores 8+/10 on the Code Review Rubric
- It passes the Security Audit Checklist
- It's live, version-controlled, documented, and tested
- You posted your before/after audit to the group
Pass this, and you've earned what the Institute exists to confer: not "vibe coder" or "developer" as opposites, but both, done right. You can build fast and build it right. 🏛️
Build It Right, Or Don't Build It At All.