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Apply to CS 4535

Applications for Fall 2026 closed on Monday, September 14, 2026

Thanks to everyone who applied. The rest of this page describes the course and what we looked for in an application. Everything on this site stays public, and the Pawtograder Community Discord is open to anyone who wants to work on the platform.

CS 4535: Software Design & Delivery is a selective capstone for up to 50 students. The product is Pawtograder — a production platform at Northeastern. This fall it runs CS 2000, 2100, 3100, 3650 and 4530, plus sections of 5001, 5008 and 5010 — and this course. All 50 students work on one codebase together, shipping continuously to production throughout the semester. We're building a team, not filling seats.

Prerequisites​

The only prerequisite is CS 3100 (or its predecessor, CS 3500). No other courses required. The application and pre-application activity are how we assess readiness — not a list of prior classes.

Time Commitment​

This is a 4-credit course. Expect to spend 200 minutes per week in class (MWR 10:30–11:35 AM) — some of which is dedicated time working on your project — plus 8–12 hours per week outside of class studying, working on the project, preparing demos, doing code review, and writing documentation.

All Pawtograder repositories are public and open source — you can start exploring right now.

Before applying, try this:

  1. Clone the Pawtograder repo
  2. Follow the steps in the README to: set up local Supabase using Docker, seed the database, make a production build, start it
  3. Start a browser, log in as an instructor, navigate to Course Settings > Enrollments, and take a screenshot of the page

If you get stuck, join the Pawtograder Community Discord and engage meaningfully in the support community there. Getting unstuck with help from others is a skill, not a failure.

You can also just tell Claude Code to do this: "set up local supabase using docker. seed the db, make a prod build, start a headless browser, login as an instructor and take a screenshot of the enrollments page." That's a legitimate approach — using AI tooling effectively is part of what this course teaches.

Once you have the app running locally, click through the interface. Explore it as a user. Consider whether anything you see could be better — and if so, whether there's already a ticket for it.

Bonus: Improve a documentation page and submit a PR.

This is not graded. But it tells us you can engage with a real codebase and seek help productively when you're stuck — which is most of what professional software engineering actually is. And because we review applications on a rolling basis, an application that arrives with the activity already done is an easy decision: it answers nearly every question we'd otherwise have. Those applicants tend to hear back very quickly.

Application Questions​

The application form closed on September 14, 2026 and is no longer accepting responses.

Other Ways to Stand Out​

Students may also consider (but are not required to):

  • Pick up a good first issue and submit a PR
  • Write a detailed feature proposal — if you're a current or former Pawtograder user, describe a real problem you've experienced, who it affects, and how you'd approach solving it. Not "it would be cool if..." but a well-reasoned proposal.
  • File a thoughtful bug report with clear reproduction steps
  • Propose a project — if you have an idea for a project team that isn't on our list, describe the problem, who it affects, and how you'd approach it. The project slate is tentative — we want your ideas.

Who Should Apply​

We're building a team, not a class roster. We need:

  • Software engineers (junior to senior) — whether this is your first production codebase or you've been shipping code for years
  • Product managers — drive what gets built based on evidence
  • User researchers & designers — talk to real users and improve their experience
  • DevOps engineers — own infrastructure, CI/CD, and reliability
  • Tech leads — coordinate across teams and make architectural decisions

You don't need to pick one in your application — but tell us where your energy is.

Selection​

We prioritize diversity of skills. We're not looking for 50 of the same person. Your application should reflect what you bring to the team.

Completing the pre-application activity was strongly recommended. It's the clearest signal that you can engage with a real codebase, and an application carrying that signal rarely needed a second look.

Timeline​

  • Application: Closed Mon Sep 14, 2026
  • Review: Rolling, as applications arrived
  • Decisions: Sent on a rolling basis. Accepted students received enrollment instructions before the start of the Fall 2026 semester