A personal website for students that's simple enough to keep up
A student's site doesn't need a career to describe. It needs evidence of how you think and what you've made: two or three projects explained properly, relevant coursework, activities that show responsibility, and a way to get in touch. Keep it small, because a site you'll update each term beats an ambitious one abandoned in October.
What to show when you have no job history
Recruiters and admissions readers know students haven't had careers. What they look for is signs of initiative and the ability to finish things. That evidence usually sits in places students undervalue:
| Source | How to present it |
|---|---|
| Course projects | The problem, what you did, what you'd change; your part if it was a group |
| Personal projects | Even small ones; a working thing beats a grand plan |
| Societies and clubs | A role and something you did in it, not just membership |
| Part-time jobs | One line each, with a responsibility, not just a title |
| Competitions and hackathons | What you built and what you learnt, placed or not |
| Volunteering | Hours or duration, and what changed because you were there |
| Writing or talks | A link and a sentence of context |
A project, explained properly
One well-written project page is worth more than a grid of ten thumbnails. Use the same short structure each time:
- What it is, in one sentence anyone could follow.
- Why you did it: an assignment, a problem you had, curiosity.
- What you did, with your own contribution separated from the group's.
- One or two images of the result: a screenshot, a photo, a diagram.
- What went wrong and what you learnt. Readers trust this section most.
- A link to the code, the paper or the finished thing, if it's public.
Keeping it simple enough to maintain
The most common student site is the one built in a burst of enthusiasm in first year and never touched again, still saying "currently studying for my A-levels" three years later. Design against that:
- One page, or three at most. Home with projects, an About page, and a CV or Contact page.
- No dated news section. Nothing ages a site faster.
- A set time to update it: the end of each term, adding the best new project and removing the weakest.
- Write the year, not "currently": "Second-year physics student (2026)" stays honest longer.
For specific applications, a page tailored to one role often works better than a general site; see a website for a job application.
Building it with Anticode
Describe yourself and what you want to show: "a personal website for a second-year mechanical engineering student with three projects, a short about section, my CV and a contact form". The Architect asks a question or two where it matters and shows a plan before building. The portfolio kind fits, with optional separate pages such as Work, About and Contact. Upload project photos and screenshots and the model sees and places them. Swiss (Inter Tight) and Technical (IBM Plex Sans) suit engineering and science students; Editorial (Geist) suits humanities. You can try a preview build in the browser without an account before deciding.
Each term, change text in place in the visual editor or ask for a change in a sentence, such as "replace the bridge project with my robotics society entry". Your most recent saves are kept as versions (how many depends on your plan), so you can restore an earlier one if you change your mind; keep your own copy of anything you might want back after a long gap. Publish to a free anticode.dev address, which carries a small badge, or connect your own domain on a paid plan. The personal website page covers sites for people further along.
Limits
- No file uploads from visitors, so the contact form can't receive attachments.
- Uploads are photos and videos, not documents, and video only plays in app builds. For a PDF of your CV, link to a copy in your own cloud storage, or show the CV as a page.
- No embedded videos or code sandboxes. Link to them instead.
- Pages are public. Leave off your home address, phone number and date of birth.
Questions people ask
Do students really need a personal website?
Not always. It helps most in fields where you make things, such as design, engineering, computing, writing and research, and where an application asks for a portfolio link.
Should I put my grades on it?
Only if they help your case, and keep them current. Many students list relevant modules instead.
Can I use it for university applications?
Some applications let you include a link; check the rules for each. Keep the site factual and in line with what you've written elsewhere.