Jarek Small / Software engineer

Thoughtful software.
A personal approach.

I’m Jarek, a software engineer focused on the systems behind the experience—from SQL databases and back-end integrations to full-stack applications people can use.

Explore my work GitHub

My toolkit

SQL
JavaScript
Python
React
Node.js
PostgreSQL

01 / Selected work

Ideas, put into practice.

Personal projects that connect
technical foundations with everyday use.

MUSIC / DISCOVERY Music Mood Matcher application demonstration

Music Mood Matcher — application walkthrough

01 / Full-stack application

Music Mood Matcher

A soundtrack for how you feel.

A personal connection to music became a full-stack project: an application originally built around Spotify listening data and mood-based playlists. The current demo uses live catalog searches after Spotify restricted its audio-feature and recommendation endpoints.

The focus: Connecting user authentication, listening data, and playlist creation into one experience.
Built with: React · Node.js · Express · MongoDB · Spotify API

Engineering notes Try Music Mood Matcher Explore the code

CAREERS / SEARCH ReactJobly job search application screenshot

ReactJobly — job search interface

02 / Full-stack application

ReactJobly

Connecting people with their next opportunity.

A job search application for exploring companies, browsing positions, and applying for roles. Built to bring a React interface together with an authenticated API and a relational database.

The focus: Search, user profiles, and job applications across a connected front end and back end.
Built with: React · Node.js · Express · PostgreSQL

Engineering notes Explore the code Live demo

More experiments and projects on GitHub

02 / Professional experience

Behind the interface,
where reliability matters.

Florida Blue

Software Engineering Intern

May 2025 – Present · Remote

Supporting the databases and workflows that applications depend on.

Develop and maintain SQL Server database objects, including tables, stored procedures, functions, and permissions, within an existing enterprise environment.
Contribute to legacy database migrations and schema updates, adjusting extraction parameters and automation configurations to support backend integrations.
Support staged database releases through Jenkins deployment workflows, Artifactory vulnerability scans, and ServiceNow change requests.
Apply test-driven practices to database change request forms and help troubleshoot database and deployment workflow issues with technical teammates.
Share deployment ticket workflows with teammates, connecting implementation work with the checks and coordination needed to promote changes.

Languages & frameworks

SQL, JavaScript, Python, HTML, CSS
React, Node.js, Express, Flask

Databases

SQL Server, PostgreSQL,
MongoDB, MySQL

Testing & delivery

Jest, Jasmine, Postman
GitHub, GitLab, Jenkins, CAPAM
Artifactory, ServiceNow

03 / Beyond the code

A builder.
A problem solver.
Always curious.

Learning & foundations

B.S. Computer Science
Western Governors University · Completed August 2026

Software Engineering Bootcamp
University of South Florida · 2023

Certifications
Linux Essentials · ITIL 4 Foundation
freeCodeCamp: JavaScript & responsive web design

I like understanding how things fit together—and making them work a little better.

A friend’s suggestion first brought me to software development. Training through USF’s coding bootcamp gave that curiosity structure; personal projects and my internship at Florida Blue gave me a place to put it to work.

My interests sit at the intersection of back-end logic and the people using it. I enjoy working through a problem, organizing the moving parts, and bringing an idea into a usable application.

Before software engineering, customer-facing work taught me to ask better questions, explain things clearly, and stay with a problem until it’s resolved. Those habits still shape how I work.

Outside of code, I write music, try new recipes, and travel. Making something from scratch is a thread that runs through all of it.

Writing musicCookingTravel

04 / Get in touch

Good things start
with a conversation.

Have a project in mind or a role to discuss?
I’d like to hear about it.

small.jarek@gmail.com