Recently, a few people have been asking how I made my website, so I decided to write a quick how-to guide. I’ve also included links to some of my favorite personal sites that others have created.
I first created this site when I was applying to graduate school. I had stumbled upon several other sites by professors and grad students, and I figured it would be a great way to get my name out there on the web. Whether you’re applying to a new job, or you just want to gain some experience with HTML/CSS, creating your own personal webpage is a great way to get your name out there and learn a few things along the way. Before we dive in, a quick disclaimer: there is no single correct way to make a webpage, and there are lots of options available. Here, I’ll show you what I’ve done, but there are probably other great options out there that give you more or less control. Feel free to repeat what I’ve done, but I also encourage you to search the web and figure out what will work best for you.
Step 0: Brainstorm
Before you touch a line of code, it’s worth spending a few minutes thinking about what you actually want your site to do. Who is your audience? Are you a scientist trying to share your research? A designer showing off a portfolio? Someone just looking for a corner of the internet to call your own? Sketching out a rough list of pages — Home, About, Research, Blog, etc. — will make every subsequent step easier. It also helps to browse other personal websites for inspiration. Some of my favorites belong to other researchers and academics who have struck a nice balance between professional and personal.
Step 1: Get a Domain Name
A custom domain (like tmmorin.com) makes your site look professional and is easier to share than a long auto-generated URL. I registered my domain through Google Domains, though there are plenty of other registrars like Namecheap or GoDaddy. Domain names typically cost around $10–15 per year. Try to keep your domain simple — first name, last name, or some short combination works great.
Step 2: Find a Hosting Service
A hosting service is what actually puts your files on the internet. For a simple personal/academic site, I’d strongly recommend GitHub Pages. It’s free, integrates well with version control, and works seamlessly with Jekyll (more on that below). If you’re not already using GitHub for your code and data, this is a great excuse to start. Alternatively, services like Netlify offer similar free tiers with some extra features.
Step 3: Find a Template
Unless you’re a seasoned web designer, starting from a template will save you a lot of time and frustration. HTML5 UP offers a collection of free, responsive, and well-designed templates — this site uses their “Massively” template. If you’re going the Jekyll route (which I now recommend), check out Jekyll Themes for templates that are already set up for blogging and easy content management. When picking a template, make sure it’s responsive (looks good on mobile), clean, and easy to customize.
Step 4: Generate Content
This is the part that takes the most time, but it’s also the most rewarding. A few things worth including on an academic personal site:
- A short bio — who you are, where you work, and what you’re interested in
- Your CV or a summary of your work — publications, projects, talks
- Contact info — at minimum, an email address
- A blog or writing section — optional, but a great way to share your work with a broader audience and improve your writing
Don’t feel like you need to have everything perfect before you launch. Get a basic version live and iterate from there. A simple site that’s actually up is worth far more than a perfect site that’s still sitting on your laptop.
Bonus: Upload Your Brain!
If you happen to have an MRI scan of your own brain lying around (a surprisingly common occurrence in neuroscience grad school), why not put it on the internet? Check out my post on how to 3D-print your brain for a related adventure. And stay tuned — I’ll be writing up how I created the interactive brain viewer on this site.