diff --git a/server/.rspec b/server/.rspec
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c99d2e73
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/.rspec
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+--require spec_helper
diff --git a/server/Gemfile b/server/Gemfile
index 9425d740..11f7f585 100644
--- a/server/Gemfile
+++ b/server/Gemfile
@@ -30,8 +30,8 @@ gem 'jbuilder', '~> 2.9'
 # Use Redis adapter to run Action Cable in production
 # gem 'redis', '~> 4.0'
 # Use ActiveModel has_secure_password
-# gem 'bcrypt', '~> 3.1.7'
-
+gem 'bcrypt', '~> 3.1.7'
+gem 'jwt'
 # Use Capistrano for deployment
 # gem 'capistrano-rails', group: :development
 
@@ -44,6 +44,7 @@ group :development, :test do
   # Adds support for Capybara system testing and selenium driver
   gem 'capybara', '~> 3.29'
   gem 'selenium-webdriver'
+  gem 'rspec-rails', '~> 3.8'
 end
 
 group :development do
@@ -55,5 +56,11 @@ group :development do
   gem 'spring-watcher-listen', '~> 2.0.0'
 end
 
+group :test do
+  gem 'factory_bot_rails', '~> 4.0'
+  gem 'shoulda-matchers', '~> 3.1'
+  gem 'faker'
+  gem 'database_cleaner'
+end
 # Windows does not include zoneinfo files, so bundle the tzinfo-data gem
 gem 'tzinfo-data', platforms: [:mingw, :mswin, :x64_mingw, :jruby]
diff --git a/server/Gemfile.lock b/server/Gemfile.lock
index 95c53a9a..cac3fab2 100644
--- a/server/Gemfile.lock
+++ b/server/Gemfile.lock
@@ -45,6 +45,7 @@ GEM
     addressable (2.7.0)
       public_suffix (>= 2.0.2, < 5.0)
     arel (9.0.0)
+    bcrypt (3.1.13)
     bindex (0.5.0)
     bootsnap (1.4.5)
       msgpack (~> 1.0)
@@ -69,15 +70,31 @@ GEM
     coffee-script-source (1.12.2)
     concurrent-ruby (1.1.5)
     crass (1.0.4)
+    database_cleaner (1.7.0)
+    diff-lcs (1.3)
+    equatable (0.6.0)
     erubi (1.8.0)
     execjs (2.7.0)
-    ffi (1.11.1)
+    factory_bot (4.11.1)
+      activesupport (>= 3.0.0)
+    factory_bot_rails (4.11.1)
+      factory_bot (~> 4.11.1)
+      railties (>= 3.0.0)
+    faker (1.9.4)
+      i18n (>= 0.7)
+      pastel (~> 0.7.2)
+      thor (~> 0.20.0)
+      tty-pager (~> 0.12.0)
+      tty-screen (~> 0.6.5)
+      tty-tree (~> 0.3.0)
+    ffi (1.10.0)
     globalid (0.4.2)
       activesupport (>= 4.2.0)
     i18n (1.6.0)
       concurrent-ruby (~> 1.0)
     jbuilder (2.9.1)
       activesupport (>= 4.2.0)
+    jwt (2.2.1)
     listen (3.1.5)
       rb-fsevent (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.4)
       rb-inotify (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.7)
@@ -98,6 +115,9 @@ GEM
     nio4r (2.3.1)
     nokogiri (1.10.4)
       mini_portile2 (~> 2.4.0)
+    pastel (0.7.3)
+      equatable (~> 0.6)
+      tty-color (~> 0.5)
     pg (1.1.4)
     public_suffix (4.0.1)
     puma (4.2.0)
@@ -133,23 +153,42 @@ GEM
     rb-fsevent (0.10.3)
     rb-inotify (0.10.0)
       ffi (~> 1.0)
-    regexp_parser (1.6.0)
+    regexp_parser (1.5.1)
+    rspec-core (3.8.1)
+      rspec-support (~> 3.8.0)
+    rspec-expectations (3.8.4)
+      diff-lcs (>= 1.2.0, < 2.0)
+      rspec-support (~> 3.8.0)
+    rspec-mocks (3.8.1)
+      diff-lcs (>= 1.2.0, < 2.0)
+      rspec-support (~> 3.8.0)
+    rspec-rails (3.8.2)
+      actionpack (>= 3.0)
+      activesupport (>= 3.0)
+      railties (>= 3.0)
+      rspec-core (~> 3.8.0)
+      rspec-expectations (~> 3.8.0)
+      rspec-mocks (~> 3.8.0)
+      rspec-support (~> 3.8.0)
+    rspec-support (3.8.2)
     ruby_dep (1.5.0)
-    rubyzip (2.0.0)
-    sass-rails (6.0.0)
-      sassc-rails (~> 2.1, >= 2.1.1)
-    sassc (2.0.1)
-      ffi (~> 1.9)
-      rake
-    sassc-rails (2.1.2)
-      railties (>= 4.0.0)
-      sassc (>= 2.0)
-      sprockets (> 3.0)
-      sprockets-rails
-      tilt
-    selenium-webdriver (3.142.5)
-      childprocess (>= 0.5, < 3.0)
-      rubyzip (>= 1.2.2)
+    rubyzip (1.2.2)
+    sass (3.7.3)
+      sass-listen (~> 4.0.0)
+    sass-listen (4.0.0)
+      rb-fsevent (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.4)
+      rb-inotify (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.7)
+    sass-rails (5.0.7)
+      railties (>= 4.0.0, < 6)
+      sass (~> 3.1)
+      sprockets (>= 2.8, < 4.0)
+      sprockets-rails (>= 2.0, < 4.0)
+      tilt (>= 1.1, < 3)
+    selenium-webdriver (3.142.3)
+      childprocess (>= 0.5, < 2.0)
+      rubyzip (~> 1.2, >= 1.2.2)
+    shoulda-matchers (3.1.3)
+      activesupport (>= 4.0.0)
     spring (2.1.0)
     spring-watcher-listen (2.0.1)
       listen (>= 2.7, < 4.0)
@@ -162,16 +201,31 @@ GEM
       activesupport (>= 4.0)
       sprockets (>= 3.0.0)
     sqlite3 (1.4.1)
+    strings (0.1.5)
+      strings-ansi (~> 0.1)
+      unicode-display_width (~> 1.5)
+      unicode_utils (~> 1.4)
+    strings-ansi (0.1.0)
     thor (0.20.3)
     thread_safe (0.3.6)
     tilt (2.0.9)
-    turbolinks (5.2.1)
+    tty-color (0.5.0)
+    tty-pager (0.12.1)
+      strings (~> 0.1.4)
+      tty-screen (~> 0.6)
+      tty-which (~> 0.4)
+    tty-screen (0.6.5)
+    tty-tree (0.3.0)
+    tty-which (0.4.1)
+    turbolinks (5.2.0)
       turbolinks-source (~> 5.2)
     turbolinks-source (5.2.0)
     tzinfo (1.2.5)
       thread_safe (~> 0.1)
     uglifier (4.2.0)
       execjs (>= 0.3.0, < 3)
+    unicode-display_width (1.6.0)
+    unicode_utils (1.4.0)
     web-console (3.7.0)
       actionview (>= 5.0)
       activemodel (>= 5.0)
@@ -187,17 +241,24 @@ PLATFORMS
   ruby
 
 DEPENDENCIES
+  bcrypt (~> 3.1.7)
   bootsnap (>= 1.1.0)
   byebug
   capybara (~> 3.29)
   coffee-rails (~> 5.0)
+  database_cleaner
+  factory_bot_rails (~> 4.0)
+  faker
   jbuilder (~> 2.9)
+  jwt
   listen (>= 3.0.5, < 3.2)
   pg
   puma (~> 4.2)
   rails (~> 5.2)
-  sass-rails (~> 6.0)
+  rspec-rails (~> 3.8)
+  sass-rails (~> 5.0)
   selenium-webdriver
+  shoulda-matchers (~> 3.1)
   spring
   spring-watcher-listen (~> 2.0.0)
   sqlite3 (~> 1.4.1)
diff --git a/server/app/assets/javascripts/welcome.coffee b/server/app/assets/javascripts/welcome.coffee
deleted file mode 100644
index 24f83d18..00000000
--- a/server/app/assets/javascripts/welcome.coffee
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,3 +0,0 @@
-# Place all the behaviors and hooks related to the matching controller here.
-# All this logic will automatically be available in application.js.
-# You can use CoffeeScript in this file: http://coffeescript.org/
diff --git a/server/app/assets/stylesheets/welcome.scss b/server/app/assets/stylesheets/welcome.scss
deleted file mode 100644
index f931ca65..00000000
--- a/server/app/assets/stylesheets/welcome.scss
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,84 +0,0 @@
-//base css 
-* {
-  margin: 0;
-  padding: 0;
-  box-sizing: inherit;
-}
-body
-{
-  box-sizing: border-box;
-}
-html{
-  font-size: 62.5%; 
-  font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;
-}
-// base css ends here
-
-//color variables 
-$color-primary: #DC143C;
-$color-ligt-grey: #eeeeee;
-$color-black: #0000;
-$color-white: #ffffff;
-$color-btn-gradient-dark: #ec008c;
-$color-btn-gradient-light: #fc6767;
-//color variables end here
-
-//welcome page css starts here
-h1{
-  letter-spacing: 0.1em;
-  font-size: 3.5rem;
-  margin: 5rem 0;
-  color: $color-primary;
-  text-shadow: 0 0.2rem 0.8rem $color-ligt-grey; 
-}
-
-.homeContainer{
-  text-align: center;
-  display: flex;
-  align-items: center;
-  justify-content: center;
-  flex-direction: column;
-}
-.btn {
-  &,
-  &:link,
-  &:visited{
-    text-transform: uppercase;
-    text-decoration: none;
-    padding: 15px 40px;    
-    font-size: 2rem;
-    cursor: pointer;    
-    text-shadow: 0 0.1rem 0.2rem $color-ligt-grey;
-    letter-spacing: 0.2rem;
-    transition: all 0.2s;
-  }
-  &:hover {
-    transform: translateY(-3px);
-    box-shadow: 0 10px 20px rgba($color-black, 0.2);
-    &:after {
-      transform: scaleX(1.4) scaleY(1.6);
-      opacity: 0;
-    }
-  }
-  &:active,
-  &:focus
-   {
-    outline: none;
-    transform: translateY(-2px);
-    box-shadow: 0 5px 10px rgba($color-black, 0.2);
-  }
-  &__signup{
-    font-size: 2rem;
-    background: #ec008c; /* fallback for old browsers */
-    background: -webkit-linear-gradient(to right, $color-btn-gradient-dark, $color-btn-gradient-light);
-    background: linear-gradient(to right, $color-btn-gradient-dark, $color-btn-gradient-light);
-    border-radius: 100px;
-    color: $color-white;
-  }
-}
-
-.avatar{
-  margin: 4rem 0;
-  max-width: 100%;
-  max-height: 100%;
-}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/server/app/controllers/api/v1/api_users_controller.rb b/server/app/controllers/api/v1/api_users_controller.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..dee4a184
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/controllers/api/v1/api_users_controller.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+class Api::V1::ApiUsersController < ApplicationController
+  before_action :set_api_user, only: [:show, :update, :destroy]
+
+  #GET /api_users
+  def index
+    @api_users = ApiUser.all
+    json_response(@api_users)
+  end
+
+  # Post /api_users
+  def create
+    @api_user = ApiUser.create!(api_user_params)
+    json_response(@api_user, :created)
+  end
+
+  # GET /api_users/:id
+  def show
+    json_response(@api_user)
+  end
+
+  # PUT /api_users/:id
+  def update
+    @api_user.update(api_user_params)
+    head :no_content
+  end
+
+  # DELETE /api_users/:id
+  def destroy
+    @api_user.destroy
+    head :no_content
+  end
+
+  private
+
+  def api_user_params
+    #whitelist params
+    #params.permit(:email, :password_digest)
+    params.require(:api_user).permit(:first_name, :last_name, :city, :email, :password_digest, :mentor, :mentee)
+  end
+
+  def set_api_user
+    @api_user = ApiUser.find(params[:id])
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/app/controllers/application_controller.rb b/server/app/controllers/application_controller.rb
index 1c07694e..02642bbd 100644
--- a/server/app/controllers/application_controller.rb
+++ b/server/app/controllers/application_controller.rb
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
-class ApplicationController < ActionController::Base
-  protect_from_forgery with: :exception
+class ApplicationController < ActionController::API 
+  #protect_from_forgery with: :exception
+  include Response
+  include ExceptionHandler
 end
+
diff --git a/server/app/controllers/concerns/exception_handler.rb b/server/app/controllers/concerns/exception_handler.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..639b83d1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/controllers/concerns/exception_handler.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+module ExceptionHandler
+  extend ActiveSupport::Concern
+
+  # Define custom error subclasses - rescue catches `StandardErrors`
+  class AuthenticationError < StandardError; end
+  class MissingToken < StandardError; end
+  class InvalidToken < StandardError; end
+
+  included do
+    rescue_from ActiveRecord::RecordInvalid, with: :four_two_two
+    rescue_from ActiveRecord::RecordNotFound, with: :four_o_four
+    rescue_from ActionController::ParameterMissing, with: :four_two_two
+    #Following handlers not required until authentication set up
+    #rescue_from ExceptionHandler::AuthenticationError, with: :unauthorized_request
+    #rescue_from ExceptionHandler::MissingToken, with: :four_twenty_two
+    #rescue_from ExceptionHandler::InvalidToken, with: :four_twenty_two
+  end
+
+  private
+
+  def four_o_four(e)
+    json_response({message: e.message}, :not_found)
+  end
+
+  def four_two_two(e)
+    json_response({message: e.message}, :unprocessable_entity)
+  end
+
+  # JSON response with message; Status code 401 - Unauthorized
+  def unauthorized_request(e)
+    json_response({ message: e.message }, :unauthorized)
+  end
+
+end
diff --git a/server/app/controllers/concerns/response.rb b/server/app/controllers/concerns/response.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..cfb0caa4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/controllers/concerns/response.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+module Response
+  def json_response(object, status = :ok)
+    render json: object, status: status
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/app/controllers/welcome_controller.rb b/server/app/controllers/welcome_controller.rb
deleted file mode 100644
index f9b859b9..00000000
--- a/server/app/controllers/welcome_controller.rb
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,4 +0,0 @@
-class WelcomeController < ApplicationController
-  def index
-  end
-end
diff --git a/server/app/helpers/api_users_helper.rb b/server/app/helpers/api_users_helper.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2b56598f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/helpers/api_users_helper.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+module ApiUsersHelper
+end
diff --git a/server/app/lib/message.rb b/server/app/lib/message.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..e47526c2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/lib/message.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+class Message
+  def self.not_found(record = 'record')
+    "Sorry, #{record} not found."
+  end
+
+  def self.invalid_credentials
+    'Invalid credentials'
+  end
+
+  def self.invalid_token
+    'Invalid token'
+  end
+
+  def self.missing_token
+    'Missing token'
+  end
+
+  def self.unauthorized
+    'Unauthorized request'
+  end
+
+  def self.account_created
+    'Account created successfully'
+  end
+
+  def self.account_not_created
+    'Account could not be created'
+  end
+
+  def self.expired_token
+    'Sorry, your token has expired. Please login to continue.'
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/app/models/api_user.rb b/server/app/models/api_user.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..9cecadbc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/app/models/api_user.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+class ApiUser < ApplicationRecord
+  # encrypt password
+  #has_secure_password
+
+
+  # Can write model association here for example
+  #h has_many :***, dependent: :destroy
+
+  # validation
+  validates_presence_of :email, :password_digest
+end
+
diff --git a/server/app/views/welcome/index.html.erb b/server/app/views/welcome/index.html.erb
deleted file mode 100644
index 2f622239..00000000
--- a/server/app/views/welcome/index.html.erb
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,10 +0,0 @@
-<div class="homeContainer">
-  <h1>Welcome to Mentor Mentee Platform</h1>
-  <button type="button" class="btn btn__signup">Sign Up</button>
-  <%= image_tag("group.png", :alt => "group avatar", :class => "avatar") %>  
-</div>
-
-
-
-
-
diff --git a/server/config/routes.rb b/server/config/routes.rb
index d91ad920..3bb9069b 100644
--- a/server/config/routes.rb
+++ b/server/config/routes.rb
@@ -1,6 +1,12 @@
 Rails.application.routes.draw do
   get 'welcome/index'
 
+  namespace :api do
+    namespace :v1 do
+      resources :api_users
+    end
+  end
   root 'welcome#index'
   # For details on the DSL available within this file, see http://guides.rubyonrails.org/routing.html
 end
+
diff --git a/server/db/migrate/20190623093635_create_api_users.rb b/server/db/migrate/20190623093635_create_api_users.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ae065c6d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/db/migrate/20190623093635_create_api_users.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+class CreateApiUsers < ActiveRecord::Migration[5.2]
+  def change
+    create_table :api_users do |t|
+
+      t.string :first_name
+      t.string :last_name
+      t.string :city
+      t.string :email
+      t.string :password_digest
+
+      t.boolean :mentor
+      t.boolean :mentee
+      t.timestamps
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/db/schema.rb b/server/db/schema.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..13876ee2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/db/schema.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+# This file is auto-generated from the current state of the database. Instead
+# of editing this file, please use the migrations feature of Active Record to
+# incrementally modify your database, and then regenerate this schema definition.
+#
+# Note that this schema.rb definition is the authoritative source for your
+# database schema. If you need to create the application database on another
+# system, you should be using db:schema:load, not running all the migrations
+# from scratch. The latter is a flawed and unsustainable approach (the more migrations
+# you'll amass, the slower it'll run and the greater likelihood for issues).
+#
+# It's strongly recommended that you check this file into your version control system.
+
+ActiveRecord::Schema.define(version: 2019_06_23_093635) do
+
+  create_table "api_users", force: :cascade do |t|
+    t.string "first_name"
+    t.string "last_name"
+    t.string "city"
+    t.string "email"
+    t.string "password_digest"
+    t.boolean "mentor"
+    t.boolean "mentee"
+    t.datetime "created_at", null: false
+    t.datetime "updated_at", null: false
+  end
+
+end
diff --git a/server/db/seeds.rb b/server/db/seeds.rb
deleted file mode 100644
index 1beea2ac..00000000
--- a/server/db/seeds.rb
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,7 +0,0 @@
-# This file should contain all the record creation needed to seed the database with its default values.
-# The data can then be loaded with the rails db:seed command (or created alongside the database with db:setup).
-#
-# Examples:
-#
-#   movies = Movie.create([{ name: 'Star Wars' }, { name: 'Lord of the Rings' }])
-#   Character.create(name: 'Luke', movie: movies.first)
diff --git a/server/spec/controllers/api_users_controller_spec.rb b/server/spec/controllers/api_users_controller_spec.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..de265e86
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/controllers/api_users_controller_spec.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+require 'rails_helper'
+
+RSpec.describe Api::V1::ApiUsersController, type: :controller do
+
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/factories/api_users.rb b/server/spec/factories/api_users.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..fe613662
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/factories/api_users.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+FactoryBot.define do
+  factory :api_user do
+    email {Faker::Internet.safe_email}
+    password_digest {Faker::Lorem.word} #Misc doesn't seem to work {Faker::Misc.password}
+    first_name {Faker::Name.first_name}
+    last_name {Faker::Name.last_name}
+    city {Faker::Address.city}
+    mentor {Faker::Boolean.boolean(0.5)}
+    mentee {Faker::Boolean.boolean(0.5)}
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/helpers/api_users_helper_spec.rb b/server/spec/helpers/api_users_helper_spec.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2eb820c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/helpers/api_users_helper_spec.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+require 'rails_helper'
+
+# Specs in this file have access to a helper object that includes
+# the ApiUsersHelper. For example:
+#
+# describe ApiUsersHelper do
+#   describe "string concat" do
+#     it "concats two strings with spaces" do
+#       expect(helper.concat_strings("this","that")).to eq("this that")
+#     end
+#   end
+# end
+RSpec.describe ApiUsersHelper, type: :helper do
+  pending "Have not used this helper file function yet #{__FILE__}"
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/models/api_user_spec.rb b/server/spec/models/api_user_spec.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..09a307d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/models/api_user_spec.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+require 'rails_helper'
+
+RSpec.describe ApiUser, type: :model do
+  # Association test
+  # ensure an item record has 1:m relationship with the *** model
+
+  # it { should have_many(:***).dependent(destroy)}
+
+  # Validation test
+  # ensure columns 'email' and 'password' are present before
+
+  it {should validate_presence_of(:email)}
+  it {should validate_presence_of(:password_digest)}
+
+  pending "At some stage add more contraints and invoke more resource relationships in this file #{__FILE__}"
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/rails_helper.rb b/server/spec/rails_helper.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..230d682c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/rails_helper.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+# This file is copied to spec/ when you run 'rails generate rspec:install'
+require 'spec_helper'
+ENV['RAILS_ENV'] ||= 'test'
+require File.expand_path('../../config/environment', __FILE__)
+# Prevent database truncation if the environment is production
+abort("The Rails environment is running in production mode!") if Rails.env.production?
+require 'rspec/rails'
+
+# Add additional requires below this line. Rails is not loaded until this point!
+require 'database_cleaner'
+Shoulda::Matchers.configure do |config|
+  config.integrate do |with|
+    with.test_framework :rspec
+    with.library :rails
+  end
+end
+
+Dir[Rails.root.join('spec/support/**/*.rb')].each { |f| require f }
+# Requires supporting ruby files with custom matchers and macros, etc, in
+# spec/support/ and its subdirectories. Files matching `spec/**/*_spec.rb` are
+# run as spec files by default. This means that files in spec/support that end
+# in _spec.rb will both be required and run as specs, causing the specs to be
+# run twice. It is recommended that you do not name files matching this glob to
+# end with _spec.rb. You can configure this pattern with the --pattern
+# option on the command line or in ~/.rspec, .rspec or `.rspec-local`.
+#
+# The following line is provided for convenience purposes. It has the downside
+# of increasing the boot-up time by auto-requiring all files in the support
+# directory. Alternatively, in the individual `*_spec.rb` files, manually
+# require only the support files necessary.
+#
+# Dir[Rails.root.join('spec', 'support', '**', '*.rb')].each { |f| require f }
+
+# Checks for pending migrations and applies them before tests are run.
+# If you are not using ActiveRecord, you can remove these lines.
+begin
+  ActiveRecord::Migration.maintain_test_schema!
+rescue ActiveRecord::PendingMigrationError => e
+  puts e.to_s.strip
+  exit 1
+end
+RSpec.configure do |config|
+  # Remove this line if you're not using ActiveRecord or ActiveRecord fixtures
+  config.fixture_path = "#{::Rails.root}/spec/fixtures"
+
+  # If you're not using ActiveRecord, or you'd prefer not to run each of your
+  # examples within a transaction, remove the following line or assign false
+  # instead of true.
+  config.use_transactional_fixtures = true
+
+  # RSpec Rails can automatically mix in different behaviours to your tests
+  # based on their file location, for example enabling you to call `get` and
+  # `post` in specs under `spec/controllers`.
+  #
+  # You can disable this behaviour by removing the line below, and instead
+  # explicitly tag your specs with their type, e.g.:
+  #
+  #     RSpec.describe UsersController, :type => :controller do
+  #       # ...
+  #     end
+  #
+  # The different available types are documented in the features, such as in
+  # https://relishapp.com/rspec/rspec-rails/docs
+  config.infer_spec_type_from_file_location!
+
+  # Filter lines from Rails gems in backtraces.
+  config.filter_rails_from_backtrace!
+  # arbitrary gems may also be filtered via:
+  # config.filter_gems_from_backtrace("gem name")
+
+  config.include RequestSpecHelper
+  config.include ControllerSpecHelper
+  # Add FactoryBot methods
+  config.include FactoryBot::Syntax::Methods
+
+  config.before(:suite) do
+    DatabaseCleaner.clean_with(:truncation)
+    DatabaseCleaner.strategy = :transaction
+  end
+
+  config.around(:each) do |example|
+    DatabaseCleaner.cleaning do
+      example.run 
+    end
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/requests/api/v1/api_users_spec.rb b/server/spec/requests/api/v1/api_users_spec.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..28687465
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/requests/api/v1/api_users_spec.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,170 @@
+require 'rails_helper'
+
+RSpec.describe Api::V1::ApiUsersController, type: :request do
+#RSpec.describe 'api_users API', type: :request do
+
+  # initialize test data
+  let!(:api_users){create_list(:api_user, 10)}
+  let(:api_user_id) {api_users.first.id}
+
+  # Test suite for GET  /api/v1/api_users
+  describe 'GET /api/v1/api_users' do
+    before {get '/api/v1/api_users'}
+
+    it 'returns api_users' do
+      expect(json).not_to be_empty
+      expect(json.size).to eq(10)
+    end
+
+    it 'returns status code 200' do
+      expect(response).to have_http_status(200)
+    end
+  end
+
+  # Test suite for GET /api/v1/api_userss/:id
+  describe 'GET  /api/v1/api_users/:id' do
+    before { get "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/" }
+
+    context 'when api_user exists' do
+      it 'returns status code 200' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(200)
+      end
+
+      it 'returns the item' do
+         expect(json['id']).to eq(api_user_id)
+      end
+    end
+
+    context 'when api_user does not exist' do
+      let(:api_user_id) {0}
+      before { get "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/" }
+
+      it 'returns status code 404' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(404)
+      end
+
+      it 'returns message informing no user with that id' do
+        expect(json["message"]).to match(/Couldn't find ApiUser with 'id'=#{api_user_id}/)
+      end
+    end
+
+  end
+
+  # Test suite POST /api/v1/api_user
+  describe 'POST /api/v1/api_users' do
+    let(:valid_attributes) do
+      # send json payload
+      { "email": "Test_email@email.com", "password_digest": "password1"}.to_json
+
+      context 'when request is valid' do
+        before { post '/api/v1/api_users',  params: valid_attributes}
+
+        it 'returns status code 201' do
+          expect(response).to have_http_status(201)
+        end
+
+        it 'returns same params as entered' do
+          expect(json['email'], json['password_digest']).to eq("Test_email@email.com","password1")
+        end
+      end
+    end
+
+    context 'when the request is invalid as no params' do
+      let(:invalid_attributes) { { api_user: { email: nil } }.to_json }
+      before { post '/api/v1/api_users', params: invalid_attributes }
+
+      it 'returns status code 422' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(422)
+      end
+
+      it 'returns a validation failure message' do
+        expect(json['message'])
+          .to match(/param is missing or the value is empty: api_user/)
+      end
+    end
+
+    context 'when the request is invalid as only some requird params' do
+      let(:invalid_attributes) { { "api_user": { "email": "email@email.com" } }.to_json }
+      before { post '/api/v1/api_users', params: invalid_attributes }
+
+      it 'returns status code 422' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(422)
+      end
+      it 'returns a validation failure message' do
+        expect(json['message'])
+          .to match(/param is missing or the value is empty: api_user/)
+      end
+    end
+
+  end
+
+  # Test suite for Patch /api/v1/api_userss/:id
+  describe 'PATCH /api/v1/api_users/:id' do
+        let(:valid_attributes) do
+          # send json payload
+          { "first_name": "Bobby","last_name": "Dylan", "city": "Mexico", "email": "Test_email@email.com", "password_digest": "password1", "mentor": True, "mentee": False}.to_json
+          let(:api_user_id) {api_users.first.id}
+
+          context 'when request is valid' do
+            before { patch "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/",  params: valid_attributes}
+   
+            it 'returns status code 204' do
+              expect(response).to have_http_status(204)
+            end
+          end
+
+          context 'check that parameters have updated correctly' do
+            before { get "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/",  params: valid_attributes}
+          end
+
+          it 'returns same params as entered' do
+            expect(json['first_name'],json['last_name'],json['city'], json['email'], json['password_digest'],json['mentor'],json['mentee']).to eq("Bobby", "Dylan","Mexico", "Test_email@email.com","password1", True, False)
+          end
+
+        end
+
+        context 'when api_user does not exist' do
+          let(:api_user_id) {0}
+          let(:valid_attributes) do
+            # send json payload
+            { "email": "Test_email@email.com", "password_digest": "password1"}.to_json
+            before { patch "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/", params: valid_attributes}
+
+            it 'returns status code 404' do
+              expect(response).to have_http_status(404)
+            end
+
+            it 'returns message informing no user with that id' do
+              expect(json["message"]).to match(/Couldn't find ApiUser with 'id'=#{api_user_id}/)
+            end
+          end
+        end
+  end
+
+
+  # Test suite for Delete /api/v1/api_userss/:id
+  describe 'DELETE /api/v1/api_users/:id' do
+
+    context 'when request made to delete a user' do
+      let(:api_user_id) {api_users.first.id}
+      before { delete "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/" }
+      it 'returns status code 204' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(204)
+      end
+    end
+
+    context 'when api_user does not exist' do
+      let(:api_user_id) {0}
+      before { delete "/api/v1/api_users/#{api_user_id}/" }
+      
+      it 'returns status code 404' do
+        expect(response).to have_http_status(404)
+      end
+
+      it 'returns message informing no user with that id' do
+        expect(json["message"]).to match(/Couldn't find ApiUser with 'id'=#{api_user_id}/)
+      end
+    end
+  end
+
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/spec_helper.rb b/server/spec/spec_helper.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..ce33d66d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/spec_helper.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,96 @@
+# This file was generated by the `rails generate rspec:install` command. Conventionally, all
+# specs live under a `spec` directory, which RSpec adds to the `$LOAD_PATH`.
+# The generated `.rspec` file contains `--require spec_helper` which will cause
+# this file to always be loaded, without a need to explicitly require it in any
+# files.
+#
+# Given that it is always loaded, you are encouraged to keep this file as
+# light-weight as possible. Requiring heavyweight dependencies from this file
+# will add to the boot time of your test suite on EVERY test run, even for an
+# individual file that may not need all of that loaded. Instead, consider making
+# a separate helper file that requires the additional dependencies and performs
+# the additional setup, and require it from the spec files that actually need
+# it.
+#
+# See http://rubydoc.info/gems/rspec-core/RSpec/Core/Configuration
+RSpec.configure do |config|
+  # rspec-expectations config goes here. You can use an alternate
+  # assertion/expectation library such as wrong or the stdlib/minitest
+  # assertions if you prefer.
+  config.expect_with :rspec do |expectations|
+    # This option will default to `true` in RSpec 4. It makes the `description`
+    # and `failure_message` of custom matchers include text for helper methods
+    # defined using `chain`, e.g.:
+    #     be_bigger_than(2).and_smaller_than(4).description
+    #     # => "be bigger than 2 and smaller than 4"
+    # ...rather than:
+    #     # => "be bigger than 2"
+    expectations.include_chain_clauses_in_custom_matcher_descriptions = true
+  end
+
+  # rspec-mocks config goes here. You can use an alternate test double
+  # library (such as bogus or mocha) by changing the `mock_with` option here.
+  config.mock_with :rspec do |mocks|
+    # Prevents you from mocking or stubbing a method that does not exist on
+    # a real object. This is generally recommended, and will default to
+    # `true` in RSpec 4.
+    mocks.verify_partial_doubles = true
+  end
+
+  # This option will default to `:apply_to_host_groups` in RSpec 4 (and will
+  # have no way to turn it off -- the option exists only for backwards
+  # compatibility in RSpec 3). It causes shared context metadata to be
+  # inherited by the metadata hash of host groups and examples, rather than
+  # triggering implicit auto-inclusion in groups with matching metadata.
+  config.shared_context_metadata_behavior = :apply_to_host_groups
+
+# The settings below are suggested to provide a good initial experience
+# with RSpec, but feel free to customize to your heart's content.
+=begin
+  # This allows you to limit a spec run to individual examples or groups
+  # you care about by tagging them with `:focus` metadata. When nothing
+  # is tagged with `:focus`, all examples get run. RSpec also provides
+  # aliases for `it`, `describe`, and `context` that include `:focus`
+  # metadata: `fit`, `fdescribe` and `fcontext`, respectively.
+  config.filter_run_when_matching :focus
+
+  # Allows RSpec to persist some state between runs in order to support
+  # the `--only-failures` and `--next-failure` CLI options. We recommend
+  # you configure your source control system to ignore this file.
+  config.example_status_persistence_file_path = "spec/examples.txt"
+
+  # Limits the available syntax to the non-monkey patched syntax that is
+  # recommended. For more details, see:
+  #   - http://rspec.info/blog/2012/06/rspecs-new-expectation-syntax/
+  #   - http://www.teaisaweso.me/blog/2013/05/27/rspecs-new-message-expectation-syntax/
+  #   - http://rspec.info/blog/2014/05/notable-changes-in-rspec-3/#zero-monkey-patching-mode
+  config.disable_monkey_patching!
+
+  # Many RSpec users commonly either run the entire suite or an individual
+  # file, and it's useful to allow more verbose output when running an
+  # individual spec file.
+  if config.files_to_run.one?
+    # Use the documentation formatter for detailed output,
+    # unless a formatter has already been configured
+    # (e.g. via a command-line flag).
+    config.default_formatter = "doc"
+  end
+
+  # Print the 10 slowest examples and example groups at the
+  # end of the spec run, to help surface which specs are running
+  # particularly slow.
+  config.profile_examples = 10
+
+  # Run specs in random order to surface order dependencies. If you find an
+  # order dependency and want to debug it, you can fix the order by providing
+  # the seed, which is printed after each run.
+  #     --seed 1234
+  config.order = :random
+
+  # Seed global randomization in this process using the `--seed` CLI option.
+  # Setting this allows you to use `--seed` to deterministically reproduce
+  # test failures related to randomization by passing the same `--seed` value
+  # as the one that triggered the failure.
+  Kernel.srand config.seed
+=end
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/support/controller_spec_helper.rb b/server/spec/support/controller_spec_helper.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..9af5f7ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/support/controller_spec_helper.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+module ControllerSpecHelper
+  # generate tokens from user id
+  def token_generator(api_user_id)
+    JsonWebToken.encode(api_user_id: api_user_id)
+  end
+
+  # generate expired tokens from user id
+  def expired_token_generator(api_user_id)
+    JsonWebToken.encode({ api_user_id: api_user_id }, (Time.now.to_i - 10))
+  end
+
+  # return valid headers
+  def valid_headers
+    {
+      "Authorization" => token_generator(api_user.id),
+      "Content-Type" => "application/json"
+    }
+  end
+
+  # return invalid headers
+  def invalid_headers
+    {
+      "Authorization" => nil,
+      "Content-Type" => "application/json"
+    }
+  end
+end
diff --git a/server/spec/support/request_spec_helper.rb b/server/spec/support/request_spec_helper.rb
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..06a2d3ea
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/spec/support/request_spec_helper.rb
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+module RequestSpecHelper
+  # Parse JSON reponse to ruby hash
+  def json
+    JSON.parse(response.body)
+  end
+end