# Draft Pull Request Description

> Use this whenever the user wants to open a pull request (PR), draft a PR, or summarize their branch for merging. Fills out the project PR template.

- Skill: `broadinstitute/draft-pull-request-description` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add broadinstitute/draft-pull-request-description`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/broadinstitute/draft-pull-request-description/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: broadinstitute (https://skillmd.com/u/broadinstitute)
- Updated: 2026-09-10
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/broadinstitute/draft-pull-request-description

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## Objective

Prepare a comprehensive, professional, and concise Pull Request description. Your goal is to fill out the project's PR template thoroughly so the reviewer can more quickly understand:

All of the bullet points below should, as a rule, be concise. One or two sentences each max.

- the intent of the PR
  - the issue that this PR resolves, if applicable
- the design chosen
- what code changes/additions were required
- what tests were added, or changed
- anything that might require specific thought or consideration, and why (e.g. possible introduced breaking changes, or design of new UI components)

## Workflow

### 1. Read the Template:

Read the `.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md` file.

### 2. Determine the base:

- Ask the user if the branch is stacked off another, default to `origin/main` if the user doesn't know, as its most likely not stacked

### 3. Analyze the Diff

Run `git diff main...HEAD` to understand the holistic changes made on this branch.

### 4. Draft the Content

- Write a clear and concise description
- Briefly explain the architecture and design decisions, more text is a liability, be readable and to the point.

### 5. Check for UI Changes

Check if any changed files end in `.tsx`, `.jsx`, `.css`, or represent UI components.

### 6. Output the Draft & Prompt the User

- Output the complete, filled-out markdown for the PR.
- **CRITICAL:** If UI files were changed, you must add a bold note at the end telling the human: "I noticed UI changes in this branch. Please take Before/After screenshots and drag them into the table before hitting Submit."