Frequently Asked Questions 

What is a hackathon?

• A hackathon is a competition in which participants build a software and/or hardware project in a fixed amount of time. Typically participants compete in small teams or individually. The theme of the project is determined ahead of time. The actual project is totally up to the teams and must be completed within the timeframe of the Hackathon.

What is this hackathon all about?

• This hackathon exists to give you and other OSU students & alumni the opportunity to build a project over a weekend and compete for prizes. It is meant to be low-pressure, inclusive of everybody, and fun! In this hackathon, you are not required nor encouraged to forgo sleep, work, time with your family, or etc to participate. You are encouraged to make the best product you can in the time allotted. You are encouraged to learn and to add skills to your repertoire. And you are encouraged to have a good time doing it!

Can my project be anything related to the theme or are there limitations?

• The short answer is - go wild. You can do any project that you believe is related to our hackathon theme and we encourage creative interpretations. However, one of the criteria our judges will look at when awarding points is thematic relevance. So, if you veer far from the beaten path the onus will be on you to argue for those points.

I am new to coding. Can/Should I still participate?

• In short, YES! No prior experience is necessary to compete in this event. In fact, there is a separate prize for teams of entirely new students for which you can compete. This event is a great time to learn a new technology or practice one you already know while simultaneously building a project you can showcase on your resume!

How do I determine my competition category?

• All of the team members must be an OSU student or alumni in order to participate.
• If at least one team member is an OSU graduate student or alumni, your team can only compete in the Alumni/Grad category.
• If all of the team members are OSU undergraduate students AND all of the team members have not taken any 300-level courses, this team can compete in both the New Student and Overall categories.
• If all of the team members are OSU undergraduate students (regardless of class level), then this team can compete in the Overall category.

What can I make?

• Anything you can think of: web apps, mobile apps, websites, slackbots, APIs, command-line programs, games, robots, anything!
• Please take a look at the project gallery for Beaverhacks Fall 2021 and our Beaverhacks Summer Sprint 2021 to see what our past participants decided to build in the past. 

More questions? Check out our FAQ.