Sonoma State University

SSU 2023 Hackathon

Innovating for Social Good!

Program Objectives:

The 2023 Hackathon will take place October 20-22. The goal of this 48-hour hackathon is to have participating students from different majors work together in developing an innovative and impactful project. Participating teams are expected to present their working prototypes on Sunday, October 22nd and compete for awards.

The key objectives of this event are to help participating students to:

  • Develop strong hands-on product development skills and the ability to solve a real problem through intense engagement, 

  • Build confidence in working in a team,

  • Connect students with industry representatives, 

  • Encourage students from different majors to work together, and 

  • Provide an opportunity for students to build a stronger resume.

Awards:

  • The team with the best project will receive a $500 cash prize to share

  • The second-best project will receive a $200 cash prize to share

  • The third-best project will receive a $100 cash prize to share

  • All other teams will receive a certificate of participation

  • Note:  Cash awards must be cleared through Financial Aid.  Should a team member not be eligible for the cash award, an equivalent tangible prize will be given.

  • See the judging criteria below for what the judges will be looking for.

Rules: 

  • Teams must have at least 2 members and no more than 4 members, and there should be no more than 3 engineering or computer science students per team.  

  • You may register as a team or as an individual.  Individuals will be assigned to a team at the Friday night opening event on Oct. 20th.  

  • Participants must use their own materials to complete their projects. (The total cost of the materials cannot exceed $100 unless the teams receive prior permission.) 

  • Final demonstrations are limited to 5-10 minutes starting with a 30 second pitch. 

  • All final presentations must be given in person.

Participant Eligibility and Registration: 

  • All majors are welcome to participate!

  • Participants must be current SSU students. 

  • In order to be eligible to present the final project, students must register. Click here to Register for the Hackathon. 

  • As indicated above, you may register as a team or as an individual. Individuals will be assigned to a team at the Friday opening event. Teams who have registered should be prepared to welcome any individual assigned to them.  

Theme:

Projects can address any real problems in various areas including social good, sustainability, personal gadgets, health care, public safety, automation, etc.

Important Dates:

  • October 20, 12:00 - 1:30 pm: Introduction to the rules and assigning teams

  • October 20, 1:30 pm: Registration ends

  • October 22, 5:00 - 5:30 pm: Starting remarks

  • October 22, 5:30 -  7:00 pm: Demonstrating the projects and selecting the winning group

  • October 22, 7:00 - 7:15 pm: Prizes will be awarded 

  • All events will be held in WINE 1001.

Judging Criteria: 

  • Working Prototype (20%) - Quality of the developed prototype and its completeness 

  • Complexity (20%) - Complexity of the project

  • Solves a relevant problem (20%) - The potential impact of the project on the community

  • Originality (20%) - Originality of the idea and approach

  • Presentation (20%) - Quality of the final presentation by the team

Sponsors:

This event has been made possible by generous contributions from the School of Business and the School of Science and Technology at Sonoma State University.

Questions?

  • Please contact Christopher Stewart (stewarch@sonoma.edu) if you have any questions about the Hackathon.