Judging & Prizes
Face the ultimate judgment, and reap the splendid rewards of your impeccable efforts.
ENTRY ROUND SUBMISSION
Click here to submit your video pitch by 1pm ET on Sunday!
Rounds
There will be two rounds of judging: the Entry Round, and the Final Round.
Entry Round: Video Pitch
For this round, you should record a 2-3 minute video pitch that describes the capabilities of your software product. Explain your project, demonstrate the features, and sell it to the judges!
The deadline to submit a video is Sunday at 1pm ET, so make sure you upload your video and submit the link by then!
Recording Your Video
There are several ways to record your team presenting your project; feel free to use whatever works best for you. If you are participating in-person, you can use the small quiet rooms to record. That said, the judges understand that recording conditions will not be ideal, so they won't dock you points for background noise!
If you don't have much experience with video editing, Hyland recommends using a Zoom Meeting. Start by downloading and installing Zoom, then follow these instructions from The George Washington University:
- Launch Zoom, and start up a new meeting
- Start your webcam video
- Open your presentation materials, including your project
- Share your screen
- Click Record
- Start presenting
- End the meeting
That should be all you need to do! Once you have your video file, you'll be able to upload it.
Uploading Your Video
You will be required to submit a link to your video using a platform of your choice. You can host it anywhere you'd like, as long as it is accessible to the judges through a URL. There are a few options for this:
- Google Drive: If you have a Google account, you can upload your video to Google Drive and share via link. Click here for a walkthrough.. Note: If you use Google Drive, make sure your video is shared and accessible to anyone with the link
- YouTube: If you have a YouTube account, you can upload your video to YouTube! Feel free to post it as "Unlisted" if you don't want it to be fully public; but it must be accessible through a link.
- ShareBase: If you do not have any accounts, you can upload the video to a ShareBase folder:
- Click here to open the folder
- Drag the file into the folder, or click the Upload button
- Once the file is uploaded, click on it to open it
- Copy the link to the file from the browser address bar
- Note that if you upload your video here, it will be visible to other Hackathon participants!
Once your video is uploaded, you're ready to submit to the Entry Round!
Form
Click here to access the form and present yourself before the council.
Final Round
The top four teams from each grade level will advance to the Final Round, where they will present live in front of the judges on Sunday!
The final round team schedule will be announced at 3:45pm ET, and presentations will happen from 4-6pm ET.
- Presentations should be under 5 minutes
- Judges will have 5 minutes to ask questions
- Your team may reuse materials from the Entry Round
- Each team member should speak at least once
- Make sure to demonstrate the actual software
After seeing all the presentations, the judges will decide the first and second place winners!
Judgment
Judges will rank your projects based on four criteria:
- Innovation/Ambition
- User Interface/User Experience
- Solution Impact
- Overall Quality
Remember that each project submitted should ONLY include work that was completed within the weekend. At the end of the event, teams will have full ownership of the projects they created.
2023 Judges
There will be an esteemed panel of judges for the event this year:
- Alyssa Levicky | Director, R&D
- Chrystal Legan | Senior Manager, Sales Engineers
- Quinton Robinson | Manager, Software Engineering
- Derek Walker | SVP, Engineering
Prizes
Prizes will be awarded to EACH MEMBER of the winning team for each grade level. That means if your team wins, everyone on the team will get one.
Note: prize options may vary, and no prizes are guaranteed
First Place
Choose between an Electric Scooter and Noise-Canceling Earbuds.
Second Place
Choose between a Pixel Art Bluetooth Speaker and an LED Jellyfish Lamp.
Physical Giveaway Prizes
In-person participants can win candy, rubber ducks, a stuffed animal, a water bottle, or a grab bag of assorted items.
Digital Giveaway Prizes
Virtual participants can win an audible credit, a set of A.I. portraits, a collection of A.I. poetry, a custom synth track, or a Udemy course.