HackBU 2023 is under a week away!
Hi all! As HackBU 2023 approaches, I want to provide you all with more details about the event that we’ve finalized.
Schedule and Location
The schedule for the hackathon has been published at https://hackbu.org/2023/schedule. Though some event locations are pending, the times are finalized. Any last-minute changes (i.e. due to delays on the day-of) will be published to our Discord server. All participants, judges, and sponsors should join the Discord server to stay up-to-date.
The event locations given on that schedule are all rooms within the Innovative Technology Complex (ITC). If they’re all unfamiliar right now, don’t worry! We have been working to come up with a map to help everyone get around. Here’s a sneak peak:
To transport people to and from the ITC building, we are chartering OCCT. For two hours at the beginning and end of the event, we will be running a shuttle in a loop from the University Union to the ITC; see the schedule for details. The shuttle will not be running during Saturday night; though attendees are welcome to sleep in our designated Quiet Room at the time (see the schedule), you are urged to take care of your personal hygiene by revisiting your room for a quick shower. There aren’t any real restrictions on when you need to be at ITC; you just want to check-in by 1PM and be around for judging to be eligible for prizes.
Late Registration
If you have not yet registered for the hackathon, you can check if our Late Registration form is still up. We urge attendees to register as soon as possible, so that we can prepare accordingly. Late registrants must be aware of the following: If we exceed our initial approximate headcount, then then people who register after a certain cut-off:
- May have a different meal than regular registrants.
- Will not receive swag until a later date after the event.
The sooner you register, the more likely you are to be prioritized for swag; however, we will make sure that everybody does have a meal.
Other Stuff
We are cancelling our mentor match to prioritize the many other events that we are hosting. Though there will not be a formal mentor match event, alumni are still welcome to fill out the same form to be admitted to the event.
We are not ready to publish the hackathon to DevPost, but since people have asked, I want to share more about the judging categories. Unlike 2020–2022, there will not be a “theme” to this hackathon; rather, the focus is on the prize categories. Here are the prize categories we can confirm so far:
- #1 Best Hack
- #2 Best Hack
- #3 Best Hack
- Best Newbie Hack
- Most Technical Hack
- Best Civic Engagement Hack, sponsored by JP Morgan
- Best Design (UI), sponsored by RubyLaw
- Best Geo Hack, sponsored by CAE
We have also allocated resources for these categories, which could change before the hackathon:
- Funniest Hack
- Best Security Hack
- Best Building a Better Future Hack
- Best Valentine’s Day Hack
- Best Machine Learning Hack
The final list of categories and their prizes will be provided towards the end of this week. Your team, of 1–4 people, will be able to apply for up to three categories. The Best Hack and Best Newbie Hack categories needn’t be applied for, for eligibility.
Thank you for bearing with me through this long update! If there are any further questions, ping me on Discord or shoot us an email at hello@hackbu.org :)