Simply put, hackathons combine the two words: hacking and marathon. At Hack Western, participants will get the chance to form teams of up to 1-4 members, and bring a project idea to life! However, they only have 36 hours to accomplish this. Students will receive mentorship, learn about new job opportunities, and compete for some cool prizes!

In the context of a hackathon, hacking is interchangeable with building, developing, creating, etc. So we won’t be trying to hack into computers to steal passwords or anything.

Hack Western applications are open to post-secondary students from across the world. Whether you are a freshman or completing your Ph.D., we want you to apply! Unfortunately, we will not be accepting high school students at this time. Each application is reviewed from the Hack Western organizing team, and decisions will be sent out on a rolling basis.

We will be announcing hacker applications in late September. Sign up for our mailing list and follow our social media channels to be the first to hear.

Hack Western is completely free! We’ll also have workshops and activities throughout the event where you can win mini-prizes.

You won’t be hacking for 36 hours straight, as there will be many workshops and activities you can participate in. Last year, our workshops ranged from learning how to set up your own voice app to how you can pitch your project at a hackathon. Our sponsors will be leading the workshops! This year, we’ve got a lineup for fun games and activities for you to participate in. You might even have the opportunity to get some swag!