Why Attend a Hackathon?

What’s a hackathon you ask? Well, a hackathon in its simplest definition is an event where people come together to solve problems. Most hackathons focus on technology-based problem solving. While these are big in the tech world, students, designers, and creatives alike enjoy coming together at these events to make something great.

Attending a Hackathon is one of the best ways to begin your journey in the tech industry. Below is a list of six reasons why we think you should join us at our next hackathon in Providence, Rhode Island.

1. Networking
Northeast Hackathon is sponsored by many well-established individuals. The top being the Stamford Innovation Center, a home to many tech-savvy individuals. Not only that, but hackathons bring about people from many different backgrounds; developers, designers, engineers, students, creatives, entrepreneurs you name it, they love to attend. I can’t think of a better way to network; being surrounded by such a diverse group of people. It is easy to find someone who can potentially help you further down your career journey.

2. Community Learning
Hackathons are all about learning from each other. Forget sitting in a classroom discussing infrastructure or economic issues. At a hackathon, you learn together through conversations and discovery. Here you will be communicating with others in your community who share the same issues as you. No lecturing, no textbooks; real discussion. Together you will build your own strategy, learn from each other, and establish a proposed solution!

3. Prize Money
First place winners always receive a nice prize, and who doesn’t love prizes? If you are the first place winner at the Providence Northeast Hackathon event, you will receive a cash prize! Along with that, the winners will receive access to the BlueMix API Platform. Exciting, right? Along with those prizes, many sponsors have donated co-working space for the winners of the weekend to use after the hackathon is over!

4. Embrace Failure
Failure is usually a very hard pill to swallow. Nobody likes to fail, for some failure means giving up. So, maybe your team doesn’t win this weekend. So what...this experience is all about learning. What can you take away from your weekend with us? Is it that you gained some awesome friends? Learned of more problems in your community you hadn’t known before? Or maybe you learned more about virtual reality, something you’ve never heard of before? Embrace the failure, learn from it, and take what you learned and use it to your advantage next time!

5. Give Back
I know I love knowing that I am doing something for the greater good of those around me. When you attend a hackathon, your work is to improve an issue you share with the community around you. What better way to give back to your community than relieving a pain point all who live there share?

6. Being Part of Something Bigger Than Yourself
Okay, so I know this sounds extremely cliché but it’s true. Who doesn’t love the feeling of being surrounded by people who share the same morals and values you have? Hackathons bring about a certain kind of community you can’t find anywhere else. Coming together to solve real world problems is something to be proud of, and will definitely be an experience you look back on and smile, because you can perpetuate change to make a difference.

So, do you have what it takes to join a hackathon?

Providence Northeast Hackathon begins on Friday, November 18th and we hope to see you there!