Hack at UCI

We at Hack at UCI like to believe that a hack-a-thon is very much like an invent-a-thon where like-minded individuals with various different backgrounds and skill sets come together for 36 hours to “invent” something from the ground up. The only thing limiting what you build is your own creativity — we’ll provide the rest.

Any college or university student over the age of 18 by February 3rd, 2023 with residence in the United States of America. Please note that all attendees are responsible for their own transportation to UC Irvine and overnight stay during the event.

You can build whatever you can dream of, whether that be a website with an amazing feature, a phone app, or a rad piece of hardware! Our only rule is that all code must be written during the hackathon itself. Feel free to use open source libraries and APIs; companies attending may provide their own as well. Impress us!

Due to current circumstances regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, Hack at UCI will be in-person with protective safety measures. For this year's iteration, please bring a positive attitude, a device to connect and collaborate with your team, and a willingness to try new technologies! Additional recommended items are: your device’s charger, a clean face covering, a refillable water bottle, earphones, any desired peripherals, and some scratch paper for whiteboarding.

Hack at UCI 2023 is a multi-day in-person event! Please note that we will not be providing overnight accommodations, and that hackers must check-in at certain times on all three event days in order to be eligible to win prizes. We will be announcing the specific times closer to the event, but hackers should expect to attend the opening ceremony Friday night, a midway check-in Saturday afternoon, and the project expo and closing ceremony Sunday morning and early afternoon!

We will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis until end of day, Wednesday, January 25th, 2023. But don’t wait! We will close out our slots for in-person once we reach our designated capacity.

Hack at UCI 2023 will have rolling admissions. There will be at least 2 waves of acceptances leading up to the event.

You will apply as an individual. We will be personally reviewing each application and accepting on an individual basis.

We don’t expect hackers to have any prior experience. We will be providing starter packs and workshops to help new hackers get started on projects and learn new technologies.

You will be building projects from scratch, although we will be offering starter packs to help you get started if you are a beginner hacker. You are encouraged to come with ideas of what you want to build; however, participants that start working on their projects before the hacking period begins will be immediately disqualified from the competition.

No, all attendees (UCI and non-UCI students) are responsible for their own transportation to UC Irvine and overnight stay between event days.

Please email us at [email protected] if you have any additional questions! We look forward to hearing from you.