One grand prize. Judged by faculty and tech leaders on real impact, usability, and openness. Presented at a catered ceremony at Tsai City on April 25th.
Start a project after the announcement. Solo or teams up to 3.
Public GitHub repo. Must serve the Yale community directly.
2-minute demo video + short write-up of the problem you solved.
Catered award ceremony. $1,200 prize. Campus-wide recognition.
Weighted in order of importance. Simple and well-executed beats overengineered every time.
Does this solve a real, felt problem for Yale students? How many people would actually use this? Judges will be asking: "Would I tell my friends about this?"
Is it actually usable right now, or is it a demo? Shipped and functional beats ambitious and half-finished. We want tools students can use the day after judging.
Is it open-source? Could other developers build on it? Does it expose data or functionality that strengthens the broader Yale dev ecosystem?
Clean code, good architecture, thoughtful design decisions. Not about complexity for its own sake — simple and well-executed beats overengineered.
A mix of YCC leadership, CS faculty, and external tech voices. Credible without being intimidating.
3–5 judges including:
Full panel will be announced shortly.