My First Hackathon Experience: HackRPI

It's always a delight to be Upstate. The mountains, lakes, fresh air, and tranquility make it my "Place Of Power". However, last weekend marked a departure from my usual retreat. I had the unique opportunity to participate in my first hackathon, hosted at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York. RPI, renowned as the oldest technological university in the northern hemisphere. Interestingly, the hackathon coincided with the university's 200th-anniversary celebration. A lot of great engineers studied at RPI, like Washington Roebling, a guy who built a bridge in my borough, not just a regular bridge but The Brooklyn Bridge. Gale Ferris, who gave us The Ferris Wheel – a familiar sight in my own neighborhood of Coney Island. Notably, one of the latest alumni is Robert Scaringe, the visionary founder of Rivian, and countless other accomplished engineers.

Once i arrived at the hackathon venue, the atmosphere was buzzing with anticipation. Teams from diverse backgrounds and skills were huddled together, coding, designing, and collaborating. The energy was contagious, and it was easy to see why hackathons have gained immense popularity.

As we began working on our project, we encountered challenges we hadn't anticipated. Time was limited, and we had to be extremely efficient with our coding, design, and testing. Moreover, we faced unforeseen technical issues that made us question our choice of technology. One of the biggest hurdles was the pressure to innovate rapidly. In a traditional project, you have the luxury of time to research and develop. In a hackathon, time is your most precious commodity, and the pressure to deliver a working prototype is relentless.

Despite the challenges, our team realized that hackathons are not just about winning; they're about learning. We learned to adapt, to pivot when necessary, and to focus on our core idea. We reached out to mentors and received valuable guidance. This collaborative aspect was one of the most rewarding parts of the experience.

Our project was named Sylla-buddy, designed with the aim of helping educators save significant time and effort in creating and formatting syllabus, while still adding their own personal touch to their courses. We've chosen React for the frontend, Django for the backend, and Chat-GPT-3.5-Turbo for our API in our tech stack.

As the hackathon entered its final hours, the excitement and tension in the room intensified. Teams scrambled to put finishing touches on their projects, rehearsing their presentations, and refining their demos.

When it was finally our turn to present, we felt a mix of nervousness and excitement. Standing in front of a panel of judges and a room full of fellow participants, we demonstrated our project, highlighting the problem it solved and the technology we used. It was a nerve-wracking but thrilling experience.

I'd like to express my sincere gratitude to the organizers of HackRPI for their exceptional work. The event was executed with the utmost professionalism, and there were numerous volunteers readily providing assistance and guidance throughout. It truly was a top-tier experience.