The dish

What it makes.

Build something wildly yours in 36 hours.

RamHacks is Rampart State's flagship student hackathon — 500 hackers, free food, zero gatekeeping. Come with an idea or come with nothing. You'll leave with a project, a team, and a story.

Kickoff in 20 days : 02 hrs : 59 min : 00 sec

• 500 hackers
• 36 hours
• $15K in prizes
• $0 to enter

So… what actually is a hackathon?

A hackathon is a weekend-long build sprint. You team up (or fly solo), pick something you wish existed, and make a working version of it in 36 hours. There are workshops if you're stuck, mentors who've shipped real software, and a science-fair-style expo at the end where everyone demos what they made. No exams. No grades. Just building.

Beginners absolutely welcome

About 4 in 10 RamHackers have never been to one before. We run a "Hack 101" track, beginner-friendly workshops, and roaming mentors so your first commit isn't your last.

Teams of 1–4

Bring friends or make them at Saturday's team-formation mixer. Solo hackers are totally fine too — plenty of people build alone and crush it.

Open to all students

Any enrolled college student (or a recent grad, within a year) 18+, any major. CS, design, business, biology — the best teams mix it up.

Completely free

Zero entry fee. We feed you six meals, caffeinate you relentlessly, hand out swag, and cover travel for teams coming from out of town.

The schedule

Doors open Saturday at 8 AM; we crown winners Sunday evening. Everything but hacking is optional — but the midnight snack is non-negotiable.

Prizes & tracks

One grand prize, plus a stack of sponsor-backed category tracks. Submit to as many as your project fits — yes, you can win more than one.

🏆 Grand Prize: $5,000 - Best overall hack, judged on originality, technical chops, polish, and "would I actually use this?" Winning team also gets fast-tracked interviews with our title sponsor and a year of Helix Cloud credits.

2nd: $2,000
3rd: $1,000

Best Beginner Hack

$1,000 + mech keyboards - For teams where everyone's at their first or second hackathon. Ambition beats polish here.

Best Use of AI

$1,500 + Nimbus credits - Most clever, responsible, genuinely-useful application of an LLM or ML model. Sponsored by Nimbus.

Best Hardware Hack

$1,500 + dev kits - Microcontrollers, sensors, soldering irons, the works. Hardware lab open all weekend. Sponsored by Forge Labs.

Best Social Good Hack

$1,500 - Tech that helps a real community — accessibility, climate, civic, health. Make a dent.

Best Design

$1,000 + Quill licenses - The hack that's a joy to look at and use. UX, motion, the little details. Sponsored by Quill.

Most Rampart Spirit

Glory + golden ram trophy - The hack that most embodies RamHacks chaos. No cash — just eternal bragging rights and a very heavy trophy.

FAQ

Still unsure? Hop into our Discord and a real organizer will answer in minutes.

Do I need coding experience?

What should I bring?

Is it really free?

Can I come alone? How do teams work?

Will my travel be reimbursed?

Who can participate?

Lock in your spot.

Registration is free and takes two minutes. Drop your email and we'll send your confirmation, the Discord invite, and a packing checklist. Spots are first-come — last year we capped out two weeks early.