# 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.

| Time          | Saturday Oct 17                       | Sunday Oct 18               |
|---------------|---------------------------------------|-----------------------------|
| 01. 8:00 AM  | Check-in & breakfast🍕 food          |                             |
| 02. 10:00 AM | Opening ceremony                     |                             |
| 03. 11:00 AM | Team-formation mixer                 |                             |
| 04. 11:30 AM | Hacking begins!                      |                             |
| 05. 1:00 PM  | Workshop: Intro to APIs              |                             |
| 06. 1:30 PM  | Lunch🍕 food                        |                             |
| 07. 3:00 PM  | Workshop: Ship your first AI app     |                             |
| 08. 6:00 PM  | Dinner🍕 food                       |                             |
| 09. 8:00 PM  | Cup-stacking grudge match           |                             |
| 10. 11:59 PM | Midnight snack🍕 food               |                             |

## 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.