The ‘Hack and Seek: Alberta XR Career Quest’ event is set for May 3-5, 2024. (Photo: Lethbridge College)

By Justin Goulet

Applications open for Lethbridge College-hosted hackathon

Feb 9, 2024 | 11:31 AM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – This spring, high school students will be able to use their computer skills in a special type of provincial competition.

The ‘Hack and Seek: Alberta XR Career Quest’ event is set for May 3-5, 2024. It’s presented by Lethbridge College in a collaboration with Bow Valley College, NAIT, Alberta Innovates and Digital Alberta.

The hackathon will occur simultaneously at participating post-secondary campuses in Lethbridge, Calgary and Edmonton. Any student in grades 10, 11 and 12 in Alberta can apply.

Lethbridge College said the event will allow students to explore how extended reality (XR) technology can be used to benefit the real world. The college explained that while XR is an overarching term that encompasses virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) technologies, this competition will only make use of VR applications.

Mike McCready, industry liaison and research advisory in the Spatial Technologies Applied Research and Training Centre at the college said, “Coding and development experience is not required, but students must have an interest in technology and a love of competition.”

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McCready added, “It’s an opportunity to explore XR technology as a viable and exciting career path and experience its potential in an interactive, hands-on environment.”

Applications to participate are being accepted until March 11 and can be submitted online.

The college said 90 students will be selected to compete and will receive access to three online training workshops to prepare them for the hackathon. At the event in May, they will be assigned to a team of three and tasked with creating a VR application for use in real-world scenarios.

Teams will then present their app to a panel of industry experts, with the winning team splitting $4,000 between members. The hackathon will also provide students the chance to network.

‘Hack and Seek: Alberta XR Career Quest’ will be Alberta’s first provincial XR hackathon.

READ MORE: Lethbridge News Now.

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