MakeUC is a 24-hour hackathon hosted by IEEE at the University of Cincinnati. First held as a fully-online event in the fall of 2020, the hackathon has evolved to include hybrid and in-person formats, consistently delivering an improved experience for participants each year. The event attracts over two dozen sponsors, hundreds of registrants, and offers tens of thousands of dollars in prizes alongside various fun activities.
The core philosophy of MakeUC is that critical challenges must be solved by interdisciplinary and diverse teams. Participation requires only a passion for technology and bettering the world. Attendees are provided with tools, APIs, and workshops to help them learn and accomplish their visions. The event welcomes everyone from experienced hackers to complete beginners.
Participants can choose from several specific tracks:
- Hardware: Build prototypes using microcontrollers, sensors, or actuators. Projects should integrate hardware with software (firmware, APIs, or mobile/web UIs), address power, safety, and reliability, and demonstrate a working, repeatable prototype during the event.
- Education: Focus on improving accessibility or inclusivity in learning, creating engaging interactive experiences, providing meaningful assessment or feedback mechanisms, and designing for scalability and real-world classroom use.
- Social Issues: Aim to raise awareness or empower affected communities by providing inclusive solutions with clear impact. Projects must demonstrate ethical considerations and privacy safeguards, along with a plan for community adoption or outreach.
- Security: Identify real security problems or vulnerabilities and implement measures to protect user data and systems. Entries should demonstrate attack/defense scenarios and mitigations, including threat modeling and practical deployment guidance.