How to Organize UmojaHack Hackathon at University Level
Target audience: people who have experience with the UmojaHack Africa hackathon and are eager to organize or help with the planning of the most epic machine learning event for African students at the university level.
Don’t worry if this is your first time hearing about UmojaHack Africa follow the link below 😊.
Organizing a UmojaHack hackathon at the university level can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it also requires careful planning and preparation. As I have experience in this, I would love to share my experience with others to help them have a better time and make the most of the UmojaHack event.
Consider these ideas for planning an UmojaHack hackathon at the university level:
Here are some suggestions I have for you to consider to make the event successful:
Assemble a planning team: As a leader, community manager, or member of a certain group consider arranging a team to assist in planning and sorting out requirements it can be up to three people or just two. Find a way to let the data science community members or students know about umojaHack one to two months before, and plan for weekly meetups to that you can help out with skills validation among students. In case there is no community or leaders consider communicating with like-minded colleagues to prepare for the event and not be afraid of taking responsibility.
Consider registering your university for the UmojaHack event: this will help to get support from the Zindi team and ambassadors, and get updates in time about the most epic event. Remind every student to register for the event at the university level so that you can keep track of the number of interested folks.
Create a channel of communication for leaders and participants so that to get inquiries solved in time and fast the process: Once you have collected the details of interested students it is time to create a channel for communication such as WhatsApp, Discord, Telegram, or slack depending on what channel the majority of your university is comfortable with.
Provide updates about the hackathon on that channel it will help to bring awareness and accountability. Use the channel to share resources about previous umojaHack hackathons, resources to learn data science, or tips to solve challenges using data science. I am sure this will help students to learn from each other at a fast pace.
Request for a conducive venue from University Administration to use during the Hackathon: managing to book a venue as soon as possible is a big win consider having internet, projector, electricity, and an emergency generator in case electricity will go off.
Request for other support from University Administration, Department Leaders, or Other Staff such as meal support, and technical support to make sure the event will be amazing and exceptional. Do this as soon as possible even 3 to 2 months before the UmojaHack date.
Consider looking for sponsors like tech companies, NGOs, media groups, and others that can add support to the event at your university. Do this as soon as possible even 3 to 2 months before the UmojaHack date.
Data sharing devices during the event: Consider having a hard drive for data sharing in case the Internet is not good It will be simple for folks to share data and continue with the challenge.
Having the event Swags early: Zindi usually distributes swags for students special for the UmojaHack event remember to ask for the Swags from Country ambassadors, and University ambassadors early as possible. Not bad to print your own swags also at this angle is where sponsors can play a part 😎.
During the event, days provide resources and support: Ensure that participants have access to the necessary technology, software, and datasets to complete the challenge. Consider providing training or mentorship to help participants develop their skills and complete the challenge successfully this can be done way before the event.
Host the event at your University: On the day of the event, ensure that all logistical and technical requirements are in place. Consider providing food, drinks, and other amenities to keep participants engaged and energized throughout the event. This can be one-day physical hosting and the second day be conducted virtually.
Consider writing an event report: Evaluate the event after the event, and collect feedback from participants and the planning team to identify strengths and areas for improvement. Use this feedback to inform future events and to build on the success of the current event. Share the report with University Administration leaders, Department Leaders, and Sponsors this will be much better to prove that you understand what your doing I’m sure next time you need their support they will be knee to help you.
If you don’t have an account on Zindi join today through the link below 👇
Final Thoughts:
Thank you for following along with this article consider sharing it with others so that they can make the most out of UmojaHack or any other events at the University level.
It is much better for University administration to know about the event even a month/two weeks before to sort out challenges and provide support to students in case of food, accommodation and management support, etc
In case you have any inquiries, feel free to reach out to the Zindi community at zindi@zindi.africa or the community coordinator at delilah@zindi.africa
All the best in the coming umojaHack, get ready to bring solutions to African challenges. Ciao.
