Student hackathon ignites innovation for future disruptors
A virtual hackathon for Filipino students aims to ignite and cultivate the next batch of innovators and disruptors.
A partnership between Eastern Communications and the Philippine Society of Information Technology Educators (PSITE), the Eastern Playground seeks to bring together programs designed for nation-building, improving the lives of Filipinos, and answering pandemic-related needs. Interested participants can register online until 5 November 2021, with a maximum of five members in Senior High School or College Level.
“We are excited to launch Eastern Playground officially, and we envision this to be one of the most coveted annual events among students. We want to inspire and empower the new generation of disruptors who are driven to thrive in an increasingly digital economy,” said Eastern Communications Product and Innovation Head Edsel Paglinawan.
Aside from the concept, the entries will also be evaluated based on the accessibility of the project. Programs must instill the idea of deep-dive thinking with feasibility studies and must have commercial appeal.
The hackathon will have two rounds. The first round is the pre-screening process, where teams must submit their pitch deck and supporting documents that consist of problem description, target market segment, and solution explanation. Upon evaluating all entries, the Selection Committee will shortlist five schools to proceed to the next round. We are excited to launch Eastern Playground officially, and we envision this to be one of the most coveted annual events among students. We want to inspire and empower the new generation of disruptors who are driven to thrive in an increasingly digital economy.
Finally, the five remaining groups will submit their 90-second pitch video with a deck explaining their proposal, incorporating their initial outline with a detailed technical overview of the solution, dependencies, timeline and financial model.
The judging panel will select three winning projects with the following criteria: Innovative or digital technology solution (35 percent), feasibility (20 percent), impact (35 percent), and clarity (10 percent).
Winners will be announced via Eastern’s Social Media channels, PSITE website, and Viber community on 25 November 2021. Aside from the cash prizes that await the winners, the opportunity to undergo immersion and training from Eastern Communications and potentially become employed will also be granted to the members of shortlisted teams.
Schools or universities of the finalists will also get a free 150-day subscription to Eastern Cloud, a highly customizable cloud platform of Eastern Communications, for seamless collaboration and efficiency.
“On behalf of Eastern Communications and the entire PSITE, we invite the students to be part of the disruption and create solutions that will be of great use to our community. We look forward to their proposals, and we hope that this will encourage the youth to be fearless and think digital for a stronger tomorrow,” said PSITE NCR Chapter president Dr. Samuel Chua.
To register and learn more about the whole mechanics of Eastern Playground, visit https://easternplayground.com.ph/.