Events

Overview

The Hackathon, presented by Major League Baseball (MLB), will take place on Wednesday, April 7th (i.e. the two days before the official start of the Conference) starting at 11:00 am ET. During the day, participants will be provided with a brief of the task and data set.  Industry experts from MLB will provide mentorship throughout the event. The event culminates with participants presenting their work in a brief presentation to a panel of distinguished judges.

A set of finalists from both the Student and Open divisions will then be selected to present their ideas during the second day (i.e. Friday) of the Conference.

Application Process

Please apply to the 2021 MIT SSAC Hackathon HERE.

Please contact the Hackathon team (hackathon@sloansportsconference.com) if you have questions or concerns. We encourage you to subscribe to our newsletter in order to receive the latest information about the conference.

Hackathon FAQs

Q: When is the Hackathon?

A: The Hackathon will start at 11:00 am and run most of the day on the Wednesday before the conference (April 7th).  Final presentations will occur on the Friday of the conference (April 9th).

Q: Is the Hackathon an individual or team event?

A: All applicants must apply individually, but are welcome to collaborate in the competition.

Q: Are there any restrictions on what companies I can apply from for the Open track?

A: Nope! Any professional should feel free to apply.

Q: Do I need to buy a ticket to apply/participate in the Hackathon?

A: If you are selected as a participant, you will have the opportunity to buy a ticket.  Students will be able to purchase a ticket at the Student rate, while Open track participants will have to pay full price.

Q: How will the Hackathon work virtually?

A: The event will use a mix of Zoom, Google Docs and cloud coding software to help you collaborate as a team and work together towards your results. 

Q: Is the competition open to students of all levels?

A: Yup!  Feel free to apply if you are in high school, undergrad, masters, or PhD programs.

Q: When will I hear back if I am selected as a participant in the Hackathon?

A: The current plan is to send out notifications of acceptance by the week of March 14th 

Q: What will happen on the day of the competition?

A: On Thursday April 6th, participants will be provided with a brief to [X].  Participants will work the problem during the day with the competition ending in the afternoon.  If you are selected as a finalist, you will be invited to present on Friday April 9th.

Q: Who is judging the competition?

A: The judging panel will be made up of industry leaders in the sports analytics space who can evaluate the quality of the submissions from the competition.