The second-annual Intramural Coding Bee will draw in experienced computer coders and programmers to compete in a four-hour long battle for first place.
This year’s Kickoff Party will be held Thursday, Jan. 29 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. in front of Fayard Hall. Computer science majors can attend to enjoy free food, door prizes and music. The bee will take place Friday, Jan. 30 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Fayard Room 122.
The competitors must have completed one-third of computer science degree hours to compete and pay no charge to participate.
According to Dr. John Burris, assistant professor of computer science, it is the most talked-about event because it is the only one held once a year for the Department of Computer Science and Industrial Technology.
“We had over 150 students come to the kickoff last year,” said Burris. “The majors look forward to it, and it is really the only thing we do as a department.”
Twenty-four competitors will split up into teams of two or three and race against the clock for four hours of uninterrupted computer coding.
“I give students seven or eight problems that they have to solve using coding,” said Burris. “They have to program different problems ,and [most competitors] walk out sweating. The adrenaline is so intense that you forget to use the bathroom.”
This fast-paced event is modeled after regional competitions and helps recruit members to represent Southeastern to take on other colleges and universities.
Burris said it is open to the general public, but people who are in the field or majoring in computer science would enjoy watching it the most.
Southeastern competes against schools such as LSU, Tulane, USM and UNO.
“We are always competitive. We have never gone to an event and come in less than third for the years I have been their coach,” said Burris. “When we go in and beat LSU or Tulane, it tells employers that we are giving out the best students.”
Junior computer science majors Ujjwol Lamichhane and Joshua Escamilla were Last year’s winners. They later competed with Krunal Khatri, who recently graduated in fall 2014. Their team placed second after LSU in the 2014 South Central USA Regional Contest.
“Internal competitions within Southeastern are really fun ,and we get to enjoy all parts of it,” said Lamichhane. “However, the regional and other external competitions are really exhausting due to their rigor and competition from the other teams. I would suggest to everyone to try and get their hands dirty. You never know if you [will] discover that you enjoy these contests.”
In order to prepare for the coding bee, those interested may want to study coding information and programming instructions.
“We printed out a ton of reference material and read online programming documentation,” said Escamilla. “It’s a friendly atmosphere, and it was exciting to win. You would enjoy competing if you love programming and problem solving.”
The winners will receive Amazon gift cards priced at $100 for each member on the winning team, $50 for second and $25 for third. Additional prizes valued over $100 will be handed out to other best teams until they run out. In the past, these prizes included tablets, LCD monitors, raspberry pi computers, external hard drives and so on.
For more information or instructions on how to sign up, contact Burris at [email protected].