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Hackathons are a powerful place to learn to build: in a short, focused event, you can turn a small idea into a working prototype, try unfamiliar tools, collaborate with people who know different things, and get feedback on something real. They are not proven to be the best learning method for everyone. Their value depends on the challenge, team, guidance, and what you do after the event—but for learning by making, they offer an unusually concentrated experience.
What makes a hackathon a place to learn?
An educational hackathon is an intensive, time-limited event—often one or two days—in which teams work on a defined challenge and develop a solution. The European Commission describes this format as hands-on and collaborative. Rather than only reading about a technology or following a finished tutorial, participants have to make choices, put pieces together, and respond when the first attempt does not work.
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That combination creates a practical learning cycle: choose a manageable problem, make a first version, test or present it, learn from teammates and feedback, then decide what to improve or continue. The deadline gives the work focus; the team and the challenge give participants reasons to learn beyond their existing strengths.
A literature review of hackathons identifies potential outcomes beyond coding, including teamwork, communication, practical skills, problem framing, and learning from peers. The particular mix depends on the event and each participant’s role; simply attending does not guarantee that everyone will gain the same skills.
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What participants say they learn
A 2019 GitHub Blog post reported results from a Major League Hacking survey of students who had taken part in hackathons. In that survey, 80% said they explored a new technology or service while working on a project, and 93% said they learned a skill or idea not covered in their coursework. Among respondents, 69% said they later used skills gained at a hackathon for coursework, while 85% said those skills might help with future coursework.
These are participants’ reported experiences, not measured proof that a hackathon causes a particular learning gain. The figures describe that survey’s respondents; they should not be generalized to every event or current participant cohort. The survey also does not establish that hackathons outperform classes, tutorials, or solo projects.
A 2024 systematic review examined 39 research papers published over a 10-year span. It found that hackathon designs and ways of promoting and assessing learning were not standardized. The review also cautions that perceived learning alone does not comprehensively demonstrate positive outcomes. Taken together, the evidence makes a strong case that people can learn through hackathons, but not that every event delivers the same results or that the format is universally superior.
Why building under a deadline can be useful
You learn by making decisions
A project requires participants to turn a broad challenge into a smaller problem, choose what to build first, and work out how the pieces fit. Those decisions expose gaps in understanding in a way passive study may not. A prototype need not be polished to be useful: even a rough version can reveal what works, what remains confusing, and what needs another attempt.
You can borrow and share expertise
Teams bring together different strengths. A participant who is new to programming might help define the user problem, sketch an interface, organize research, or test the prototype while learning from a teammate. Someone with more technical experience can still learn from collaborators’ perspectives and from explaining an idea clearly. Collaboration is not a substitute for individual effort, but it creates opportunities for peer learning that a solo project does not offer in the same way.
You practice skills around the code
Communicating trade-offs, dividing work, presenting a concept, and responding to feedback are part of building something with other people. These skills matter whether the project becomes a product or remains a one-weekend experiment. A short event may produce a prototype or a meaningful learning experience; continuing the project afterward is a separate outcome, not proof that the event succeeded or failed as a learning opportunity.
Are hackathons better than courses, tutorials, or solo projects?
There is no evidence here establishing a universal winner. The useful comparison is not the format’s label but the learning conditions it gives you. A course may provide a planned sequence and sustained instruction; a tutorial may make one tool or task easier to follow; a solo project gives you control over pace and scope. A hackathon concentrates building, collaboration, time pressure, and feedback into a short period.
| Learning condition | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Hands-on building | Will you make or test something yourself, or mainly watch and listen? |
| Peers and mentors | Can you ask questions, learn from teammates, and get useful guidance? |
| Time and scope | Is the challenge small enough to make progress within the available time? |
| Feedback | Will anyone use, review, or respond to what you build? |
| Follow-through | Can you keep learning from the project after the event, even if the prototype is unfinished? |
If your goal is to practice making decisions with other people and to try building under real constraints, a hackathon can be a strong choice. If you need a carefully paced foundation or sustained feedback, make sure the event offers support—or pair it with a course, tutorial, or project that fills the gap.
How beginners can take part without knowing everything
You do not need to arrive as an expert. A first-semester student asking how to get good at hackathons may assume technical mastery is the entry ticket, but a manageable contribution and a willingness to learn are a more realistic starting point. The aim of a first event can simply be to understand how a team turns a challenge into a prototype.
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- Choose one small problem. Look for a challenge you can explain in a sentence. A narrow, understandable problem is easier to make progress on than an ambitious idea with no clear first step.
- Offer a contribution you can make now. Depending on the project, that could be organizing the team’s notes, sketching a screen, researching the problem, testing the prototype, preparing a short presentation, or writing code you already understand.
- Name one thing you want to learn. Pick a tool, task, or concept that is close enough to your contribution to try during the event. Ask a teammate or mentor a specific question when you get stuck.
- Make a small working version before adding features. Agree on what the team can demonstrate, then build toward that. A clear, testable first version gives you something concrete to improve.
- Write down what to continue afterward. Note what you learned, what still does not work, and one next step. The deadline may end the event, but it does not have to end your learning.
These steps are a practical way to approach the format, not a research-validated formula for winning or maximizing learning. The quality of the challenge, facilitation, team, and available support also shapes the experience.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What organizers can do to make learning more deliberate
A hackathon’s structure can make learning easier or harder. Microsoft’s organizer guidance recommends planning the event rather than treating it as a contest that begins when participants arrive.
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Outbyte PC Repair FREEClear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →- Prepare participants: explain the format and offer training or orientation so newcomers can engage with the challenge.
- Choose useful use cases: define problems that participants can understand and make progress on in the available time.
- Assemble varied teams: bring together people with complementary skills and perspectives.
- Plan presentations and judging: make expectations clear and ensure teams have a practical way to explain what they built.
- Decide on follow-up: identify what happens to promising ideas, prototypes, or learning after the event concludes.
These choices cannot guarantee learning, but they give participants a clearer route from challenge to making, feedback, and next steps.
Where to find educational hackathon resources
The European Commission’s DigiEduHack initiative has concluded, but its event materials remain available through the European Digital Education Hub. The Commission’s page describes resources such as a host guide, evaluation grids, judging tools, case studies, and communication materials. Access to the collection requires membership, which the page describes as free and subject to confirmation within five working days; access details may change.
For organizer guidance, Microsoft Learn’s Organize hackathons page covers preparation, training, use cases, teams, presentations, judging, and follow-up. For the Commission’s description of educational hackathons and its DigiEduHack materials, see DigiEduHack: hackathons as an educational tool.
The honest case for hackathons
Hackathons deserve their reputation as exciting places to learn because they put ideas, tools, teammates, and constraints into contact. Participants in one student survey reported exploring new technology and learning material beyond their coursework; reviews of the field also identify teamwork, communication, practical skills, and peer learning as relevant outcomes. But research does not establish hackathons as the best method for every learner, nor does a prototype alone show how much anyone learned. Their strongest case is narrower and more useful: when you want to learn by building with others, a well-run hackathon can turn a short stretch of time into a meaningful opportunity to try, collaborate, and improve.
Sources: GitHub Blog’s 2019 report of Major League Hacking survey results; the 2023 ACM CHI multidisciplinary literature review; and Schulten and Chounta’s 2024 systematic literature review.
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