Whether you're a psychology major dreaming up ways to outsmart phishing scams, a marketing student rebranding online safety, or just someone with wild ideas and a love of collaboration — the Fall Ideathon is your space to shine.

Tackle real-world cybersecurity challenges, work in diverse teams, and pitch solutions that are bold, funny, or downright brilliant. No code required. Just brains, imagination, and a spark.

The College of Computing and Software Engineering (CCSE) Fall Ideathon is our annual creativity sprint where students from all majors form interdisciplinary teams to brainstorm and pitch bold solutions to real-world challenges. It’s not about coding – it’s about innovation, storytelling, and cross-disciplinary teamwork.

Fall Ideathon is designed to bring together students from diverse backgrounds to think creatively and work together on sponsored challenge prompts related to Cyber security. It focuses on idea generation, public speaking, and rapid prototyping – without requiring technical expertise.

What Sponsors Gain

🎯 Talent Discovery – See students’ creative thinking and collaboration in action.

📣 Brand Awareness – Your logo, swag, and representatives featured during the event.

✍️ Challenge Submission – Provide a creative prompt aligned with your mission.

🧑‍⚖️ Event Engagement – Join as a judge, mentor, or team participant.

🏆 Sponsor Recognition – Support category awards like 'Most Creative Idea' or 'Funniest Pitch'.

What Students Gain

💡 Creative Confidence – Learn to express, shape, and share innovative ideas fast.

📁 Portfolio-Ready Work – Use your pitch decks in resumes and interviews.

🤝 Cross-Major Collaboration – Work with students from business, design, computing, and more.

🗣️ Public Speaking Skills – Pitch your team’s ideas to a live audience and judges.

🍕 Free Food + Prizes – Enjoy networking and win awards for creativity and humor.

Event program:

Schedule

Thursday, October 09

• 4:30 PM – Check-in opens
• 5:00 PM – Welcome & Theme Reveal & Icebreakers
• 6:00 PM – Brainstorming Begins. Dismissal (Optional virtual work)

Friday, October 10- teams work offline on their challenges

Saturday, October 11

• 10:30 AM – Brunch & Mentor Support
• 12:00 PM – Finalize Pitch Decks
• 1:00 PM – Presentations Begin
• 6:30 PM – Judging Deliberation
• 7:00 PM – Closing Ceremony & Awards