SHU Hosts Regional Coding Competition

Students pit their skills and speed against top minds from other universities

Sacred Heart University recently hosted the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), giving students who are studying coding an opportunity to push their limits and match wits against coders from other high-ranking colleges.

Regional contests take place geographically and challenge teams, which comprise three university students each, to solve complex, real-world, algorithmic challenges in five hours. Collaborating around a shared computer, “teams race against the clock in an intense exercise of reasoning, strategy and persistence,” states the ICPC website.

Samah Senbel, assistant professor of computer science & engineering, said the competition helps SHU students develop their problem-solving skills, meet students with similar skills and interests from other schools and compete in a friendly fashion. “It is similar to athletes preparing for the Olympics, the ultimate goal in their sport. An ICPC participation is a great first step in a young coder’s development and career,” she said.

SHU hosted the greater New York metropolitan area regional competition, which included coders from New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In addition to Sacred Heart, participating students came from universities including Princeton, Yale, Cornell and Columbia.

David Taylor, acting dean of the Jack Welch College of Business & Technology (WCBT) and associate professor of marketing, expressed pride in the students who participated and the faculty and volunteers who made the competition happen. “The greater New York regional contest is one of the most competitive, and to go head-to-head against some of the biggest names in computer science education is a testament to the quality of WCBT’s computer science programs,” he said.

Competing in a coding challenge gives SHU students the opportunity to practice techniques as they continue to develop their skills, Taylor said. “Our students are bright, young coders and, as they gain experience, I have no doubt they will be able to compete at this high level with increasing success in the future,” he added.