BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – The WVU Tech Department of Computer Sciences and Information Systems is inviting talented young programmers to their campus to showcase problem-solving and programming skills in a day-long competition.
It’s a yearly competition that welcomes high schoolers from across the region.
According to Dr. Ranjith A. Munasinghe, Chair and Professor with the Computer Science & Information Systems Department, it’s a great way to get students invested in STEM.
“Computer science is the hottest field these days when it comes to job opportunities, and computer science is a challenging field,” Munasinghe said. “But every solution we come up with for our problems is a computer solution these days.”
During the competition, students will rely on their problem-solving and programming skills to solve different challenges. It will involve complex issues that need to be solved with programming languages of their choice, such as C++, Python and HTML.
The competition is difficult by nature, mostly because many high school students don’t often get opportunities to learn about programming, but the competition provides a good chance to learn and practice what the students might already know.
“It is a tough competition, but the competition will have some easy problems, medium problems and some hard problems also.”
The competition is open to any high schooler in West Virginia and sign ups are still open. Students who perform well, despite the difficulty, will potentially earn cash prizes and even scholarships.
The top three teams will be eligible for prizes. First, second and third place teams receive $300, $200 and $100, respectively.
Eligible members of the top three teams will receive scholarships to attend WVU Tech. Each member on the first, second and third place team will be eligible for up to $3,000, $2000 and $1,000, respectively.
The scholarships are renewable for up to four years, on the condition they meet the eligibility requirements as specified by WVU Tech’s financial aid department.
The teams will face off on Feb 26. Interested high schoolers can apply here.
