ShellHacks is an upcoming 36-hour hackathon at Florida International University (FIU), taking place the weekend of Friday, September 29 to Sunday, October 1st.
Our mission is to provide students with the opportunity to learn about new technologies, create innovative projects, and share their work with the community!
Get to know some of the companies that helped make this event a possibility!
If it's your first time at a hackathon, then that means it's most likely your first time encountering Devpost. Devpost is a tool used by hackathons to catalog hacks, keep track of any challenges a hack is competing for and providing a central way for hacks to be submitted for exposition at an event. First-time hackers are encouraged to take advantage of this workshop to sharpen their Devpost skills!
A hackathon is an event where students of all academic backgrounds and skill levels come together to solve problems by using technology.
Students form groups and create projects that tackle these challenges, all while attending workshops to develop new skills, receiving mentorship from industry leaders, and networking with recruiters from top companies.
ShellHacks is organized by Upsilon Pi Epsilon (UPE), the Honor Society for the Computing and Information Disciplines, with support from companies, academic programs, and student organizations.
Our theme focuses on diversity, and not just from an academic standpoint. Miami is a cultural melting pot full of people from all walks of life, with FIU being no exception.
If you're a current college/university student or a recent graduate (up to 1 year), you're more than welcome to attend! The event is open to students of all academic backgrounds and skill levels, so whether you’re an aspiring artist or an expert engineer, there’s a place for you at ShellHacks.
Don't worry, one of the core principles of a hackathon is learning! There'll be several workshops throughout the event, ranging from beginner to advanced, so there's always something new to learn.
There will be food. Lots of food. LOTS. Miami's food scene is diverse, so there’s always something for everyone. We’ll do our best to accommodate for any dietary restriction as well, just make sure to let us know come registration time.
There’s also coffee, energy drinks, and tea if you want to keep it classy.
Nope. You can go solo, come with your own team (no more than 4), or participate in a group mixer we'll have before hacking begins to find a group.
Can you afford FREE?! The event is entirely free for attendees, so the only thing you need to worry about is learning, developing cool projects, and enjoying the event!
As much as we'd love to bring everyone and make this event as accessible as possible, sadly we can't offer financial reimbursement for travel this year. We will be sending a coach bus to select schools in the Florida area to get eager hackers to FIU, though!
Right now, you can fill out the form above to stay up to date with the latest information, including when and where to register.
Well, it started off as a joke about what a turtle-themed hackathon would be called. Later on, we actually started thinking about organizing a hackathon, but instead of turtles, we decided to focus on diversity in Miami. Since the city has an abundance of seashells on its beaches, the name stuck.
It's also a play on words about computer shells, but that’s just to draw attention away from all the turtle puns.
If you'd like to sponsor, please send us an email at and our team will get back to you promptly.
