If you’re a student looking to code your way to greatness, you’ve got a deadline approaching.
Students looking to participate in Apple’s 2025 Swift Student Challenge can start submitting their app playground project on February 3, where 350 winners will be chosen — 50 of whom get to visit Apple Park. The contest was originally founded in 2020 as a way to encourage up-and-coming developers to participate in the development community.
Eligible challengers submit an interactive scene in an app playground and are judged based on demonstrations of excellence, innovation, creativity, social impact, or inclusivity. The official start date of February 3 has been shared, and entrants have three weeks to submit their projects, with winners being announced sometime before WWDC (usually in May). Apple will select a total of 350 winners, and name 50 Distinguished winners who will be invited to Apple Park for three days. While the announcement isn’t specific, those three days usually coincide with WWDC in June.
Entrants must meet at least one of the following criteria to enter:
- Be enrolled in an accredited academic institution or official homeschool equivalent
- Be enrolled in a STEM organization’s educational curriculum
- Be enrolled in an Apple Developer Academy
- Have graduated from high school or equivalent within the past 6 months and be awaiting acceptance or have received acceptance to an accredited academic institution
The submitted app playground will be an interactive scene that can be experienced within three minutes. It must not need a network connection and not exceed 25 MB. Apple will reveal the full Terms and Conditions as well as any updated eligibility criteria when submissions open on February 3. All winners receive one year of membership in the Apple Developer Program, a special gift like AirPods, pins, swag, and more.
Good luck if you’re entering and stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via AppleInsider and developer.apple.com