The Sixth National Programming Competition

The College of Computer Science and Information Technology at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, in collaboration with the Saudi Federation for Cybersecurity, Programming and Drones, is organizing the “Sixth National Programming Competition”, in-person as a side event of the conference, on Thursday, May 9, 2024 from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm.

This competition is a great opportunity for university students in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to test and develop their programming skills. The competition offers a series of exciting programming challenges that require creative thinking and technical skills in various programming languages.

Students compete in teams, where they must solve challenges as quickly as possible to earn the highest scores. Challenges include designing and developing web and mobile applications, as well as solving various programming problems.

The competition is an ideal opportunity for Saudi university students to develop their programming skills and learn about the latest technologies and tools in the programming world. Also, it encourages collaboration and knowledge sharing among students, promoting continuous learning and development in this important field.

Competition Objectives:
  • Enhancing Programming Skills: Aiming to develop and enhance programming skills among Saudi university students through diverse and exciting programming challenges.
  • Encouraging Creativity and Innovation: Serving as a platform to encourage students to think creatively and innovatively in programming solutions and develop innovative applications.
  • Promoting Practical Learning: Providing students with an opportunity to apply theoretical concepts learned in classrooms to practical and realistic projects.
  • Fostering Collaboration and Teamwork Encouraging collaboration among students in teams and solving problems collectively, enhancing teamwork and communication skills.
  • Raising Awareness of the Importance of Programming: Aiming to increase awareness of the importance of the programming field and its role in technology development and innovation in various fields.
  • Providing an Opportunity for Cultural Exchange: The competition is suitable for students to interact with their peers from various Saudi universities and exchange experiences and knowledge in the field of programming.
  • Encouraging Healthy Competition: Encouraging students to compete in a healthy manner based on skills, promoting a sense of belonging and pride in personal and collective achievements.
  • Providing an Opportunity to Learn about the Industry: Enabling students to learn about the latest technologies and trends in the field of programming and information technology, increasing their chances of integration into the job market.
Competition Conditions:
The conditions related to team members are as follows:
  • Two teams with three members each, represent each university.
  • Registration is only for participants nominated by the participating university in the competition.
  • All participants must be undergraduate students only.
Competition Timeline:
    1. Nomination and Registration:
      o The competition is open for students interested in participating by nomination from their universities.
      o A final deadline will be set for receiving nominations, not exceeding two weeks before the competition date.
      o The platform registration link will be sent to the approved participants.
      o Team names must be in the following format: University Name + Team Number, for example: IAU_Team1.
    2. Orientation Workshop:
      o An Orientation workshop will be organized a week before the competition to guide students about the rules and objectives of the competition, the platform's operation, and explaining the regulations and possible challenges.
    3. Attendance Registration:
      o Attendance registration is open in the Support Deans Building (D3) before 7:30 am on the day of the competition, and each team is assigned a location and a computer.
    4. Competition Start:
      o The competition starts at 8:00 am on Thursday, May 9, 2024, and takes place through a platform that provides challenges and necessary tools.
      o The competition takes place from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm.
    5. Challenges:
      o Programming challenges are published on the platform, including various problems and tasks.
      o Teams must solve the challenges collectively according to the specified rules.
    6. Solution Submission:
      o Solutions to the challenges are submitted through the dedicated platform, with the necessary documentation attached for codes and programs.
    7. Evaluation:
      o Submitted solutions are evaluated by a specialized judging committee in the field of programming.
      o Predefined criteria are used to evaluate solutions, such as programming correctness, efficiency, and creativity.
    8. Points and ranking:
      o Points are awarded for each solved challenge based on difficulty and quality.
      o Team rankings are determined based on the number of points they have earned.
    9. Prizes:
      o Winning teams are announced and prizes are distributed to the first, second, and third-place teams.
      o Prizes include participation certificates and cash rewards.
Challenge Levels:
There are different levels of challenges designed to suit different levels of participants and motivate them to improve and develop their skills gradually. These levels include:

    1. Medium Challenges:
      • Require advanced programming skills and a deep understanding of concepts and methods.
      • Include medium-difficulty programming problems that require creative thinking and deep analysis.
      • Enhance participants' logical thinking and solving complex programming problems.
    2. Hard Challenges:
      • Include highly difficult programming problems that require advanced skills and deep experience in programming.
      • May include complex software engineering challenges and developing applications with significant complexities.
      • Enhance participants' technical and creative skills and contribute to building their confidence in the programming field.
Venue:
In-person at the Support Deans Building (D3), Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Time and Duration:
From 8:00 am to 1:00 pm on the second day of the conference, on Thursday 09/05/2024, for five hours.