Run a Capstone Expo,
Not a CSV Export.
HackHQ is built for the academic events you run. Senior capstone expos, multi-track engineering showcases, and student hackathons. Faculty and industry judges score from any device, every track ranks itself, and you walk into deliberation with weighted results already sorted.
Six departments,
one expo morning
Each department judges its own slate with its own criteria. A Grand Prize spans every track. Teams self categorize during submission, so nothing gets sorted by hand.
What goes wrong during academic showcases
Real situations we hear from department coordinators every spring.
CSV export, then rebuild rankings in a spreadsheet
Last year the platform could not show scores the way the committee needed them. The moment judging closed, organizers exported everything, sorted it in Excel, and pieced the rankings together by hand, while the awards ceremony was scheduled for the same afternoon.
Industry judges asked to make accounts on a niche platform
Industry engineers from aerospace, tech, and medical device firms show up with two hours of free time. Asking them to register, set a password, and learn a new tool is the fastest way to lose half your panel.
Six departments, one rubric, one impossible spreadsheet
Multiple engineering departments, sponsored projects, legacy projects, plus a Grand Prize that everyone competes for. Each department wants its own criteria. Spreadsheets that try to handle this break the morning of.
From kickoff to awards in five hours
How a capstone expo morning runs on HackHQ.
Setup and team check in
8:00 AMTeams arrive at their assigned booth. Faculty advisors verify project displays. Submission links pre seeded the week before.
Industry judges arrive
9:30 AMIndustry judges receive personal scoring links by email. No accounts. They start scoring on whatever device is in their hand.
Judging starts across all tracks
10:00 AMFaculty and industry judges assigned across departmental tracks. Weighted rubrics on any device, real time progress visible to organizers.
Live leaderboard during deliberation
12:00 PMLast scores submitted. Weighted averages and Borda Count finalize automatically. Faculty walk into deliberation with rankings already sorted.
Awards ceremony
1:00 PMWinners assigned in one click. Per track awards, Grand Prize, sponsor specific awards. LinkedIn certificates auto generated for every team.
What an academic event looks like on HackHQ
Faculty coordinators stay out of the spreadsheet
Bulk import judges and team rosters from your existing spreadsheet. Smart defaults handle the boring choices. The platform stays out of your way so you can focus on the academic side, not the tool.
Walk into deliberation with rankings already weighted
Each track ranks itself in real time. When the last judge submits, the leaderboard is final. No CSV export, no manual sorting, no formula breaking five minutes before the ceremony.
Run every department in one event, with one rubric
Mutually exclusive tracks for each department. Opt in challenges for sponsor prizes. A Grand Prize that crosses every track. Teams pick during submission, so nothing gets sorted by hand.
Industry judges score from a link, on any device
No accounts. No passwords. No app to install. Each judge gets a personal link and starts scoring in under a minute, from a laptop, tablet, or phone.
Predictable per-event pricing, no subscription
Public pricing from $0 to $599 per event. No per-seat fees, no annual subscription, no surprise quote when the dean asks how much it cost. POs and invoices welcome for institutional billing.
Engagement metrics the dean will actually read
Submission counts, judge participation, voter turnout, and award distribution by department. Full CSV export ready for your post-event report or accreditation paperwork.
Built for academic showcases
Run Your Next Capstone Expo Without the Spreadsheet.
Start free, no credit card required. Public per-event pricing, no annual subscription. POs and invoices welcome.