Registrations
Registering your hackers' interest in the event!
Getting in registrations does not only make sure you have a participation pool to pass on updates for your event, rather, it is about the community you're forming around it. Every hacker that attends your hackathon becomes a member of your community and stays as one as long as you're interacting with them in the right way. For growing as a hackathon, you need to grow as a community which mean every individual needs to grow!
We recommend organizers to start some pre-registration process before they launch the main hackathon website. This helps capture the emails of interested hackers much before the main registrations start. Getting in just name and emails should be good enough for this particular process. We recommend having hackers create MyMLH accounts so organizers don't have to manually collect hackathon-relevant data such as school names and shipping addresses.
As the main registration process starts, it is vital to get in some demographic details of the attendees of your hackathon. Collecting data is useful for your team's ability to understand the demographics of your event. This can be typically beneficial while projecting your sponsors with your demographic charts and letting them know the impact your hackathon has had on the different sectors of the society. It is also extremely useful while going for targeted marketing for your event as you know the interested audience and their involvement with your hackathon. OHQ is a useful tool to set up your hackathon and easily manage registrations and check-ins that is compatible with MyMLH profiles. Reach out to your Hackathon Community Manager to hear more about using OHQ and MyMLH!
Statistically about 50% of hackers that register for events show up. They may make plans, decide not to attend last minute, or feel like there is no loss not coming to a free event they previously signed up for. Take this into account and aim for double the amount of registrations. Also make a plan for what to do if you have more sign ups than your event is being planned for. Do not go over double of your aimed attendance. If you exceed your initial goals you might need to make a waitlist. Try to give priority to hackers who are closer to your event since they are more likely to actually show up.
Please note: As with all personal data, use the utmost care to keep participant data safe. We recommend hackathons to use the personal data just for the day of communication and not share it with anyone until you get specific permission from your hackers to do so.
You can see our example Registration form here
Important Registration Fields
These are required to be in the format detailed below for MLH Member Events
First Name
It is important to have these fields split. Some people go by multiple first names/last names. For example Maria Anne De La Cruz. If this was 1 line we would have to manually split the field.
Last Name
Age
We recommend this as a dropdown with specific ages instead of date of births. MLH needs this data for eligibility purposes (some codes are only available to hackers 18+). We do not collect dates of birth as part of event registration to reduce data risk.
Phone Number
In case you need to call someone during the event. This may also be needed if you have to send a message to all participants for some reason (for example weather related emergency notification).
Email
So you can communicate before and after the event. Location, schedule, feedback, etc.
School (use MLH's list of verified schools)
Use a set list instead of having students type out their school. This will result in uniform results. If you see one that hasn't been included, please add it via my.mlh.io and we'll verify it soon.
For example some universities can have multiple versions of the name. Each will show as a different option, and will skew your demographic data showing how many students came from each school.
The University of Texas at Dallas
University of Texas at Dallas
UTD
UTDallas
Level of Study - instead of or in addition to Graduation Year
Less than Secondary / High School
Secondary / High School
Undergraduate University (2 year - community college or similar)
Undergraduate University (3+ year)
Graduate University (Masters, Professional, Doctoral, etc)
Code School / Bootcamp
Other Vocational / Trade Program or Apprenticeship
Post Doctorate
Other
I’m not currently a student
Prefer not to answer
Country of Residence
We recommend this as a dropdown. It’s okay to put your hackathon’s country at the top for ease of use.
Again be careful not to have users type input, or you will get a million answers for the same countries.
US
USA
United States
Unites States of America
LinkedIn URLs
Ask hackers to provide their LinkedIn URL to be able to connect with partners post-event for potential job opportunities.
MLH Checkboxes
MLH Member Events also are required to have 3 checkboxes. 2 of them hackers MUST agree to. The 3rd is optional (they can agree or disagree), but we require it to be in your registration form.
Please add the following disclaimer and 3 checkboxes if you plan to work with us. You can remove the disclaimer once you have moved into our official Membership Stage(Talk with your HCM if you have questions).
"We are currently in the process of partnering with MLH. The following 3 checkboxes are for this partnership. If we do not end up partnering with MLH, your information will not be shared"
"I have read and agree to the MLH Code of Conduct."(https://github.com/MLH/mlh-policies/blob/main/code-of-conduct.md)
“I authorize you to share my application/registration information with Major League Hacking for event administration, ranking, and MLH administration in-line with the MLH Privacy Policy (https://github.com/MLH/mlh-policies/blob/main/privacy-policy.md). I further agree to the terms of both the MLH Contest Terms and Conditions (https://github.com/MLH/mlh-policies/blob/main/contest-terms.md) and the MLH Privacy Policy (https://github.com/MLH/mlh-policies/blob/main/privacy-policy.md).”
“I authorize MLH to send me occasional emails about relevant events, career opportunities, and community announcements."
Optional Demographic Fields
Dietary Restrictions (For in-Person events - see more about planning for dietary restrictions in our Event Logistics section!)
Vegetarian
Vegan
Celiac Disease
Allergies
Kosher
Halal
Do you identify as part of an underrepresented group in the technology industry?
Yes
No
Unsure
Gender
Man
Woman
Non-Binary
Prefer to self-describe
Prefer Not to Answer
Pronouns - Adding pronouns should always be optional
She/Her
He/Him
They/Them
She/They
He/They
Prefer Not to Answer
Other (let them fill in themselves)
Race/ Ethnicity
Asian Indian
Black or African
Chinese
Filipino
Guamanian or Chamorro
Hispanic / Latino / Spanish Origin
Japanese
Korean
Middle Eastern
Native American or Alaskan Native
Native Hawaiian
Samoan
Vietnamese
White
Other Asian (Thai, Cambodian, etc)
Other Pacific Islander
Other (Please Specify)
Prefer Not to Answer
Do you consider yourself to be any of the following?
Heterosexual or straight
Gay or lesbian
Bisexual
Different identity ________
Prefer Not to Answer
What is the highest level of formal education that you have completed?
Less than Secondary / High School
Secondary / High School
Undergraduate University (2 year - community college or similar)
Undergraduate University (3+ year)
Graduate University (Masters, Professional, Doctoral, etc)
Code School / Bootcamp
Other Vocational / Trade Program or Apprenticeship
Other (please specify)
I’m not currently a student
Prefer not to answer
T-shirt Size (If shipping t-shirts)
Specify the US/ UK sizes here
Shipping Address (If shipping prizes or swag)
Address Line 1
Address Line 2
City
State
Country
Pincode
Major/Field of Study
Computer science, computer engineering, or software engineering
Another engineering discipline (such as civil, electrical, mechanical, etc.)
Information systems, information technology, or system administration
A natural science (such as biology, chemistry, physics, etc.)
Mathematics or statistics
Web development or web design
Business discipline (such as accounting, finance, marketing, etc.)
Humanities discipline (such as literature, history, philosophy, etc.)
Social science (such as anthropology, psychology, political science, etc.)
Fine arts or performing arts (such as graphic design, music, studio art, etc.)
Health science (such as nursing, pharmacy, radiology, etc.)
Other (please specify)
Undecided / No Declared Major
My school does not offer majors / primary areas of study
Prefer not to answer
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