The real edge isn't one more course. It's proof your child can build.
Hackathons and coding competitions are where young builders turn skills into confidence, a real portfolio, and opportunities that follow them for years. PrompToGo is how they get there.
Anyone can take a coding class. Few kids go build something real.
Coding classes are everywhere now, and a certificate at the end proves your child showed up — not that they can actually make something. What sets a young person apart is different: they've built something real, shipped it, and put themselves in the room with other builders. That's what a hackathon is.
A portfolio, not a grade
Something real they can show a school, a mentor, or themselves — long after the class is forgotten.
Confidence that sticks
Shipping a project in a weekend changes how a kid sees themselves. That belief carries into everything next.
The right room
Mentors from the biggest names in tech, future founders, and kids who love exactly what they love.
A story that stands out
Universities, scholarships, and internships notice students who do — not just study.
Why aim for a flagship hackathon
Picture your teen on a university campus for a weekend — one of a thousand builders, a weekend to make something real, with mentors from the biggest names in tech leaning over their shoulder. That's what Canada's flagship university hackathons are: some of the most respected student events anywhere. It's an experience that opens doors — the people, the mentors, and the quiet confidence of having been there.
And here's what most parents don't realize: your child can actually get in. The flagship events are typically open to students 13 and up, and first-time hackers are admitted every year. Aspirational — but not out of reach.
The Competition Readiness Program
In two live classes, your child goes from never having done a hackathon to a real application for the competition they're aiming at, submitted together before its deadline — and a portfolio that's theirs to keep for every opportunity after. We help pick the right event for where they are today, teach every intro, then sit beside them to prep, polish, and hit submit. No guesswork, and never doing it alone.
- Class 1 — all the intros. How hackathons and competitions actually work, which one fits your child right now, what reviewers look for, and setting up GitHub + a real portfolio.
- Class 2 — prep & submit. We draft and line-edit their application, polish their best project, check every link, and hit submit together.
- Their game, live on the web. We host their playable project so reviewers click a real link — the single biggest lever on a young application.
- Parents get the logistics pack. Eligibility, consent forms, deadlines, travel — made simple on one page.
- Two live small-group classes, taught live by an instructor$150+
- Their real application drafted, edited & submitted together$80
- Their playable project hosted on a link reviewers can click$50
- A GitHub portfolio they build and keep, reused for yearskept for life
- Parent logistics pack + a plan for the next competitionincluded
Class value benchmarked to typical one-on-one coaching ($80–150/hr).
We can't promise a selective committee will say yes — no one honestly can, and anyone who guarantees your child gets in isn't being straight with you. What we do guarantee: they send the strongest application they're capable of, prepared with them — and walk away with a real project, a portfolio, and the skills, theirs to keep whether the answer is yes or not yet.
Younger than 13? Register anyway — we'll aim them at the right first hackathon on the ladder.
Not sure where your child should start? That's normal.
Most families don't begin knowing which competition is right. Here's how we think about it — based on where your child is today. Every path is a rung on the same ladder, and we help at each step.
Start with a beginner-friendly high-school hackathon
FraserHacks (Mississauga) or JAMHacks (Waterloo) — all skill levels, low pressure, a huge confidence boost and a first project under their belt.
Aim for the flagship
Canada’s flagship university hackathons. The full experience — and the one we help them apply to.
Try a coding contest
The Canadian Computing Competition (CCC) from Waterloo’s CEMC is online, individual, and has a beginner (Junior) level.
The events on the ladder
Dates shift year to year — always confirm on the official site. The Hack Club directory lists dozens more across Canada.
How to get into a flagship hackathon
Selective doesn't mean out of reach. The best hackathons look for the same few things — and they have far more to do with what your child has built than with grades. Here's what we coach.
Genuine passion
A project your child chose to build — because they wanted to, not because it was assigned — speaks louder than any résumé.
Something to show
A link a reviewer can click and try beats paragraphs of description. Getting the work online is the single biggest lever.
A real story
What they made, why it mattered, what was hard, and what they learned — told specifically, in their own voice.
Applying early
Admissions are often rolling and deadlines arrive fast. Prepared and early beats rushed every time.
The exact application differs by event and changes year to year — which is exactly what our review sessions are for. We help your child prepare the right project and application for the event they're targeting.
We walk your child through the whole thing.
This is the part PrompToGo owns. We don't hand your child a link and wish them luck — we guide them, step by step, and they come out with a portfolio they'll use for every opportunity after.
- Pick the standout project. We help choose and polish the one project that tells the best story.
- Get it online. We host their playable project on PrompToGo so reviewers can try it in one click.
- Teach them GitHub. Their own public portfolio — the exact thing hackathons ask for, and theirs to keep.
- Review the application. We coach the story, tighten every answer, and check every link — then help them hit submit.
- Guide the parents. Eligibility, deadlines, and consent — we make the logistics simple.
- Point to the next rung. Whatever the outcome, we line up the next competition that fits.
Questions parents ask
The honest answers, before you even book a call
Let's find your child's starting point.
Tell us a bit about your child and we'll map out the right first competition — and exactly how to prepare for it. No pressure, just a plan.