GSK-Appcademy has kicked off for 2013

We are delighted to bring you this year’s event in association with Glaxo SmithKline Ireland.

The GSK App-cademy is about bringing software development leaders and third level students together. The goal of the GSK App-cademy is to promote mentoring, positivity and jobs in app development. We achieve this by putting the best new developer talent in a room with industry professionals to create an innovative and highly creative networking session.

This event will see twenty shortlisted final year students pitching their working apps to industry leaders. We will have people from app development firms, mobile operators, leading e-Commerce businesses and healthcare professionals offering advice and making lasting connections with upcoming software development talent.

We are calling on third level students in computer science, multi-media development and IT courses who have apps developed to apply to attend.

How do I apply to attend the App-cademy?

In order to attend the app-cademy we need to see that you have the ability to make an app. So you can fill in the app form to submit your current working prototype (perhaps your final year project or something you are working on currently).
We will evaluate the forms and select the best 20. If you make the short list you will be invited to attend on the 24th of April.
At the event you will get to ‘speed network’ with senior technology professionals. During these quick chats you can discuss/ pitch your working prototype, what area of development you are interested in and also get some advice on starting your career.

The GSK case-study

In addition to the great networking and pitching on offer GSK are giving students the opportunity to win an intern-ship. This intern-ship will see one student join the development firm Tapadoo for ten days to build an app and have it published.
To qualify for this opportunity you will need to write an answer to a case-study supplied by GSK. Your written response will show how an application can improve a medical process. The best answer (reviewed by health care professionals and app developers) will then become a working intern-ship – turning the case-study answer into a working application.
The deadline for case-study submissions is the 25th of March.

What else can I get?

Ultimately app-cademy is a chance for you to share your development skill and ideas with people working in technology lead businesses. You will get a certificate stating you were invited to the app-cademy 2013. As you will be pitching your working prototype during the quick networking sessions we will also have a cash prize of €1,000 for the app that gets the best feedback. But the big carrot is the chance to take your idea from paper to a working app as part of the intern-ship. This is worth €6,000 in development time and it also comes with a cash prize of €1,000.

The dates for your diary are:

Official launch of the GSK App-cademy 2013 – 14th of February.
Monday the 02 April at 9 am is the last date to send in your case-study submission.
Monday the 02 April at 9am is also the closing date to apply to attend by submitting your working prototype or app.
The event takes place on the 24th of April.