competition for school students throughout the UAE. It is developed and organized by students’ association and faculty members at the College of Information Technology, United Arab Emirates University (UAEU) since 2008. The competition consists of four standard categories: IT Contest, IT Showcase, IT4Kids and IT4Special Needs. Informational and hands-on workshops are provided to teachers and high school students during the event.
The main goals of IT Marathon are:
• Excite students about information technology through a fun and challenging competition.
• Provide an opportunity for school students to showcase their skills.
• Spread the awareness about the strategic importance of IT in the UAE.
• Contribute to building the next generation of IT thinkers in the UAE, by encouraging and supporting young IT talents

IT Marathon contributes to ICT youth capacity building by providing a platform to excite young students about information technology, computing majors, and to develop their skills. The event spread the awareness about the strategic importance of IT in the UAE to more than 2500 students since 2008.

https://cit.uaeu.ac.ae/en/itmarathon/

• United Arab Emirates

• Youth
• People with disabilities

The developed competition and its materials can be replicated and implemented at other institutions or communities The competition material and program are available online at the competition website. Additional detailed information and consultant services are available from the College for this project.

The developed competition is sustainable. It is a major activity established by the College to contribute to the development of the local community. The operational cost is low and the majority of the budget is allocated for prizes. The event is usually sponsored by industry.

• It provides opportunities for students to participate in the competition and to expand their IT knowledge. • The competition stimulates and challenges young minds to develop their general IT skills based on science fundamentals and advancements. • It spreads the awareness about the strategic importance of IT in the UAE and the digital opportunities. • The event empowers young students and it provides them with opportunities to showcase their IT skills and develop their ideas using ICT tools. • There is no gender gap.