FAQs
Hitch2049 entry-level courses focus on developing the foundation of computer programming for future subjects in computer science and AI. Therefore, the entry-level courses are designed to suit students’ background in middle school. Beyond the entry level, higher level courses are ideal for students with sufficient math skills above Grade 9.
Yes. Regardless of whether you have taken AI or coding courses or not, our curriculum and the VVIP Class can be customized to adapt to each student’s unique background and own speed.
Be default, our regular VVIP classes are currently offered exclusively online for students around the world. Group classes may be offered in-person and on-site at one of our established Hitch2049 labs in the form of summer camps or winter camps. Please contact us for further information.
All lectures will be professionally recorded by each subject matter’s lead instructor and can be replayed within the agreement terms. Lead instructor will monitor the entire learning process for every VVIP student and will join live sessions to evaluate VVIP’s learning process. TAs will organize lab sessions and offer hands-on coding experiments, after-class exercises, and competition advising. All homework exercises will be completed in class under TAs’ supervision.
VVIP classes offer highly tailored curricula subject to each student’s specific background and needs with an expected completion time of 80~120 hours, depending on the student’s own pace and available weekly schedule. Summer/Winter Camps are currently co-branded with Berkeley ROAR Academy, and offer a more rigorous and fixed-term two-week program for students who have had prior coding experience to have the opportunity to work with Berkeley faculty, researchers, and scientists while focusing on learning about Python programming and introductory autonomous driving algorithms.
There are several factors that lead to an informed decision. Firstly, VVIP classes can be offered to all prospective students regardless of prior coding experience, while Summer/Winter Camp are only recommended to those who have prior coding experience.
Secondly, VVIP classes target those students who want to build a strong and broad skill set in a wide range of subjects being offered by Hitch2049, including Python coding, algorithms, data structure, computer vision, robotics, autonomous driving, AR/VR, and metaverse, while Summer/Winter Camps are co-branded with Berkeley ROAR Academy offering a learning experience under the Berkeley ROAR curriculum and targeting participation of ROAR competition.
Finally, for the consideration of competing in ROAR competition, VVIP classes offer more training time to get prepared for the competition, while Summer/Winter Camp students will still be invited to attend Berkeley’s public ROAR seminars that are open to everyone online.
Yes. Due to the flexibility built into our VVIP classes, it is possible for some students to first enroll in a Summer/Winter Camp, and then complement and extend their learning experience with a more customized VVIP curriculum.
The roadmap is the recommended optimal path for most students. However, our student counselors can suggest an enhanced curriculum that has the best chance to reach the students’ personal goals, often after reviewing the students’ unique background.
Not necessarily. We believe with matching students’ background, joining either Hitch2049 VVIP or Summer/Winter Camp will prepare the students for participation in ROAR competition. Students may also directly apply to Berkeley’s own ROAR Academy program. However, the university program is only designed to accommodate a limited number of K-12 students primarily living in the State of California together with the university’s own students.
ROAR Competition officiated by UC Berkeley sets a standard to evaluate students’ aptitude in the subjects of AI. The format of the competition is also derived from one of the most exciting technology-driven sports, namely, motor racing and autonomous driving. The ROAR ecosystem also provides a comprehensive platform to highlight participating students’ unique strength in their ability to pursue future careers in computer science, AI, and robotics. In particular, all winning teams will be offered to publish their solution code and technical papers on Berkeley’s official ROAR website. Extremely talented students who want to further gain experience in leadership skills are invited to apply to and be trained as Berkeley ROAR Ambassadors.
Hitch2049 curriculum offers a wide variety of subjects including coding, artificial intelligence, robotics, computer vision, AR/VR, and metaverse. We believe students who gain the Hitch2049 experience are in a strong position to take other advanced AP classes or other science and technology competitions. In addition, we are constantly expanding our Beyond Hitch2049 Innovation Ecosystem, which may offer other learning enrichment opportunities. Please see our website for more detail.
Prospective students may consider several factors when considering the differences. Firstly, Hitch2049 proactively partners with world-class universities to create new learning standards in many emerging technologies with high potentials to boost students’ future careers. Secondly, Hitch2049’s curriculum avoids the pitfall of many other coding programs that are fragmented without a consistent learning journey from entry level to intermediate and then to advanced. Talented students are offered the opportunity to pursue their learning experience on a world stage that represents the highest level of technology innovation and to collaborate with other peers who may complement each other’s skill sets. Thirdly, Hitch2049 organizes its teaching format to focus on immersing the students in best practices in open source collaboration and team leadership development as well as technical competency. Finally, we encourage students to take full advantage of our rich Beyond Hitch2049 Innovation Ecosystem to continue their learning journey.