ProCo

ProCo is a computer programming contest for high school students in the style of the college-level ACM-ICPC. ProCo aims to provide a fun and engaging opportunity for high school students in the Bay Area to explore their passion in computer science.

About ProCo

ProCo is hosted by Stanford ACM. The contest happened in-person on April 15, 2023. More info about ProCo 2024 will be released as we get closer to the spring.

Students compete in teams of up to three to compete in solving algorithmic problems. The contest will last 3 hours and consist of 9 - 15 unweighted problems.

The contest is also split between two separate divisions: Novice and Advanced. The problem set will be shared for both divisions, however, final team placements and prizes will be determined within each division.

For full rules and more detailed information, see our ProCo info page.

Sponsors

Hudson River Trading: Hudson River Trading is always on the lookout for passionate problem solvers and as such is excited to be a sponsor for this event. We are a multi-asset class quantitative trading firm that provides liquidity on global markets and directly to our clients. We have built one of the world's most advanced computing environments for research and development, modeling, and risk management, and are at the forefront of technical innovation for financial markets everywhere. We are thoughtful market leaders, committed to the health and longevity of global markets.

Citadel: Citadel and Citadel Securities, two of the leading firms within the financial services industry, are proud to be a sponsoring partner of Stanford's 2022 ProCo content. We recruit software engineers, quantiative researchers, and investment and trading professionals into internship and new grad positions from campuses such as Stanford and more broadly across the U.S. For ProCo, we will be offering Citadel swag bags to every programmer and top performers will be competiting for exciting branded prizes across both Division 1 and Division 2! See below for more information about us, including details on our Discover Citadel insight progam – an exclusive opportunity for select freshman and sophomores to visit our offices, network with our employees and other partcipants, and get an exlusive, in-depth look at all our offerings.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How much programming experience do I need to compete?

A: Most competitors will have had at least one year of programming experience. You will need to know how to manipulate integers, strings and arrays. It is not necessary to know advanced data structures (lists, sets, maps, stacks, queues, trees), though you may find this knowledge helpful. If we introduce a concept that you are not expected to know, we will explain it thoroughly in the problem description.

Q: What division should I be in?

A: The Novice division is designed for first-timers and competitors with less than two years of programming experience. The Advanced division is designed for returning competitors and competitors with at least two years of programming experience, or who have previously competed in ProCo.

Q: Is there an advantage to coding in a particular language?

A: No. Each language has pros and cons, and you should choose the language you are most comfortable with. In general, we have written the problems carefully so that language-specific features will not give anyone an unfair advantage.

Q: How will input and output work with my IDE?

A: This depends on the language and software package you're using.

• C and C++ programs run from the console and take input and output from the console.
• Java with Eclipse: Input and output can be passed through the Console window.
• Java with JCreator: By default, JCreator 4 captures output. You can pass input by typing directly into General Output window. You can also bring up the console by going to Configure > Options > JDK Tools > Run Application > Edit and unchecking Capture output.
• Python 3 with IDLE: The console is built into the scripting environment.

Q: Will all the input be in one terminal entry, or will each line be separate?

A: Each problem has its own input format. For some problems, the input will be a single integer, for other problems, the input will consist of multiple lines. We have designed the problems such that parsing the input will be as simple as possible.

Q: Will my travel expenses be reimbursed?

A: Unfortunately, we will not be reimbursing travel expenses.

Q: What if I forget to submit the ProCo Participant Waiver Form before the day of the contest?

A: Unfortunately, due to liability issues, you will not be able to participate in the contest. Don't forget!

Q: Can international students participate?

A: International students are welcome but are not eligible for swag.