I'm working on my submission for the Swift Student Challenge and I have some questions regarding the use of existing code. Can I use code provided by Apple in their official resources? For example, Apple recently shared a video on custom shaders (https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2024/10151), and I’d like to implement a ripple effect using a Metal shader similar to the one demonstrated. Would this be allowed? Am I allowed to use solutions found on developer forums like Stack Overflow, as long as I properly document and reference them in my code? Or does all the code need to be fully original? I’d appreciate any clarification on these points. Thanks in advance!

I am interested in participating in the Swift Student Challenge. My application contains a significant amount of augmented reality (AR) content, necessitating access to the camera. It is evident that if the reviewer utilizes a simulator or operates on a Mac, they will not be able to experience the AR function. Therefore, the AR function in the camera experience application must be utilized to access a real iPad. However, it is mentioned in https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/773530 that the plan is to evaluate Xcode app playgrounds within the simulator. Additionally, I observed the statement “Note: Xcode app playgrounds are executed in Simulator” on the submission page. Consequently, it is clear that the reviewers are limited to using a simulator or running my application on a Mac. In light of this, I am seeking guidance on how to enable the reviewer to utilize a real iPad to access the AR function in the camera experience application. Alternatively, I may need to reconsider my strategy and discontinue utilizing AR.

I was developing my app on Xcode and I saw in requirements it says “your submission must be an app playground (.swiftpm) I reckon I can develop in Xcode and then copy those files in playgrounds app, make some changes, for it to work. also I made my project in landscape mode in Xcode, in playgrounds can I lock display orientation through package.swift file or I should continue making me app in landscape mode and ask players to change their viewing orientation via a popup?

It was mentioned in the Swift Student Challenge that outstanding winners will have the opportunity to visit Apple Park in the United States. However, as a challenger from China who is not currently in the U.S., this means that if I receive the outstanding award, I will need to apply for a visa to travel to Apple Park. Since I am under 18, my guardian would also need to apply for a visa. Therefore, I would like to know if Apple provides visa assistance for outstanding winners and their guardians from China, or if we are responsible for applying for the visas on our own.

In the instructions, it states that you need to submit an essay for the question. Am I to answer all the questions in the form of my essay? I do not see a place to submit an essay.

Hey, I was wondering if judges will use physical devices or simulated ones to judge out entries. Furthermore, what types of devices will the destination run on? (iPad, iPhone, Mac, etc)

Hello, I’m developing my project for the Swift Student Challenge and I have some questions about the platform it will be tested on. If I create an iOS app that uses ARKit, for example, will it be evaluated on a real iPhone or only in a simulator on a Mac? I ask this because some functionalities, such as camera-based augmented reality, don’t work properly in the simulator. I’d like to better understand the guidelines to ensure my project functions correctly during the evaluation. Thank you!

I am building an app playground for SSC'25 where I want to use Multipeer Connectivity framework that would allow me to send and receive data to and from stranger devices. I also want to use some other open-source packages for some of the features. I just wanted to know if we are allowed to use or not?

I intend to participate in the Swift Student Challenge 25. I see Rules, It is mentioned that Playgrounds works should be a work that can be experienced in three minutes. However, my work does not meet this requirement. Create an interactive scene in an app playground that can be experienced within three minutes. Initially, my work was not intended for the Challenge but for the App Store. However, I decided to submit it to the Challenge, and my work and I met the requirements of the Challenge. Therefore, my work is a complete application, which makes it impossible for the judges to experience it within three minutes. It may take more time. Does this have any impact?

Hi everyone, I'm working on my submission for the Swift Student Challenge and wanted to clarify something—does the application need to be fully functional in every aspect to be eligible for submission? Or is it acceptable if some features aren't fully implemented, as long as the overall experience showcases my coding skills and creativity? Would appreciate any insights from past participants or anyone familiar with the guidelines! Thanks!

I am currently a student pursuing bachelor in computer engineering and in addition to that, I work as a product designer. I wanted to confirm if this would affect my eligibility for the challenge.

Swift Playgrounds 4.5.1 does not support Swift 6. I used Xcode 16 to develop my Swift Playgrounds, and I had to use @available(iOS 18.0, *) in a lot of cases. Will this void my application?

The app I am developing required me to do a bit of research to train my AI if I am explicitly using something from an article, for example lets say I used a quote about climate change from a news website, is that allowed, and would I have to site it either in my documentation or somewhere in the app?

Last year's submission form says that if you select (Run on Xcode) the app will be in the simulator not on an iPad. Has that changed this year, as I don't see it in the terms? (My app has imported local package dependencies for Reality Composer Pro that I am not certain would work on playgrounds for iOS. And it needs the iPad camera for AR functionality.)

Good day, I want to make an application to use which will need a second person. he plays an important role and affects the operation of the application Will such an app be eligible for Swift Student Challenge. Am I correct in understanding that if yes, I need to mention it in the application?

For the swift student challenge I was hoping to use swift data, I found that since it's a playground app, in package.swift the defaults is set to iOS 16 which means you can't use swift data. I changed it to iOS 17 and everything works but I want to know if that goes against the rules in anyway, changing th bios version in package.swift? This was the code I changed in package.swift. let package = Package( name: "ProStepper", platforms: [ .iOS("17.0") ],

Hey everyone, I am wondering whether for the swift student challenge I should use mock data (e.g. achievements, tracking data etc.) or real data considering that one of the requirements states that I'll submit a playground with an interactive scene that can be experienced within 3 minutes. Thanks in advance!

Hi, I have the following predicate used in a SwiftData Query: #Predicate<Item> { searchText.isEmpty || $0.myarray.contains(where: { $0.text.localizedStandardContains(searchText) }) }) Even though this compiles, I get the unsupportedKeyPath error in the logs: Query encountered an error: SwiftData.SwiftDataError(_error: SwiftData.SwiftDataError._Error.unsupportedKeyPath) I thought I could use .contains(where:) inside predicates, but this doesn't work. What could be the problem? Item.myarray is an array of a Codable struct type, and searchText is a String.

Hey Developers! Help! I was going through the "Eligibilty" doc for swift student challenge (https://developer.apple.com/swift-student-challenge/eligibility/), where it is mentioned to "Be registered for free with Apple as an Apple developer or be a member of the Apple Developer Program". Please guide me how do we do this free egisteration as the only option I can see on the devleoper app is to pay for it.

When can the winners expect to get their free year of individual membership in the Apple Developer Program? And for winners who already were part of the program, will they see an updated renewal date (postponed by one year compared to the original one) under Account -> Membership details?