Apple is bringing back its Swift Student Challenge in 2027, giving student developers around the world another opportunity to showcase their creativity and app-building skills. The competition will open on February 8, 2027, and run through February 28, with one particularly notable change: participants can submit apps designed for any Apple platform, rather than being limited to a narrower selection of devices.

Announced on November 10, the Swift Student Challenge 2027 continues Apple’s efforts to encourage students to explore software development, experiment with Swift, and turn their ideas into working applications. The expanded platform support also gives participants more flexibility in deciding how they want their creations to be experienced.

Swift Student Challenge 2027 dates and what’s new

Apple has confirmed that submissions for the 2027 Swift Student Challenge will be accepted from February 8 through February 28, 2027.

The biggest change this year is the expanded platform eligibility. Students can now build their submissions for any of Apple’s major platforms, including:

• iOS
• iPadOS
• macOS
• visionOS
• tvOS
• watchOS

This opens up more possibilities for students who want to experiment beyond traditional iPhone and iPad applications. A submission could be designed for a Mac, explore spatial experiences on Apple Vision Pro, or take advantage of the Apple Watch‘s smaller screen and wearable capabilities.

Regardless of the platform, Apple wants participants to demonstrate creativity, thoughtful design, and their ability to build an engaging app experience.

Who can participate in the Swift Student Challenge?

The competition is open to eligible students around the world, although Apple has specific age, education, and employment requirements.

Applicants must not be employed full-time as developers. They must also meet the minimum age requirement for their country or region. The minimum is 13 years old in most countries, including the United States and India, while some countries have higher age requirements.

In addition, applicants must be registered with Apple as developers for free or hold membership in the Apple Developer Program.

They must also meet at least one of Apple’s educational requirements:

• Be enrolled in an accredited academic institution, an official homeschool equivalent, or an Apple Developer Academy.
• Have graduated from one of these institutions within the previous 90 days.
• Be enrolled in a STEM organization’s educational curriculum.
• Have graduated from high school or an equivalent institution within the past six months and be awaiting acceptance to, or have received acceptance from, an accredited academic institution.

Apple also limits how frequently participants can receive recognition. A student can receive a Swift Student Challenge award up to three times, but can be selected as a Distinguished Winner only once.

Students should review Apple’s official eligibility requirements before preparing their submissions.

What are the app submission requirements?

Participants must create an app experience that can be completed or explored within three minutes. Submissions must be either an Xcode app or an app playground created using Swift Playgrounds.

For 2027, Apple specifies that submissions must be built and run using Xcode 27 or Swift Playgrounds 4.7, or later. The completed project must be packaged into a ZIP file no larger than 500MB.

There are a few other important requirements. The app must work without a network connection because submissions will be evaluated offline. Any resources needed by the experience must therefore be included locally in the ZIP file.

Each submission must also be an individual’s own work. Group projects are not accepted, although participants can incorporate third-party open-source licensed code and public-domain images or sounds, provided they give appropriate credit and explain why those materials were used.

Apple requires all submission content to be in English. Participants can also incorporate Apple Pencil functionality into their creations.

These requirements mean students should think carefully about both the technical implementation and the experience they want judges to encounter within the three-minute evaluation window.

What do Swift Student Challenge winners receive?

The Swift Student Challenge recognizes students whose submissions demonstrate excellence in innovation, creativity, social impact, or inclusivity.

Apple will select winners and identify a smaller group of Distinguished Winners from among the strongest submissions. Those selected as Distinguished Winners will be invited to Cupertino, California, for a special experience at Apple.

All winners will receive one year of membership in the Apple Developer Program and a special gift.

Beyond the prizes, the competition offers students an opportunity to put their programming skills into practice, develop a portfolio project, and receive recognition from Apple’s developer community.

How to prepare for the Swift Student Challenge 2027

Although submissions do not open until February, Apple is encouraging interested students to start preparing early.

Its Swift Student Challenge website provides tutorials, eligibility information, and resources to help participants develop their ideas and build their apps. Apple is also organizing free online Meet with Apple sessions aimed at students and beginner developers.

Three upcoming sessions are listed:

• December 10, 2026: Get started with agentic coding in Xcode.
• January 14, 2027: Get ready for the Swift Student Challenge.
• February 4, 2027: Create your app’s story.

These sessions offer an opportunity to learn from Apple experts, explore coding tools, and get practical guidance ahead of the submission period.

Students interested in participating can visit the Swift Student Challenge website to find preparation materials, review the rules, and sign up for notifications about upcoming activities.

With submissions opening February 8, students have a few months to turn an idea into a polished app. And with support for all six major Apple platforms, the 2027 competition gives aspiring developers more room to experiment with what they can build.