BIBER of Computer Science: UAS Technikum Wien as a Stage for IT Talent
24 April, 2025
200 students from all over Austria were honored at UAS Technikum Wien for their awesome achievements. The school competition “Biber der Informatik” (Beavers of computer science) has been promoting computer science thinking and digital education in a fun way for years.
On April 9, 2025, the University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien hosted a special award ceremony: The Austrian Computer Society (OCG) honored 200 students who had achieved the highest scores in the “Biber der Informatik” (Beavers of computer science) school competition. A total of 435 people were in attendance, including the 200 prize winners, visitors, relatives, and teachers. In November 2024, over 55,900 young people from all over Austria took part in this international competition, demonstrating their logical thinking and problem-solving skills.
The award ceremony was accompanied by exciting workshops
OCG President Wilfried Seyruck was impressed by the young people’s talent. In her speech, Sylvia Geyer, Rector of UAS Technikum Wien, also emphasized the importance of getting girls interested in digital topics at an early age.
Parallel to the award ceremony, the students were able to take part in five exciting workshops where they could put their digital skills to the test. From “Game & VR Workshop – How an Idea Becomes a Game” to “Interact Creatively with AI,” “User Experience – Let’s Make the Internet Better!” and “Mission Codebreakers – Crack the Encryption” to “Creating Creative Images with Python Turtle and ChatGPT,” the diverse program inspired participants with its creativity, technical relevance, and interactivity.
As a representative of the Ministry of Education, Stefan Gara (deputy club chairman of NEOS Vienna) praised the importance of digital education for the future of young generations. The “Biber der Informatik” makes a significant contribution to this by making computer science accessible in a playful way and without prior knowledge. During the event, the OCG expressed its special thanks to the numerous teachers and over 360 schools that made participation possible.
Every year in November, simultaneously in over 60 countries
The “Biber der Informatik” is an international competition that was founded in Lithuania in 2004 and has been held every year in November in over 60 countries since then. In Austria, it has been organized by the OCG in cooperation with the TU Vienna since 2007. The aim of the competition is to promote IT-related ways of thinking, such as algorithmic and logical thinking, in a playful way. The age-appropriate tasks are presented in the form of puzzles and are designed so that no programming knowledge is necessary. This makes it possible to make the often abstract image of computer science tangible and to inspire young people of all ages to take an interest in digital topics.
Participation is organized by schools and is free of charge – low-threshold access with a big impact. The next competition will take place from November 10 to 21, 2025. UAS Technikum Wien is looking forward to continuing to accompany and support young IT talents in their development in the future.
Further Links:
Austrian Computer Society (OCG)
Bachelor’s degree program Computer Science