Quora Programming Challenge 2021 Contest Rules
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR TO WIN. ALL FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL, AND MUNICIPAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.
Overview:
We’re excited to share the Quora Programming Challenge 2021 Contest (“Contest”) with you. At Quora, we work on challenging engineering problems every day, and we are looking for strong engineers to join our small but exceptionally talented team. By registering for the contest, you agree that we may reach out to you to recruit you if we have job openings available.
There is no cost to enter, but you will need to sign in or create a Quora account in order to register. We will also send you login information for a Contest Management System (“CMS”) account in order to participate in the contest. We will use CMS to run the contest, but the contest will be hosted by us.
Terms and Conditions in a Nutshell
The Contest has two different divisions:
- Division 1: February 6, 2021 from 14:00 to 18:00 (UTC + 00:00); and
- Division 2: February 7, 2021 from 01:00 to 05:00 (UTC + 00:00).
You can choose to compete in one or both divisions.
The Contest is open to anyone, anywhere (except certain countries listed below). You must register with a Quora account to enter.
Once you register and agree to the Official Contest Rules (“Rules”), we will send you further instructions and login credentials for CMS on February 5, 2021 (California time). We will use CMS to run the contest, but the contest will be hosted by us.
CMS will automatically score answers based on point systems as described in each problem statement. In the event of tied scores, valid submissions that are earlier in time will win. Time of submissions is determined by CMS and confirmed by a Quora engineer on the judging panel.
ARBITRATION NOTICE: These Rules contain a section on arbitration. You and Quora agree that certain disputes between us regarding the Contest will be resolved by mandatory binding arbitration in applicable jurisdictions, and that you and Quora waive any right to participate in a class-action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration.
Still interested? Please read the fine print below.
Contest Rules, Terms and Conditions Term
The Contest registration period starts on January 6, 2021 at 21:00 (UTC + 00:00) and lasts until February 5, 2021 16:00 (UTC + 00:00) (the “Registration Term”). No additional registrations will be accepted after the close of the Registration Term.
The Contest period has two different divisions:
- Division 1: February 6, 2021 from14:00 to 18:00 (UTC + 00:00); and
- Division 2: February 7, 2021 from 01:00 to 05:00 (UTC + 00:00) (the “Contest Term”).
Participants may participate in one or both divisions. No Contest submissions of qualifying problem answers will be accepted after the close of the Contest Term. Limit one (1) entry per division per individual. The clock on Sponsor’s computer used for the Contest will be the official clock for the Contest.
Who can participate?
Participants must be individuals who are at least eighteen (18) years of age, or the age of majority in your place of resident, whichever is older at the time of entry.
If a Participant is an employee of a corporation or academic institution, enrolled as a student or representing their employer or academic institution in this Contest, it is their sole responsibility to review, understand and abide by their employer’s or academic institution’s policies regarding eligibility to participate in the Contest. If a Participant is found to be in violation of their school’s or employer’s policies, they will be disqualified from entering the Contest and being awarded or retaining Contest Prizes. Quora disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for disputes arising between a student or employee and their school or employer related to this Contest.
Current and former employees, officers, contractors and agents of Quora, its subsidiaries and affiliates, together with members of their immediate families (parent, child, sibling and spouse of each) and those living in their same households, or Quora and independent contractors supporting the Contest, are ineligible to enter and participate in the Contest or be awarded or retain any Contest Prize.
Residents of Quebec, Tasmania, Balkans, Burma, Cuba, Liberia, Iran, Syria, and North Korea and any country included on the OFAC list are ineligible to participate. The Contest is void in these countries and where prohibited or restricted by law. Quora reserves the right to limit, or restrict upon notice, participation in the Contest to any person at any time for any reason.
Registration
To participate in the Contest, Participants must accurately and truthfully complete the Participant registration information request online at https://www.quora.com/careers/ch... (the “Site”) during the Registration Term (each individual who meets the eligibility requirements and successfully completes the registration process will be a “Participant”). To register, Participants must have a Quora account. Each Participant must consent to be bound by these Rules. All responses must be in English. All entry information and submissions shall be deemed collected and judged in the United States. Quora will not reveal Participant identities unless and until a Participant wins a prize. In any case, Quora will not use a Participant’s registration information for commercial purposes, but may contact a Participant for recruiting.
Login and Problems
Quora will email Participants on February 5, 2021 (California time) with login information for CMS and further instructions to access the Contest problem statements on CMS.
During the Contest, participants may not redistribute the problems without the express written permission of Quora.
Eligibility of Qualifying Answers
Participants will submit their answers for problem statements through CMS.
Each submitted answer must be written in C++, C, Java, or Python. The time limit and memory limit of the evaluation server for each problem is shown in the corresponding problem statement provided during the Contest Term. For more information on how to read input and write output for a specific problem, please refer to the problem statement.
Plagiarism Policy
- Participants are not allowed to get help from other Participants. If plagiarism is detected, Participants may be disqualified.
- Participants can use any source code that is written or published before the contest, or generated using tools that were written and published before the contest.
Submissions that fail to follow these requirements will be rejected and not receive any points.
Scores for Qualifying Answers
Each problem has a potential total score of one hundred (100) points. For details on how an individual problem is scored, please refer to the problem statement. We do not guarantee that it is possible to achieve a full score on every programming problem in every language.
If a Participant submits multiple answers to a problem without subtasks, the score for such problem is the highest score across each of the Participant’s submissions for such problem.
A note on subtasks:
Some of the problems will be scored using subtasks. A subtask is a set of one or more test cases satisfying a certain set of constraints, along with a point value. Points will be awarded for a subtask only if the submission passes all tests for the subtask.
If a Participant submits multiple answers for a problem with subtasks, the score for such a problem is the sum of the highest score of each subtask across each of the Participant’s submission for such problem.
Judging of Qualifying Answers
At the end of the Contest Term, qualifying submissions will be judged based on automated scoring managed by CMS. In the case of any tied scores within a specific division, the valid submission that is earlier in time will win. Time of submissions is determined by CMS and confirmed by a Quora engineer on the judging panel. The decisions of the Contest judges are final.
Once answers are verified by the judges, Quora will award the appropriate Contest Prizes to the winning Participants as described below. The answers may be published on the Site along with the name of the Participants who won the Prize.
Award of Contest Prizes
Division 1 Contest Prizes:
* First place: Two Thousand United States Dollars ($2000 USD)
* Second place: One Thousand United States Dollars ($1000 USD)
* Third place: Five Hundred United States Dollars ($500 USD)
* Next 7 finishers (4th to 10th): Two Hundred United States Dollars $200 USD)
* Top 50 finishers: Quora T-shirt (approximate retail value (“ARV”) of each t-shirt is ten United States dollars ($10 USD).
Division 2 Contest Prizes:
* First place: Two Thousand United States Dollars ($2000 USD)
* Second place: One Thousand United States Dollars ($1000 USD)
* Third place: Five Hundred United States Dollars ($500 USD)
* Next 7 finishers (4th to 10th): Two Hundred United States Dollars $200 USD)
* Top 50 finishers: Quora T-shirt (ARV $10 USD)
Each of the prizes shall be granted to qualifying Participants according to the judging criteria described above.
A Participant choosing to participate in both divisions could win prizes in both divisions. Limit one (1) prize per division per Participant. Potential winners will be notified on or around February 15, 2021 by email at the email address provided at the time of entry. In the event a qualified potential winner does not return the Prize Documentation (defined below) within fourteen (14) days, a Contest Prize is declined, or a potential winner is not in compliance with these Rules or eligible for award of a Contest Prize for whatever reason, Quora reserves the right to choose an alternate potential winner, who shall be verified in accordance with these Rules. Odds of winning per division depend on the number of eligible entries received.
Return of a Contest Prize or failure of Contest Prize delivery will result in disqualification and an alternative potential winner will be chosen and verified in accordance with these Rules.
Any costs or expenses associated with the acceptance and use of any Contest Prize monies are the sole responsibility of the Contest Prize winners. All Contest Prize details are at Quora’s sole discretion. A Contest Prize winner may make no substitutions or assignment of a Contest Prize other than as specified in these Rules. Monetary prizes will be sent by wire transfer or, in limited cases, by check. Total value of the prize in winner’s local currency at the time it is awarded may depend on exchange rates with winner’s country of residence.
Prize monies should be retained by Participants only in conformity with any applicable policies of their employers or academic institutions, regarding participation in and receipt of promotional consideration relating to the Contest and receipt and retention of Contest Prizes. If an employer’s or school’s policies are applicable, it is the Participant’s sole and ultimate responsibility, in consultation with their employer or school, to determine how and if any Contest Prize will be retained and/or distributed and accounted for. Quora assumes no responsibility for the decisions made by such employers or schools regarding this issue.
