Data Science students rolled up their sleeves, worked hard, and completed their projects, which means only one thing: this year's edition of the LUMEN competition, organized by the student association eSTUDENT, has successfully come to an end. The grand finale was held at the Antunović Hotel, with Alfatec Group playing an important role in shaping this year's competition.
As the premium partner of the LUMEN Data Science competition, Alfatec Group had the opportunity to set this year's task, thereby giving the participating students insight into the real challenges that employees face in their work. This project was created within Alfatec through collaboration between the Business Intelligence and Software Research & Development departments.
Using real data and examples from our extensive practice, the task that the competitors had to complete was a challenge that clients in the hotel industry often face – forecasting hotel occupancy. We invested significant resources in preparing this task to ensure that students had hands-on experience with a real-world problem on a project that directly impacts business strategies in practice. With our expertise and experience in data science, the task was designed to be not only educational, but also an inspiration for innovation, adoption of the latest practices, and technologies emerging in the industry.
All student teams that qualified for the finals first gave their presentations, and then had the opportunity to network with other competitors and companies. This was followed by the announcement of the winners in each category, which, in addition to excellent experiences and connections, also brought valuable cash prizes. Of the six finalist groups, the top two teams had a close competition for first place, ultimately decided by small details – the team Vizionari 3.0 won first place, while Overfitting Overlords took second place. It is also necessary to commend the team that could only participate online due to their remote location, ClosedLoop, whose third place was recognized as an excellent solution.
The LUMEN platform, which has borne this name for the past two years, is the largest student competition platform in Croatia, encompassing four areas: three STEM fields and one social field. The purpose of the competition for students is to showcase their knowledge, creativity, and ability to think innovatively. In return, they connect with renowned companies offering job opportunities based on their demonstrated knowledge. We are very pleased to have been part of such a significant competition this year, a project that effectively and successfully bridges the academic community, future employees of the IT industry, and companies.
