MSE Team Takes Home Top Prize at Architecture Competition

For the second year in a row, a team of graduate students from the Institute for Software Research’s Master of Software Engineering (MSE) Professional Programs placed in the top three at the Student IT Architecture Competition (SITAC). 

The competition, now in its fifth year, pitted teams of undergraduate and graduate students against one another to develop software architecture for an engaging and effective self-guided learning system. Assigned a veteran industry mentor, each team was responsible for numerous deliverables — ranging from scoping to architectural diagrams to execution plans — that presented a solution leveraging emerging technologies and minimizing operation costs.

In the past, the event culminated with presentations from the top student teams, panel discussions with industry leaders, and a declaration of awards in Seattle, Washington. This year, due to travel restrictions and social distancing guidelines imposed in response to the novel coronavirus pandemic, the presentations and awards ceremony were held on a virtual conferencing platform.

Sponsored by numerous tech companies — including Amazon, Microsoft, Costco, REI, and others — the competition attracted many participants. By the end of the four month process, the field of contenders had narrowed to 17 teams. At the end of the day, it was Carnegie Mellon team members Vivek Gupta (MSE), Ajay Nair (MSE), and Vaithy Narayanan (MSE), with the guidance of industry mentor Aniruddha Mukhopadhyay, Senior IT Architect at Puget Sound Energy, who carried the day, claiming first place for their submission. 

Matt Bass, Assistant Teaching Professor in the Master of Software Engineering Professional Programs,  said, “I’m extremely proud of our students; they took it upon themselves to organize a team, enter the competition, and dedicate the time (during a really hectic semester) to win in such a crowded and competitive field.  I’m fortunate to be surrounded by such motivated and capable individuals!”

To learn more about the SITAC, please visit the event website.