Coding Club
The ETSS Wicklow Coding Club is a hub of creativity, problem-solving and innovation, where students develop real-world programming and computational thinking skills through nationally and internationally recognised challenges.
Achievements at a Glance
Astro Pi Challenge
Successfully completed on three occasions, with student code running aboard the International Space Station.
EU Code Week
Prize-winning participation, resulting in an educational visit to Microsoft Dream Space.
Cybersecurity Competitions
Participation in Capture The Flag challenges, including university-hosted cybersecurity events.
Robotics & Coding
First-year students engaged in robotics and coding competitions, developing teamwork and problem-solving skills.
Astro Pi Challenge (European Space Agency)
One of the Coding Club’s most significant achievements has been the successful completion of the Astro Pi Challenge on three separate occasions. This prestigious international competition, run by the European Space Agency and the Raspberry Pi Foundation, allows students to write programs that run on real Raspberry Pi computers aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
ETSS Wicklow teams have designed and submitted original Python programs to investigate real scientific problems, including calculating the speed of the ISS and analysing environmental data from space. Students experienced the full development cycle from planning and testing to submitting flight-ready code.
Successful Astro Pi team (2025)
Cybersecurity & Capture The Flag (CTF) Competitions
Coding Club students regularly take part in cybersecurity-focused Capture The Flag (CTF) challenges, including events hosted by third-level institutions such as UCD.
These competitions test students’ abilities in areas such as cryptography, logical problem-solving, networking concepts and secure coding practices. Working under time pressure, students collaborate in teams to solve technical challenges and gain valuable insight into real-world cybersecurity pathways.
Competitors at the CTF Competition in UCD (2025)
LEGO Robotics & Coding Competitions
First-year students involved in Coding Club also participate in LEGO-based robotics and coding competitions, including preparation for university-hosted challenges.
These competitions focus on teamwork, engineering design and block-based and text-based coding, allowing younger students to develop strong foundations in computational thinking, problem-solving and collaborative learning.
EU Code Week
ETSS Wicklow Coding Club is an active participant in EU Code Week, an initiative that promotes coding, digital literacy and innovation across Europe.
Through workshops, challenges and coding activities, students showcase their skills while engaging with a wider European technology community. As a result of their outstanding participation, ETSS Wicklow was awarded a prize of a trip to Microsoft Dream Space, recognising the creativity and commitment of students involved.
Looking Ahead
With a strong track record in national and international competitions, the Coding Club continues to inspire students to push the boundaries of what they can achieve through technology. New members are always welcome, and students are encouraged to take part in future challenges, workshops and collaborative projects.
