Student Eligibility

Who can take this class?

Hacking for Defense at Georgetown University is open to all Georgetown graduate students (regardless of school or department) and any graduate students from the DC Consortium of Universities. All disciplines are welcome, as they bring unique perspectives and skills to unpacking and solving the problems at hand.

Who should take this class?

To quote Steve Blank: “If you’re curious, if you want to work on real world problems, if you’re excited about working with a diverse team, this is a class for everybody.”

Are there any prerequisites?

No. Just an open mind, curiosity, and the drive to work hard in service of a real-world national security problem.

I have an idea/project that I think the military/government would be interested in. It doesn't fit one of the problem topics, can I still apply for this class?

Please Contact us as soon as possible to see if it is possible to identify an organization to sponsor your project.

Do I need previous military or DOD/IC (Department of Defense/Intelligence Community) experience?

​No. The class is a unique opportunity to gain exposure to these communities. The class and the sponsors benefit from bringing together students with diverse backgrounds, disciplines, and experiences. However, students with a military background are well represented in this class due to the relevance of their skill set.

Do I need technical / computational experience to apply?

No. In this case, “Hacking” refers to a problem-solving approach, not the use of a computer system. However, technically-skilled students are strongly encouraged to apply and are well represented in the class, given the nature of many of the projects tackled in the class.

Do I have to be a US citizen to take this class?

​No. All nationalities are welcome and encouraged. While the problems posed to the class are explicitly U.S. focused at the moment, we believe every student would benefit from experiencing the course.

Intellectual Property

Who owns the intellectual property tested in the Mission Model?

If you’re working with a Georgetown related-technology (i.e. either research from one of the team members or University IP), you must check with the Office of Technology, Licensing to understand Georgetown’s ownership rights in any resulting IP. 

1. You own what Intellectual Property (patents, hardware, algorithms, etc.) you brought to class with you. No one (other than Stanford) has claim to anything you brought to class.

2. You all own any intellectual property developed for the class (such as code for a web-based project) developed during class. You are agreeing to open-source your class developed assets. Your DOD/IC sponsor will have access to those materials. 

3. You and your team members need to disclose to each other and your DOD/IC sponsor what IP/Licensing rights any company you’ve worked at has to inventions you make at school.

4. If any or you decide to start a company based on the class, you own only what was written and completed in the class. You have no claim for work done before or after the class quarter.

5. If a subset of the team decides to start a company they do NOT “owe” anything to any other team members for work done in and during the class. All team members are free to start the same company, without permission of the others. (We would hope that a modicum of common sense and fairness would apply.)

6. By taking this class you have agreed to these terms with your team. You may decide to modify these terms before the class by having all team members agree in writing before the team is accepted in the class. 

I feel my idea / Mission Model may become a real company and the "next killer app" and I want to own it myself what should I do?

This is more than likely the wrong class to take. Your slides, notes and findings will be publicly shared. Your team owns everything done in class. Discuss Intellectual Property rights with your team from the beginning. If you can’t come to agreement with the team, join another team, pick another project, or drop the class. Remember anything you do and learn in the class is public. 

Will my Intellectual Property rights be protected when I discuss my ideas with the class?

No. This is an open class. There are no non-disclosures. All your presentations and Customer Discovery and Validation notes, business model canvas, blogs and slides can, and most likely will, be made public. This class is not an incubator. At times you will learn by seeing how previous classes solved the same class of problem by looking at their slides, notes and blogs.

Keep in mind that successful companies are less about the original idea and more about the learning, discovery and execution. (That’s the purpose of this class.) Therefore you must be prepared to share your ideas openly with the class. It is a forum for you to “bounce” your ideas off your peers. 

Will my Intellectual Property rights be protected when I discuss my ideas with the class?

Please choose one or two problems for your application.  Applications will be evaluated by whether the team is capable of addressing the particular problem, so different teams will be better suited to different problems.  This will be covered in more detail at the brown bag lunches and info sessions. Please attend these events for advice on which problems your team may be best suited for.

I’m not comfortable sharing what I learn with others. What should I do?

​Don’t take this class. This class is not an incubator. At times you will learn by seeing how previous classes solved the same class of problem by looking at their slides, notes and blogs. 

Team Dynamics

What roles are in each team?

​Traditionally, each team member is part of the “customer development team.” You have to figure out how to allocate the work. 

What if my team becomes dysfunctional?

Prepare to work through difficult issues. If the situation continues, approach the teaching team. Do not wait until the end of the quarter to raise the issue. 

What if one of my teammates is not "pulling their weight"?

Try to resolve it within your team. If the situation continues longer than a week, please approach the teaching team. Final grades will also reflect individual participation and contribution. 

What kind of feedback can I expect?

Continual feedback weekly. Substandard quality work will be immediately brought to your attention