Hello Apple Developer community! While reading the SSC Full Terms and Conditions, I noticed that "Your app playground requires sign in" is a term for disqualification. If our app idea requires sign in for personalization and security, can we submit a prototype without the sign in feature and add it later before publishing the app? Or should we steer clear of app ideas that require sign in altogether?

My project requires the on-device apple intelligence models (FoundationModels) which are only available for iPad on iPad Pro M1 and later, iPad Air M1 and later, iPad mini A17 Pro. If they don't judge on one of these devices, my project might not work properly as FoundationModels is a pretty big part of my project. For this reason I really need to know what devices the Swift Student Challenge will be judged on.

Hi everyone, I am currently developing an app for my Swift Student Challenge submission. One of the key features of my app is visualizing user progress over time using SwiftData and Swift Charts. I have a concern regarding the first-time experience for the reviewer. Since the app relies on accumulated data to display meaningful trends, the dashboard/charts will appear empty on the very first launch, which might not fully showcase the visualization logic I’ve implemented. To ensure the reviewer can immediately grasp the app's potential within their limited review window, I am considering generating pre-populated sample data (mock data) only on the initial launch. Does Apple generally recommend including sample data in a challenge submission to better demonstrate UI/UX and data visualization capabilities? Or is it strictly preferred to present a "fresh" empty state, as a real first-time user would see it? I want to make sure I am following the best practices for the challenge while highlighting my technical implementation of the SwiftData and Charts frameworks. Thank you in advance for your advice!

👋Hi, I want to ask what equipment the auditors in SSC will use to evaluate students' playground, whether it is iPad pro and mac with camera, or something else. And what system will they use, iPadOS/macOS 26 or something else? Looking forward to your reply. Thank you

Hey, I am looking to participate in the upcoming SSC 2026. I am confused whether I am allowed to submit an idea which is for watchOS. I know the fact that submission would be xcode project and playground correct me if I am wrong but as far as I know, we can develop prototypes for watch on playground. If anyone of you knows about this, please let me know!

Hello, I was wondering what simulator device is the Xcode Playground tested on? Is it better to support all screen sizes (e.g. IPads, IPhones..etc) and different orientations? Thanks!

Hi everyone, I'm currently working on a Swift Playgrounds project where I need to incorporate a Metal shader file. However, when I tried to include my shader file (PincushionShader.metal), I encountered the following error: Is it possible to use Metal shader files within Swift Playgrounds, it is really important for my swift student challenge scene? If not, are there any workarounds or recommended approaches for testing Metal shaders in a similar environment? Any guidance or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

I'm preparing my submission for the Swift Student Challenge, and I have a couple of questions regarding the development environment. Is it allowed to use Xcode to program my scene, or do I have to use Swift Playgrounds? Can I use iPadOS 18 for development? I noticed that Swift Playgrounds currently only supports up to iPadOS 17.5, but I would like to use RealityView, which is only available starting from iPadOS 18. I appreciate any clarification on this. Thanks in advance!

Hello, is it allowed to use Foundation Model in the app? Will it work when launched on the jury's device, or will it not work because the jury will not enable Apple Intelligence?

I was wondering wether you have to create your full app as an Xcode app and then translate it into playgrounds? Because some of the submissions I have seen on YouTube are running on Xcode iPad emulators.

Hi there! I was planning on using a data set of summer college programs for my swift app submission and I'm currently working to get the best data possible, but its proving rather difficult. I was wondering if its acceptable to use mock data or just a smaller set of around 150 entries if i cant get a large enough quality data set in time. Also, i figure it is, but im not sure if its acceptable to use a python web scraper even though its a swift challenge. Thanks!

what is that makes the TLS be the TLS/SErver ?

So, I'm new to Swift, but I'm trying to get my app idea off the ground and am trying to find a way to create the main module of the app - two users see in real time, where the other one touches their screen. So, each of them see a red dot light up on their screen wherever the other one touched it. Ideally dot should change in diameter based on the pressure of the touch.

Hi, I was one of the winners this year for the SSC and wanted to ask, when and how we will receive the complimentary one year Apple Developer Programm membership. I have already received everything else, including the exam voucher, the airpods max and the certificate, so I just wanted to follow up on this last item. Kind regards and thank you in advance!

i am trying to build some projects please check out my project

Please help me! I don't know how to write this.I tried many times, and I think it's right, but it always wrong.PLEASE!!

Hi, I have a question related to eligibility. If we consider the eligibility rules and the submission window doesn't change for next year and if the challenge is still happening, would I be eligible in the following scenario - I graduated from an American University for my undergraduate in December 2025, and the submission is in February 2026, according to "Be enrolled in, or have graduated within the last 90 days from, an accredited academic institution or official homeschool equivalent, or an Apple Developer Academy", am I eligible. I am not sure if it applies to university or just high school. If you don't want to answer the hypothetical answer for next year. Take this scanerio, would I have been eligible for this year's challenge if I had graduated from university in December 2024. Thank you

Do you have some advice for me to learn Swift?SwiftUI first or Swift?

It's Thursday, March 27th 2025 and I'm living in the UK, I have completed my project and submitted it before February 23rd and got the confirmation email and on March 27th, it says results are out but even after I wait for a long time, I still get the same message: We’ve received your submission. We'll send you an email when results are posted. Even after I come back 16 hours into the day which is 4PM GMT, so I want to know where to see the results anywhere else or if it's just a delay.

Hello! i developed an app for the Swift Student Challenge and submitted it, can I publish it to the app store before it is judged.