FIRST Robotics
Us in 2023 at our Alexandria Event after winning Industrial Design and being event finalists
What is FIRST?
FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC) is the highest level of robotics available to most high schoolers. The season starts in January with Kickoff. During Kickoff, the game is revealed. Then, students and mentors have 6 weeks to design, build, wire, program, and strategize. After those 6 weeks, it’s time to compete!
During our competition season, we attend two events within the Chesapeake District. Our performance at these events nets us District points. If we have enough of them, we qualify for the District Championship, which typically happens at the beginning of April. After the District Championship, the teams with the greatest number of District points throughout the season qualify for the World Championship.
A typical FRC match happens on a basketball court-sized field. 3 robots face off against 3 other robots in an “alliance.” The match starts with a brief autonomous period before transitioning to a driver-operated period. Each one of the robots weighs over 100lbs!
Teams play qualification matches. The, the 8 highest ranked teams choose their alliance partners for the elimination rounds. Teams play until 1 alliance wins the tournament.
Benefits
Students in FIRST are more likely to pursue a degree in engineering, report improvements in soft skills such as public speaking and leadership, and complete a 4-year degree. You can check out FIRST’s website here for more details!
As for SuperNOVA, we’ve had alumni attend prestigious schools like Georgia Tech, Stanford, Virginia Tech, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, University of Virginia, University of Michigan, and more. We’ve also had students go straight into the workforce, namely with Lockheed Martin, using the skills they learned while on the team.
Students on SuperNOVA have access to industry tools, including a table saw, CNC, 3D Printer, miter saw, dremel, and bandsaw. They use software like Onshape and Fusion 360. They learn to solder and design custom circuits. Programmers learn Java, computer vision, and control theory. Our business people learn how to sell and market the team. SuperNOVA operates like a business. What does all of this mean? Our program is one of the best opportunities available to high schoolers in Prince William County to develop all sorts of real skills.
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