2026 Hydropower Collegiate Competition
Hydropower provides Americans with reliable, affordable, and secure electricity and storage. The industry creates jobs in communities across the country, but nearly a quarter of the current U.S. hydropower workforce is eligible or approaching eligibility for retirement.
Launched in 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office’s (WPTO’s) Hydropower Collegiate Competition (HCC) invites interdisciplinary teams of postsecondary, undergraduate, and graduate students from a variety of academic programs to solve complex hydropower challenges. Through the competition, WPTO intends to offer students direct industry experience, valuable exposure to hydropower career pathways, and greater knowledge of hydropower’s potential to contribute to a reliable and affordable energy future.
