Entrepreneurship education is predominantly taught through strategic approaches that often lack direct real-world application. Many university programs assume that students acquire practical entrepreneurial skills through traditional coursework, yet there is increasing recognition of the need for experiential learning methods that expose students to real business challenges. The gap between theoretical knowledge and hands-on entrepreneurial experience suggests that innovative pedagogical strategies, such as hackathons, could play a crucial role in fostering entrepreneurial competencies like Team management, communation skills and decision-making competencies. Hackathons provide an intensive, practice-based environment where students collaborate, ideate, lead and develop solutions to real business challenges within a limited timeframe.

This study explores the effectiveness of the pedagogical tool by analyzing the XIII Barcelona Digital Challenge that focused on the fashion industry in the 2025 edition. Three real-world challenges related to entrepreneurial fashion have been presented encouraging students to apply their creativity and problem-solving skills to provide solutions to firms in a competitive educational setting. Unlike traditional case-based learning, the hackathon structure immerses students in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment that mirrors entrepreneurial reality, requiring them to develop viable business solutions under pressure.

This research provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of hackathons in enhancing entrepreneurial and team management skills through a pre-post questionnaire design. The study was conducted with participants of the XIII edition of the Bcn Digital Challenge, who completed a structured questionnaire assessing key competencies both before and after the hackathon. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics (version 30.0).

Univariate descriptive analyses showed an overall improvement in participants' self-perceived competencies across all measured areas, including leadership, communication, decision-making, and collaborative problem-solving. Bivariate analyses and nonparametric contrast tests (Wilcoxon signed-rank test) confirmed that the differences observed were statistically significant (p < 0.05) for the majority of skill dimensions. These results indicate that participation in the hackathon had a positive and measurable impact on students’ entrepreneurial skill development, particularly in their ability to work effectively in teams.

By examining students’ experiences, perceptions, and outcomes, this study sheds light on the potential of hackathons to bridge the gap between theory and practice in the learning of team management dynamics. Set within the context of the fashion industry, the challenges presented during the hackathon required participants to address real-world issues such as sustainability, digital innovation, and consumer engagement—core concerns in today’s fashion landscape. The findings contribute to the broader discourse on experiential learning and offer valuable insights for educators seeking to enhance the development of entrepreneurial competencies in higher education, particularly within creative and fast-evolving sectors like fashion.

Keywords: Hackathon, entrepreneurship, team management, teaching, fashion, practice-based.