Drupal in a Day at DrupalCon Vienna: a hands-on start into Drupal

During DrupalCon Vienna 2025, members of Drupal Austria also helped coordinate Drupal in a Day, a beginner-friendly, hands-on workshop designed to help students and newcomers get a real first experience with Drupal.

Drupal in a Day is exactly what it sounds like: a full day where you don’t just hear about Drupal, you actually build with it. Step by step, participants get introduced to the core concepts, create structures, work with content, and leave with a solid understanding of how Drupal “thinks” and how to continue learning afterwards. 

A big part of the format is also community: you’re learning in a room with others, you can ask questions right away, and you get connected to the wider Drupal ecosystem beyond the workshop.

What we saw on the day

The response was honestly amazing.

  • Over 120 registrations
  • Around 90 participants completed the workshop and received certificates
  • We welcomed a mix of high school students, college students, first-time Drupal users and curious builders who wanted something practical (not just theory)

And the feedback captured the vibe perfectly. One teacher who attended with students described it as a chance not only to learn the CMS, but also to experience the community behind it.

Feedback we got from attendees

Attending the “Drupal in a Day” workshop at DrupalCon Vienna with my students was not only a great opportunity to get to know the CMS in depth, but also to get to know the community behind it. In this way, the students were also able to gain the wonderful experience of taking part in an event of this kind.
WAGNER Matthias - HTL Rennweg

Trying out new Open Source CMS' is like a fresh sea breeze. Fresh.
Adam, 18

The workshop is very beginner-friendly and perfect for newcomers, it’s basically the training wheels of workshops, but without making you feel like you’re riding a tiny rainbow-colored kids’ bike.
Theo 18

My learning curve was like a waterfall, it started off slowly, trickling along, until suddenly it plunged steeply, knowledge pouring down all at once.
Tobias, 19

Drupal in a day, a huge playground for programmers.
Peter, 18

Thank you for making it happen

A workshop like this works because people show up and contribute.

Huge thanks to our instructors Hilmar Hallbjörnsson and Martin Anderson-Clutz for guiding the day with clarity, patience, and a great sense for beginners. And thank you to all the helpers on site, including Guzman Bellon, Jeremy Chinquist, Nico Grienauer, Sinduri Guntupalli, Michaela Jurcekova, Fei Lauren, Ingo Zehenthofer, Christian Ziegler and everyone who supported participants throughout the day.

"Um að gera" stepped in as a sponsor and helped for making food for the attendees happen. 👏

We’re also grateful that three Austrian Drupal agencies come together, ACOLONO, drunomics, and Lowfidelity, to support the event and helped make it a success.


Also, a big thank you to the Austrian Economic Chambers for sponsoring during DrupalCon Vienna 2025.
 

Want to get involved next time?

Drupal in a Day is closely connected to the Drupal Open University Initiative, which focuses on bringing Drupal into higher education and making learning accessible for students and educators.
If you’d like to support future workshops, help teach, or connect universities with Drupal initiatives, that’s a great place to start.

More behind the scenes: If you’re curious about the coordination and logistics story (the “how we made it work” part), you’ll find a detailed recap of Drupal in a Day 2025 on the acolono agency blog.