Baylor New Venture Competition
March 22-23, 2024
The John F. Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise will host the 12th annual Baylor New Venture Competition on March 22-23 at Baylor University's Foster Campus for Business and Innovation.
This business plan and elevator pitch competition showcases collegiate student-created, managed and led ventures from across the globe.
Location: Waco, Texas
Deadline to Enter: DEADLINE HAS PASSED
Tiger Launch
Connections:
- Access a community of international founders
- Hear ideas from all walks of life
- Build rapport in different industries
Mentorship:
- Get feedback from industry leaders
- Secure a foundation for promotions
- Network with top venture capitalists
Funding:
- $45,000 cash prize, no strings attached
- $500,000+ technology credits (GCloud, AWS, etc)
Regional Location: Chicago
Deadline to Enter: DEADLINE HAS PASSED
AWS Competition
January 2024
The Rice Business Plan Competition has an opportunity for student startups to win non-dilutive funding at the AWS University Startup Competition.
The top 10 finalists will pitch their startups to a panel of investors and AWS Startup Team members at a virtual event. Three winners will be chosen for up to $20,000 in cash prizes and $100,000 in AWS Activate credits.
Startup teams with at least one United States resident connected to a United States Higher Ed institution are eligible to apply (this includes students, faculty, and staff). All eligible startups that apply will receive $1,000 in AWS credits.
Location: Virtual
Deadline to Enter: DEADLINE HAS PASSED
Iowa Global Student Entrepreneur Awards
Jan. 18, 2023
For additional information: www.gsea.org
The goal for the Iowa Global Student Entrepreneur Awards (GSEA) is $30,000 in cash and in-kind business services for the winner of the Iowa competition. The winner will move on to nationals and then hopefully internationals, where the experience and prizes will continue to grow.
Location: Des Moines, Iowa
Deadline to Enter: DEADLINE HAS PASSED
(Select US Central
Competition Name: Iowa)
McGinnis Venture Competition
March 21, 2023
The McGinnis Venture Competition, a platform exclusively for Carnegie Mellon University's community of student entrepreneurs, brings together Carnegie Mellon's best and brightest student entrepreneurs to compete for $60K in investments. All participants receive crucial interaction with alumni entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, an opportunity to raise capital and valuable feedback about ventures.
Location: Pittsburgh, Penn.
Deadline to Enter: Deadline has passed
Rice Business Plan Competition
April 4-6, 2024
Entering its 24th year, the Rice Business Plan Competition gives collegiate entrepreneurs real-world experience to pitch their startups, enhance business strategy and learn what it takes to launch a successful company. Hosted and organized by the Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship — which is Rice University's internationally-recognized initiative devoted to the support of entrepreneurship — and Rice Business. It has grown from nine teams competing for $10,000 in prize money in 2001, to 42 teams from around the world competing for more 2 million in cash and prizes.
Location: Houston, Texas
Deadline to Enter: Jan. 31, 2024
Tulane Business Model Competition
In person finals -- Week of March 27
This student startup competition is open to teams that include at least one degree-seeking undergraduate or graduate student in a leadership position from any college or university. The Tulane Business Model Competition seeks early-stage ventures that can demonstrate how they are adapting to their customers’ needs.
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Deadline to Enter: Jan. 20, 2023
Stu Clark New Venture Championships
April 18-20, 2024
More than 50 of Winnipeg’s industry experts and veteran judges, including Stu Clark, will provide feedback that will help take your venture’s next step toward success.
This competition will have separate undergrad and graduate streams, but the format allows for collision space to generate connections and networking.
Location: Winnipeg, Canada
Deadline to Enter: Feb. 20, 2024
Video Pitch Due: March 25, 2024
Values & Ventures
Business Plan Competition
March 23-24, 2024
We invite undergraduate students from around the world to pitch ideas for conscious capitalism ventures that make a profit while also solving a problem. Recycling plants that employ the homeless. Better access to autism treatment. Human-powered farm machines. Real-time organ donor communication. Winners take home thousands of dollars to help make their ideas come true.
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Deadline to Enter: Feb. 1, 2024
Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs
April 13-15
The Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs is an on-ramp for undergraduate women seeking access to entrepreneurship opportunities, capital and networks.
Location: Northampton, Mass.
Deadline to Enter: Feb. 10, 2023
Pitch Dingman Competition
Semifinals: April 8, 2023
Finals: April 26, 2023
Pitch Dingman Competition, the Dingman Center’s signature annual competition, provides the university’s most talented student entrepreneurs the opportunity to compete for seed funding and exclusive access to venture development resources.
Location: College Park, Maryland (University of Maryland)
Deadline to Enter: Feb. 4, 2023
New Venture Championships
Date TBD
Presented by the University of Oregon's Lundquist College of Business, the 31st New Venture Championship (NVC) is a business competition that inspires young entrepreneurs to develop their business dreams into a reality. Teams of graduate students from around the world join the event every year to pitch their business plans and compete for $50,000 in total cash awards.
Location: Portland, Ore.
Deadline to Enter: 2023 Dates to Be Announced
Collegiate Great Brands Competition
March 27, 2024
Student teams from across the country are invited to compete in the 2024 (in-person) Collegiate Great Brands Show. Bring your business for a chance to win $25,000.
Location: Athens, Georgia (University of Georgia)
Deadline to Enter: Feb. 29, 2024
VentureWell International
This program offers grant funding to support collaborative project opportunities for US-based BME design students and their counterparts across the BME-IDEA global network. This competition is seeking teams developing a novel, scalable engineering-based invention that addresses a critical social, environmental, or economic problem, including biomedical devices, health care diagnostic tools, and global health technologies to take part.
Location: Hadley, Massachusetts
Deadline to enter: To Be Announced
VentureWell DEBUT
DEBUT challenges teams of students in undergraduate biomedical education to solve real-world problems in healthcare. Prizes of up to $20,000 will be awarded.
Strong DEBUT submissions will demonstrate a mastery of analytical and design skills and capabilities; the ability to manage the product development process; the ability to work effectively in teams; and technical communication skills.
Location: Hadley, Massachusetts
Deadline to enter: May 31, 2023
U. Pitch
by Future Founders
A national elevator pitch competition where top collegiate founders showcase business ideas to accomplished entrepreneurs and investors.
Location: Chicago
Application Open: 2023 Dates to Be Announced
Deadline to enter: TBD
NSIN X-Force Fellowship
The National Security Innovation Network (NSIN) is hosting three web-based Ask Me Anything sessions about the 2022 NSIN X-Force program.
The NSIN X-Force program is an opportunity for university students to serve their country through collaboration with the United States military to address real-world challenges that require both technical and entrepreneurial expertise.
Location: Virtual
Deadline to Enter: Jan. 20, 2023
Arch Grants Startup Competition
A worldwide search for innovative, diverse early-stage startups looking to take their business to the next level. The Arch Grants Startup Competition awards innovative, scalable, and job-creating startups with $75,000 non-dilutive grants (plus an additional $25,000 for companies relocating to St. Louis) and access to an ecosystem of resources in exchange for headquartering their business in St. Louis for at least one year. Competition applications are evaluated by more than 400 industry experts from the St. Louis community and around the country.
Finalists pitch live in St. Louis on a date to be announced.
Location: Virtual
Application Window: Feb. 21-March 31, 2023
Regnier Venture Creation Challenge (RVCC)
April 28, 2023
The RVCC is a business plan and pitch competition for new student ventures. In 2023, more than $90,000 will be given in prizes. This money serves as an equity-free prize to help student entrepreneurs launch and grow their own businesses.
The competition is available to students (undergraduate, graduate, Ph.D.) enrolled at a university or college in Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, or Kansas with healthcare related ventures.
Location: Kansas City, Missouri
Deadline to enter: April 2, 2023
UGA'S NEXT TOP ENTREPRENEUR
April 20, 2023
Applications are open or the 2023 UGA Next Top Entrepreneur Competition (no limit on the type of business). The University of Georgia Entrepreneurship Program invites student entrepreneurs from across the country to compete in the Next Top Entrepreneur Competition, where the first-place winner receives $10,000, second-place winner receives $5,000, and third-place winner receives $2,500.
Location: Athens, Georgia
Deadline to enter: March 22, 2023
CREATEUR CONFERENCE & PITCH COMPETITION
April 13-14, 2023
Olivet Nazarene University's McGraw School of Business invites students to participate in the first ever Createur Conference & Pitch Competition. The competition will include keynote speakers, expert panels, and networking opportunities. Students will give their professional pitch and business ideas to alumni venture capitalists who desire to foster the next generation of entrepreneurs.
Location: Bourbonnais, Illinois
Deadline to enter: March 24, 2023
COLLEGIATE ENTREPRENEURS' ORGANIZATION
GLOBAL PITCH COMPETITION
Sept. 25-Nov. 4
The act of launching a new venture is the simplest path toward job security and financial freedom for any aspiring business founder. Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ have a great advantage in applying for and obtaining funding from pitch competitions, not to mention the lack of direct risk in launching a business.
Location: Tampa, Florida
Deadline to enter: Sept. 25, 2023
HEARTLAND CHALLENGE STARTUP COMPETITION
April 11-13, 2024
The Heartland Challenge is designed to simulate the process of raising venture capital for a high-growth venture. This graduate student competition allows students to gain valuable experience and networking opportunities, while developing new ventures that may be based on their own ideas/technologies or those developed by others.
Location: Bentonville, Arkansas
Deadline to enter: Feb. 9, 2024
MIDWEST ENTREPRENEURSHIP CONFERENCE STUDENT PITCH COMPETITION
April 15, 2024
Have the next big idea? Looking for exposure and feedback on your idea? Submit an application by April 7 to be selected to compete at the 2023 MWEC Pitch Contest. All applicants will deliver their pitch in person on April 15 and the finals will take place the same day.
Location: Omaha, Nebraska
Deadline to enter: April 7, 2024
EFEST UNDERGRADUATE ENTREPRENEURSHIP COMPETITION
April 18-20, 2024
EIX and the Schulze Family Foundation will award up to $125,000 in development grants to institutions to support developing e-Fest teams and/or entrepreneurship related programs and activities.
To be considered for the grant, schools must be a four-year college or university, offer at least one entrepreneurship course, and encourage the development of an undergraduate e-Fest team.
Location: Minneapolis
Deadline to enter: March 3, 2024
LIGHTNING ROUND
March 18, 2024
The Lightning Round pitch competition is an opportunity to showcase your business to leading venture capitalists and angel investors. Wow the seasoned investor judges and win prizes, including a $500,000 partner package as well as priority entry into Pegasus' next cohort selection pool.
Deadline to enter: March 8, 2024