University of Iowa senior Sophia Rupert is one of eight to receive a 2022 Sigma Nu Tau Entrepreneurship Honor Society Scholarship. It is the second consecutive year a student from Iowa has been recognized, joining 2021 winner, Veda Pick.

A native of Dubuque, Iowa, Rupert was nominated by faculty advisor Bob Walker and joined recipients from High Point, Clark, Clarkson, Fort Hays State, Iowa State, Western Carolina, and Mercer universities. The scholarship is in the amount of $1,000.

Rupert is majoring in marketing and entrepreneurial management with an international business certificate. On June 12, she will begin at PMG in Dallas and join its graduate leadership program. After eight weeks, Rupert will be placed in a media component before being fit with a client. Her dream niche is retail.

Over the years Rupert has taken advantage of several opportunities within the University of Iowa John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (Iowa JPEC). Aside from completing several entrepreneurial classes, she participated in Startup Games and IdeaStorm. In the spring of 2022, Rupert was a member of the first-place team that pitched a business called HYRD, a friendship-making app. For IdeaStorm, she pitched a makeup tool called LipCara.

“I have been exposed to a new group of people outside my marketing classes,” Rupert said. “There are a lot of different ways of thinking and I had an experience of how it brings together all aspects of business. There are people in health studies who want to open their own dental or chiropractic office, or people in computer science who want to develop an app. I liked seeing how different people approach wanting to be an entrepreneur and how they come with different ideas.”

This past year, Rupert served as president of the business fraternity Alpha Kappa Psi. She is vice-president of Sigma Nu Tau, where she plans Pro Trips and helps coordinate guest speakers.

Iowa JPEC is the hub for entrepreneurship education and outreach at the University of Iowa.