📋 Coach's Corner: March 2021
No matter how your school is (or isn't) shaping up for the big tournament, there is still plenty of Madness to go around this March in the world of university entrepreneurship.
Welcome to the first ever Substack-edition of Coach's Corner!
Maybe you haven’t even noticed the change, but I’ve been looking for a more user-friendly way to send out updates. And I think I’ve found it.
If you’re new to the concept of Substack, it offers newsletter writers a much cleaner method for delivering content to our reader-base. I was frustrated with how out-of-date and clunky Mailchimp felt, and it showed in my open/click rate.
So … I pivoted.
I’ve really enjoyed using the Substack UI, which keeps things neat, simple, and organized. Hopefully that translates to your experience as well.
You can expect the same type of content - student funding opportunities, university entrepreneurship ecosystem news, my own blog posts, and whatever else comes my way that seems relevant. So let’s dive in (after you subscribe, of course).
Table of Contents
💰 Student Funding Opportunities
📰 University Entrepreneurship News
📋 Coach’s Content
💼 Jobs Board
💠 Community Content
🌯 Wrap-Up and Feedback (quick link)
💰 Student Funding Opportunities
Below I’ve compiled five opportunities that are due within the next month. Some are regional, but many are open to student entrepreneurs across the country. You can get a glimpse of each competition in this section, but click the button below if you want a full description of each opportunity.
E-Fest 2021
Deadline: March 7th @ 11:59 pm
Eligibility: Undergraduate ventures of any stage (read more rules - your university will also have to register)
Prize Money: $215,000 prize pool
Apply Now || Learn More
New York State Business Plan Competition
Deadline: March 26th
Eligibility: New York College Students
Prize Money: Being released soon!
Apply Now || Learn More
TiE DC University Pitchfest
Deadline: March 15th
Eligibility: DMV (D.C. / Maryland / Virginia) College Students
Prize Money: 1st Prize $5,000, 2nd Prize $3,000, 3rd Prize $2,000
Apply Now || Learn More
Washington State University Business Plan Competition
Deadline: March 26th
Eligibility: There's an Open League track for any non-WSU student venture
Prize Money: $5,000 for Open League track winner
Apply Now || Learn More
Dempsey Startup Competition
Deadline: April 5th
Eligibility: Enrolled college students across the Cascadia Corridor (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Alaska and British Colombia)
Prize Money: $25,000 Grand Prize
$10,000 Second Place Prize
$7,500 Third Place Prize
$5,000 Fourth Place Prize
Plus some industry-specific $5K/$2.5K prizes
Apply Now || Learn More
📰 University Entrepreneurship News
There’s never a shortage of news in the university entrepreneurial ecosystem, but here are my top three reads for the previous month.
💸 Forbes covered the world of student startup showcases, profiling how massive university entrepreneurship competitions can influence incoming Gen Z college students when choosing their school. Highlighted competitions include the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition, TCU’s Values and Venture Competition, George Washington’s New Venture Competition, and the University of Minnesota’s MN Cup which gives out the largest total sum - $527,000.
Additionally, check out the Top 20 U.S. University Startup Competitions chart
🖥️ Oakwood University held a socially-distant ribbon cutting ceremony for their OU Launchpad Entrepreneurship Center. The Huntsville, Alabama-based university partnered with Unity Technologies to introduce a plethora of software-driven opportunities within the space, such as real-time 3D content, video game development, virtual reality devices, and more.
💡 TechStars took some time to highlight how 15 universities (Brown, Caltech, Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, the University of Illinois, Michigan, Northwestern, Penn, Princeton, SUNY Binghamton, UC Berkeley, UCLA, the University of Southern California and Yale) formed The University Technology Licensing Program LLC (UTLP) to create a centralized pool of licensable IP. They speak with three stakeholders of the UTLP initiative to talk about its foundations and benefits for member institutions.
📋 Coach’s Content
Running a student accelerator can seem intimidating.
Starting an accelerator during COVID-19 can seem impossible.
I decided to write up a piece on my personal experience with adapting to a virtual accelerator in Spring 2020 and offer five tips I learned along the way.
If you're about to launch an accelerator, or are even just thinking about it, I hope this post will offer some practical tips, tricks, and tools.
I'm looking to take on one additional client in the coming months!
If your Center is seeking to launch a new program or service to support your students either this Summer or the Fall, I'd love to discuss how I could help.
To see a full list of my services, click here
💼 Jobs Board
Take a look through a (non-exhaustive) list of jobs available in the university entrepreneurship ecosystem. So if you - or a friend - happen to be looking to take the leap into a new gig soon, you may find a future landing spot below.
🐕 Director of the Alex Brown Center for Entrepreneurship
University: University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
Location: Baltimore, MD
🐻 Associate Director, Entrepreneurship Programs and Engagement
University: University of Chicago, Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship
Location: Chicago, IL
🦅 Executive Director, Feliciano Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation
University: Montclair State University
Location: Montclair, NJ
🐶 Executive Director, Gilliam Center of Entrepreneurship
University: James Madison University
Location: Harrisonburg, VA
🦁 Coordinator Of Student Entrepreneurship Programs
University: Penn State University
Location: University Park, PA
🔬 Student Program Manager, FastForward U
University: Johns Hopkins University
Location: Baltimore, MD
💠 Community Content
Occasionally I get requests to share promotional items that would be a good fit for my audience of university entrepreneurship staff and student startups. If its a beneficial opportunity, I’m happy to spread the word. If you’re interested promoting something in an upcoming newsletter, you can do so through the button below.
Halcyon Incubator Is Accepting Fall 2021 Applications
Calling all social entrepreneurs! Start your application today for the Halcyon Incubator Fall 2021 Fellowship. Halcyon takes 0% equity in social ventures while providing 5-month rent-free housing in DC, 13-months rent-free workspace, a $10,000 stipend, and access to a world-class network of partners, mentors, leadership coaches, potential investors, and 100+ social entrepreneurs from around the world.
I personally know the Halcyon team and their impact (hi Mike!), and can’t recommend it highly enough for social ventures looking to take themselves to the next level.
🌯 And that’s a wrap
Thank you to everyone who made it to the not-so-bitter end of this very first Substack newsletter. I’d love to know what you think of it. If you feel so inclined, please take a minute to submit a (very brief) feedback form to help this take shape.
Till next month! Or perhaps sooner.
- Kevin “Coach” Carter