Student Venture Pitch Competition

DEPARTMENT(S): 
Innovation & Entrepreneurship |The Business School
January 28, 2022
Strengthen Your Start-up’s Pitch with Value Creation and Earn a Possible Path to e-Fest

 

WPI’s Business School and Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center are inviting undergraduate teams who have student-created and student-managed ventures, including new ventures, to strengthen their startup pitches. Let us know about your team’s venture and you could win $1,500 and one of three spots to advance to e-Fest, a national undergraduate entrepreneurship competition where teams can win $10K or more in cash prizes.

From the initial applications, 10 teams will be trained to develop a 7- minute pitch on the value of their business as part of a pitch challenge led by our expert leaders of WPI’s Value Creation Initiative. Those teams will compete for three top spots to advance to e-Fest. With funding support from WPI and contest sponsor the University of St. Thomas, winning student teams will win prize money to prepare pitches and register for the competition.

 

How does this all work?

 

Phase 1: Let us know you’re interested
Teams that meet the initial qualifications (particularly student-created and student-managed) are invited to let us know why they are ready for the next step. Complete and send this application on or before Wednesday, February 9.
 
Application due:  Friday, February 4
Teams will be selected by Wedbesday, February 9
 
Phase 2: 10 Teams Advance to Value Creation Workshops
 
We will choose 10 teams from the submitted applications who will continue on to a WPI value creation pitch competition workshop series where they will learn how to develop a 7-minute value proposition pitch for their business in preparation for the national e-Fest competition. At the final session, the teams will present their final pitch to the VCI executive team who will choose the three winning teams.  Those teams will continue on to Phase 3. 
 
Workshops and Final Presentation dates:
Wednesday, February 9 at 5:30-7:30pm ET
Friday, February 11, 5:30-6:30pm ET
Final Presentation, Wednesday, February 16, 5:30-6:30pm ET
 

Read all the regulations for e-Fest.

 

Phase 3: Three Teams Advance to e-Fest Pitch Submissions
 
Three winning teams from the value creation workshop sessions will gain additional mentoring to finalize and submit a seven-minute video pitch and a PowerPoint slide deck detailing their business for submission to the e-Fest competition.

 

Final pitch due to e-Fest:  March 13, 2022, 11:59 pm (PST)