Over the next eight months, more than 800 people will go through intense boot camps, design workshops and development trainings, all for the chance to win up to $200,000. Last night, many of these participants gathered for the start of the annual Stern School of Business Entrepreneurial Challenge.

The kick-off event featured a panel of previous winners, who provided insights of their past experiences to current participants. Panelist Nessa Ryan, a doctoral student in the Global Institute of Public Health who won the competition’s Social Venture category last year, said anyone is able to achieve in this challenge if they have the passion and the initiative to succeed.

“Go to as much stuff as possible — the boot camps are wonderful,” Ryan said. “Be OK with being a novice, and asking questions, and approaching people who have so much experience.”

Luke Williams, executive director of the Entrepreneurial Challenge partner W. R. Berkley Innovation Lab, said each of the three ventures around which the challenge is centered has a different focus in relationship to the goal of a business. The New Venture category revolves around products that are starting from the ground up; the Technological Venture focuses on technology and research that a participant hopes to turn into a project; and the Social Venture is based on the idea that business can be used to help people and create a better world.

“Students use it as a way to learn how to become an innovator and an entrepreneur,” Williams said. “We want to give students creative confidence, meaning the confidence to know that they can have the mind-blowing insight that leads to a ground breaking idea.”

CAS freshman Daniel Roca said he was most attracted to the social aspect of the competition and its ability to do real good in the world.

“They want to measure impact with this kind of prize,” Roca said. “[They are] incentivizing students to really have an impact on very important aspects, especially in developing countries.”

With many of the resources of Stern at the disposal of the contestants, including counselors, alumni and successful startups, the competitors are encouraged to build their entrepreneurship skills.

Currently, with over 800 people signed up for the challenge from all of NYU’s campuses here and abroad, this year is lined up to be the most competitive yet. Even first year students are getting involved, including Poly freshman Nicolas Lopierre.

“I’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur, and I think this is the perfect opportunity to actually become one,” Lopierre said. “I thought about a delivery system for small stores.”

The contest has also attracted workers from the medical field, such as Frida Matute, a speech therapist working for NYU. She hopes to create a toy that will allow kids to learn how to speak better and clearer, so that homes will be able to advance communication skills in all kids. Meanwhile, she is excited to see what the various contestants with such diverse backgrounds will bring to the table.

“What I think is great is that NYU is allowing everyone the chance to get educated,” Matute said.
Email Ramsee Chand at [email protected].