Some enterprising college student in Greensboro is going to earn $1,000 in two minutes this fall.
The N.C. Entrepreneurship Center (NCEC) at UNCG is sponsoring the third annual “2 Minutes to Win It” business idea contest, open to full-time students at UNCG, N.C. A&T, Greensboro College, Guilford College, Bennett College, Elon University, Guilford Tech and High Point University. Prizes will include $1,000 for first place, $500 for second place, $250 for third place and $250 for best presentation.
Entering is easy. Students develop original ideas for any type of business or social entrepreneurship venture. The only exceptions: Ideas can’t be franchises or something that has already been started by the student. Students can enter multiple times, but all ideas must be submitted online at http://ncec.uncg.edu by Oct. 11.
For students seeking help on how to come up with or refine an idea, a “StartMeUp!” workshop will be held at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 5, in the Moore Humanities and Research Administration building, Room 1214, at 1111 Spring Garden St. on the UNCG campus. The workshop is free but students should register at StartMeUpNCEC.eventbrite.com.
“This contest is all about unleashing student creativity, getting some feedback and maybe walking away with some cash,” says Bryan Toney, director of the NCEC. “We make entering very simple. All students need to do is come up with a catchy name, a brief description of products or services offered, a profile of target customers and reasons why the idea will be successful.”
The best 20 ideas will be selected by a team of independent judges who will review all entries through a blind judging process during which only the idea itself will be revealed.
“We want to make sure that it is only the idea that is being evaluated and judges aren’t influenced by the student’s year in school, major or any other information,” Toney says. “We recognize and embrace the fact that creative, entrepreneurial ideas come from everywhere. In fact, each year the majority of finalists are non-business students.”
Contest finalists will be notified by Nov. 1, at which time they’ll be invited to attend a workshop to get some tips on how to make a pitch. On Nov. 20, each of the 20 finalists will have two minutes to pitch his or her idea to a group of entrepreneur judges. Prizes will be announced at a reception to follow.
The North Carolina Entrepreneurship Center at UNCG provides co-curricular and outreach programs to help entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses, and to serve as a catalyst for the creation of sustainable and globally competitive enterprises in the Piedmont Triad, North Carolina and beyond. For more information, visit the NCEC’s website at http://entrepreneur.uncg.edu or call 336-256-8649.
