How UCLA Anderson Is Building Its Startup Community
Startups are booming in Los Angeles. Droves of venture capitalist from Northern California are now heading down south in search of better deals and new technology. According to CB Insights, around $3.5 billion in funding was poured into the LA area in 2016, a 25 percent increase from 2015. In fact, The Economist reveals that Los Angeles is now the third-most-prominent outpost for startups in America. So, it’s no wonder that Los Angeles universities are crafting their education with an eye toward entrepreneurship and the startup culture.
The UCLA Anderson School of Management is a great example of what it means to create a startup culture on campus. Entrepreneurship is intricately woven into the curriculum and opportunities on campus in such a way that it’s a vital part of the school. So, it’s no wonder that UCLA alumni are responsible for companies like Crazy Cart XL, Neural Analytics, BodySpec, Sugarfina, and more. And at the epicenter is the Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation.
Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation
The Price Center is the recognized leader in entrepreneurial education and research at the Anderson School. It’s a place where students, professors, and budding entrepreneurs can collaborate, practice entrepreneurship, and delve into business innovation. The Center provides a challenging interdisciplinary curriculum for students alongside real-world business experience to encourage new ideas and embrace the entrepreneurial vision. It’s also home to not only one of the largest clubs on campus (Entrepreneur Association), but the 10,000 square foot Anderson Venture Accelerator.
Anderson Venture Accelerator
The Anderson Venture Accelerator is a state-of-the-art facility that encourages students, faculty, and alumni to develop new business concepts together. It’s a multidisciplinary collaboration between students, entrepreneurs, campus researchers, alumni and the business community. It’s part living room, part laboratory and part conference center.
“The UCLA Anderson Venture Accelerator offers students and researchers an environment that triggers innovation and breakthrough ventures,” explained UCLA Anderson Dean Judy Olian. “It brings together students and faculty from across UCLA, including the health and computer sciences, engineering and the humanities to develop new ventures.”
Entrepreneur Association
As for the Entrepreneur Association, it has more than 600 members, making it among the largest student organizations on campus. Members can attend more than 100 events each year, averaging three per week, including networking events, hands-on workshops, world-class business plan competitions, conferences and more. As an example:
- Dinners for Eight: This program brings eight students into an intimate setting so they can get to know accomplished entrepreneurs and fellow students over dinner.
- Entrepreneurial Leaders Roundtable: This event welcomes a group of successful leaders below the age of 40, and allows students to network and get the inside track on running a company.
And for students who want to take the entrepreneurial track in a more competitive direction, there’s the Knapp Venture Competition.
Knapp Venture Competition
Now in its 36th year, the Knapp Venture Competition is one of the premier business plan competitions in Southern California. Students from across UCLA Anderson attend to showcase their talents and to participate in a unique venture creation experience that has been instrumental in launching numerous businesses. It’s a competition that is not just about gaining funding, but also about gaining advice and insight from successful entrepreneurs and business executives.
But it’s not just the co-curricular activities that make UCLA Anderson an entrepreneurial gold mine; it’s also the curriculum. For example, the MBA program offers students a chance to specialize in entrepreneurship by completing four courses.
Entrepreneurship Curriculum
At UCLA Anderson, classes dedicated to entrepreneurship can be specialized or general, depending on the student’s needs and wants. The various entrepreneurial course offerings at UCLA Anderson provide students with knowledge and perspective about the entrepreneurial process. Students will develop strategies to generate market interest, and simultaneously learn how to manage organization operations, transitions, and growth. Some courses include:
- Business Plan Development
- Business Law for Managers & Entrepreneurs
- Entrepreneurship & Venture Initiation
- Financing and Emerging Enterprise
- Managing Entrepreneurial Organizations
- Venture Capital & Private Equity
And these classes are all taught by area specialists and faculty who have distinguished themselves as business professionals. As an example, Daniel A. Nathanson is a Visiting Assistant Professor who teaches Business Plan Development. His background includes being the founder and CEO of Computerized Retail Systems (CRS), a turnkey, point-of-sale computer company that became a leader in its field. He’s also the founder and CEO of Washington Square Capital Fund (WSCF), a formalized angel group that invests in early-stage companies. Both of these experiences make him an invaluable resource for students, and he is just one example of the quality faculty at UCLA Anderson.
No matter you’re entrepreneurial interest at UCLA Anderson, there’s sure to be an opportunity, a class, a professor, or a business that fits your needs and wants.
MBA Startups At The Kellogg School of Management
With entrepreneurship on the rise throughout the country and world, business schools are finding new ways to accommodate and educate students looking to flex their entrepreneurial muscles. Both in and outside of the classroom, support for entrepreneurship and MBA startups can take many forms—from networking opportunities to competitions for capital to resume building internships.
At the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, there are a number of ways business students can build their entrepreneurial skills and put them quickly into practice. At the Kellogg Institute of Innovation & Entrepreneurship and Levy Entrepreneurial Institute , Kellogg students have the chance to secure funding for their entrepreneurial projects, expand their business network and even set up opportunities that will continue even after graduation.
Below are just a few of the many resources Kellogg provides for innovative students to turn their ideas into reality.
Events
Kellogg events are a great way for students to forge new business connections and explore the many potential MBA startups already in motion at the school. Below are some of the events available to students throughout the year.
Corporate Renewal Conference: Every year, the Kellogg Corporate Renewal Conference gathers together students and industry leaders to explore a particular theme in the current business climate. The inaugural conference, which took place in October 2014, was themed ‘Corporate Renewal through Innovation: Ways to Invigorate Growth and Scaling.”
Kellogg eChats: Kellogg eChats were created by students to give MBAs the chance to meet leading thought leaders in business. Offered monthly, students are given a chance to meet and pose questions of these leaders on the topic of technology and business.
Student Treks: Kellogg Student Treks are trips led by students to cities throughout the United States, with the goal of visiting anywhere from 4-12 companies which represent a wide scope of business environments and industries. The treks can range from one day to multiple days over school breaks, and allow students to connect with industry professionals and Kellogg alumni.
Competitions
Events like the Kellogg Venture Challenge, VentureCat and the Venture Capital Investment Challenge (VCIC) give students the chance to put their startup ideas to the test and gain valuable feedback from industry leaders. These competitions can offer anywhere from $10,000 in prizes to $100,000 at the VentureCat Competition, distributed to student ventures. Students also have the chance to participate in an international competition, the Venture Capital Investment Challenge, which invites 78 students from around the world to compete at the Kenan-Flagler Business School in North Carolina.
Student Entrepreneurship Opportunities
A number of opportunities exist for students while enrolled at Kellogg that can provide capital for startup ideas and help students create a community of entrepreneurs. Here are just a few:
FOUNDER.org 8D Program: The FOUNDER.org program provides funding for students with ideas for high-impact ventures. Students are eligible to receive up to $100k in grant money, with the chance to apply for further investment opportunities ranging from $250k to $3 million. Students participating in the program also receive the benefits of having a virtual mentor, one-on-one coaching from industry innovators, and the chance to attend quarterly forums.
Kellogg Entrepreneurs Organization: The KEO is a community of students working to create new ventures, providing support during the process of launching and building a new business. Students have the chance to receive feedback from a network of mentors made up of professors, investors, and top entrepreneurs.
Pritzker Group Venture Fellows: Students with an idea for a business startup can apply to join the Pritzker Group Venture Fellows, a 12-week summer fellowship created to support young entrepreneurs in Chicago. Two teams of fellows will be awarded witha $20,000 investment, mentorship, and a work space at 1871.
Summer Entrepreneurship Opportunities
Kellogg Entrepreneurship Internship Program Stipend: Kellogg students have the chance to participate in a summer internship that will allow them to get a first-hand look into working in the entrepreneurship field. Student internships, which can be located anywhere throughout the globe, will give students the chance to gain direct experience in analyzing pricing models, exploring exit strategies, market research and more. Kellogg students accepted to the internship program are eligible to receive a matching stipend up to $5,000.
Startup Stipend: If students are committed to building their own venture over the summer break and have proven a product-market fit for their idea are eligible to obtain a stipend of up to $7,000 to use for their business needs.
Post-Graduate Entrepreneurship Opportunities
Even after graduation, Kellogg offers a number of awards that can provide funding opportunities and promote the MBA startups of Kellogg grads.
Kellogg Social Entrepreneurship Award: The Social Entrepreneurship Award is available for graduates with an idea to use their business knowledge for a positive social impact. Those selected for the award will receive assistance from the Entrepreneurship Lab and Kellogg Social Entrepreneurship Fellow Award to fund a startup idea that addresses today’s most pressing social challenges.
NewDay Social Entrepreneurship Award: The NewDay Social Entrepreneurship Award is available for graduates with an idea for a new impact venture with a social and/or environmental mission in the Chicagoland area which has demonstrated some market traction. This competition is also open to undergraduate and graduate students throughout Northwestern.
Leonsis Prize Presented to Georgetown McDonough Startups
Two Georgetown McDonough-based startups took home $15,000 following the thanks to the support from the Leonsis Family Entrepreneurship Prize—a monetary award that provides funding for students and alumni who have started businesses of their own. The awards were presented by the Georgetown Entrepreneurship Initiative according to a press release from the school. Continue reading…
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The Future of Business: Goizueta Social Enterprise
Over the past few decades, social enterprise—the idea that business can be used to identify and bring about transformative societal change—has emerged as a new way of doing business. As Sally Osberg and Roger Martin explained in the Harvard Business Review, “typically, the aim is to benefit a specific group of people, permanently transforming their lives by altering a prevailing socioeconomic equilibrium that works to their disadvantage.” This hybrid approach blurs the lines between traditional business, government and non-profit sectors, and it’s attracting attention more than ever before.
In recent years, social enterprise has grown into a prominent area of interest for MBA students. In fact, some programs, including the MBA at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, offer social enterprise as an MBA curriculum concentration as well as programs such as Social Enterprise @ Goizueta, which is open to all students interested in the business of social impact. Continue reading…
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