What it Is | Who Can enter | Kickoff Fair | Three Rounds |What is Required
The Team Concept | Support | Prizes and Awards

What It Is

The Baruch College and Merrill Lynch Invitational Entrepreneurship Competition is two-semester-long annual event that provides an opportunity for New York City college students to participate in an extraordinary learning experience that is at once exciting, educational, and essential to the emergence of innovative new firms.

Teams of student entrepreneurs-in-the-making submit concepts for new ventures - real ideas for real businesses - in one of two tracks: Traditional Entrepreneurship, focusing on profit making; Social Entrepreneurship, focusing on social benefit  Those whose concepts are accepted develop them into full-blown business plans, potentially leading to launch.

Teams receive guidance from mentors, selected from a cadre of successful entrepreneurs, business professionals, faculty from Baruch's Lawrence N. Field Center for Entrepreneurship, and SCORE NYC. Free workshops are designed specifically to help teams carry out the requirements of the competition.

There are cash prizes, and seed money for business launch. Post-competition mentoring leading to launch and operation is potentially available to finalist teams, even if they are not prize winners.

Beyond any awards, all participants gain invaluable experience to carry forward in their careers, whether or not they win any prizes or even make it to the finals. They will meet many like-minded students who will become part of their network of friends and colleagues and will benefit from personal contact with and the practical expertise of many of our country's leading entrepreneurs, investors, and business professionals.

Who Can Enter

This is a team competition. Competitors are members of teams.

Eligible students: Current students in good academic standing at the junior, senior, master's, or doctoral levels in any discipline at Baruch College and any of the invited colleges. Students graduating during the academic year are eligible.

Invited colleges: All CUNY senior colleges, Columbia University, Cooper Union, Fashion Institute of Technology, Fordham University, Manhattan College, Milano The New School for Management and Urban Policy, New York Institute of Technology, New York University, Pace University, Parsons The New School for Design, School of Visual Arts, Yeshiva University.

Qualified team: Teams must have at least two members. Members who are not eligible students are allowed, but at least half of a team's members must be eligible students. Each team must designate one member as the team leader/contact person and that person must be an eligible student.

Note: No one can be a member of more than one competing team. Teams must remain qualified throughout the competition; those that do not will be dropped.

All team members, whether eligible students or not and regardless of affiliation, must register for the competition.

The Kickoff Fair

The kickoff fair is a comprehensive orientation program. Learn the rules, hear a panel of mentors and past competition winners, ask questions, meet and exchange ideas, discover skills and interests, and engage in discussions with mentors, judges, and faculty. You do not need to attend the kickoff to enter, but it is a very good idea to do so. Friday, September 25, 10am at Baruch College, NVC 14-220, (One Bernard Baruch Way - 55 Lexington Ave, enter on 24th Street East of Lexington Ave).

Three Rounds

Round 1

Write and submit a concept paper for one of the two tracks. You do not need a team to submit a concept paper, but you do need to be an eligible student and you need to have registered for the competition.
Note: only one paper per person or per team. Late submissions will not be accepted. (See Due Dates.)

Concepts that are judged to have sufficient potential pass to Round 2. If your concept is accepted and you do not already have a team, you must form one within two weeks. No one can be a member of more than one team.

Round 2

Develop a detailed draft business plan. Mentors are assigned to Round 2 teams. To remain in the competition, teams must progress at an appropriate pace, and coalesce into properly functioning entities. Teams may switch tracks once during Round 2 and may be advised to do so by their mentors or the judges.

Note: Team composition and management is solely the responsibility of its members. Teams must remain qualified throughout the competition; those that do not will be dropped. 

Mentors evaluate team progress and status up to draft plan submission. Among other indicators of progress, three milestones must be met. Teams that are not performing appropriately are disqualified.

Submit a draft business plan Late submissions will not be accepted. (See Due Dates.)

Teams whose plans are judged to be sufficiently developed and show significant potential for becoming successful businesses pass to Round 3. Other teams are eligible to continue developing their plans with assistance from Field Center staff.

Round 3

Submit a fully developed business plan. Late submissions will not be accepted. (See Due Dates.) Pitches take place about two weeks later.

Judges evaluate the plans, pitches, and teams. Top teams are invited to meet separately with the judges in question and answer sessions. After suitable deliberations, prizes and awards are decided.

Prizes and Awards

For each track:

• first place -- $10,000
• second place -- $5,000
• third place -- $2,500

For either track:

• One or more $1,000 prizes for innovativeness, creativity, social consciousness, originality, and best improvement of an existing model may be awarded. One or more $1,000 honorable mention prizes also may be awarded.
• A total of $50,000 in seed money may be allocated to the businesses of one or more of the top three teams in each track, based on plan viability and team readiness to launch. To receive seed money, a team must meet particular conditions set by the judges. Examples of such conditions are: signing up vendors or clients, development of a legal form of business, creation of a working prototype, etc. Typically, teams take six months to a year to meet their conditions. However, seed payout can be sooner if conditions are met sooner. Note that internal College approvals are required for seed payout.

All awards are determined by a panel of judges and are strictly merit based. There are no guarantees that any particular award will be given. A total of up to $100,000 is available.

Questions?

First, read all material on the various pages of this Web site. Then if your questions are not answered, send an email to Professor Dumas, barry.dumas@baruch.cuny.edu Once you have entered the competition, emails must come from the team leader/contact person.

For the subject line, use only the following:

bcec 09-10, followed by your business name, your name, and an indication of the topic. Include your name and your business name in the body as well.