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The Competition has a Social Entrepreneurship Track
Baruch College & Merrill Lynch Entrepreneurship Competition social venture track is for non-profit or earned-income businesses that have direct impact on social needs.
The social entrepreneurship track was piloted in the 2006-2007 competition. Based on the success of that pilot, the social entrepreneurship track is now a permanent part of the competition. In this track, student teams with ideas for businesses that have a direct impact on social benefit and a plan for achieving financial viability compete against each other for prize money, and against teams in both tracks for seed money. Teams in the Traditional Entrepreneurship track focus on profit-making.
Teams in the social entrepreneurship track work with mentors who themselves are involved in social entrepreneurship. Teams in both tracks follow the same calendar and adhere to the same requirements and due dates.
As with the traditional track, existing businesses do not qualify, with the exception of ventures that start under the sponsorship of, or as divisions of, existing organizations, a common practice for social enterprises. However, plans for such ventures must incorporate means for the enterprises to become their own independent entities within a reasonable time frame.