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Model Entrepreneur®



About the Columbia Business School Venture For All® Model Entrepreneur® Competition (ME)

Model Entrepreneur® competition, ME, is a global competition hosted by Columbia Business School's Venture For All®, with the goal to encourage young talents to stand out from pure imagination and speak out innovative ideas with business feasibility. Unlike any business competitions, ME participants will be able to receive proper guidance and suggestions on their business models from Columbia Business School and VFA Clubs across the globe. Participants will also receive various amounts of scholarships to attend official programs at Harvard, Columbia, Stanford, Caltech, Berkley, and Pratt, to further enhance their entrepreneurship skills.

IEG Global Association is the execution partner for the Model Entrepreneur® Competition.

General Guidelines

The Model Entrepreneur® Competition takes place once a year, and is consisted of two Primaries Rounds (online) and one Final Round (physical competition).

Primaries will take place every year starting in September and end in March of the following year.
All Primaries are done online, where students submit a Powerpoint or Word document addressing the following topics: how did your team come up with this idea? Why did your team choose this idea? Describe the current problem or opportunity. Describe your proposed solution. Who experiences your problem the most, or needs your product/service? Who are your customers? What is your value proposition?

- All Teams will receive feedback from the Columbia Business School VFA Judging Panel.

- Teams will then have a chance to make improvement on their submitted material.

- Based on the revised material, the Judging Panel will then select Teams to advance to the Finals to compete in the city of their registered Region.
Depending on your region, Finals usually take place during April.
All Finals are done in the city within the Region ME is taking place. 30-50 Teams will present to a Columbia Business School Venture For All® Judging Panel. Finals will include the following: a one-minute promotional video highlighting your Team’s idea; opportunity; customer segment; product or service - what does your product/service looks like, website, drawings, or mocks? Describe your revenue model; competitor analysis; SWOT analysis; financial highlights/start up capital requirements/breakeven; team profiles (who you are!); and your next steps (in terms of making this venture happen!)

- First Round scoring will be based on the attractiveness and content of your videos.

- A Revival Round will follow for Teams who missed the first cut.

- Second Round will take place.

- Final Round will then take place in the auditorium.

Competition Region

Model Entrepreneur® currently has competitions in the following areas:

Asia Edition: China, Japan, and Taiwan

North America Edition: San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York

EMEA Edition: TBD

We welcome corporations to partner with us on hosting your own Model Entrepreneur® Competition, where you could identify creative ideas to help you improve or build your products and/or services. Please contact Dr. Jack McGourty (email: jm723@columbia.edu) or Mr. Paul Powen Shih (email: pps2111@columbia.edu) for further discussion.

Who Can Join ME?

There are two levels of the ME competition, one for high school students (9th-12th graders), and one for university students (Freshman to Senior).

What’s the Benefit of Joining ME?

Participants will:

- Receive proper guidance and suggestions on your business ideas from Columbia Business School and VFA Clubs across the globe

- Interact and learn from each other in an international business environment

- Winning teams could receive various internship opportunities, scholarships in the forms of IEG Program and/or cash

- Receive certification of participation from Columbia Business School Venture For All® Model Entrepreneur®

The Model Entrepreneur® competition serves as an integral part of the Columbia Business School Venture For All® global entrepreneurial effort. The main focus of the ME competition is not “competition” itself, but rather to provide an opportunity for students to foster their communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking skills.

How Do I Participate?

For complete registration information and key dates, please visit http://www.itengcorp.com/competition, or reach out to your CBS VFA Club leaders for more information.