The University of Central Florida (UCF) Joust New Venture Challenge (NVC) celebrates the entrepreneurial efforts of student starters from throughout the university by showcasing their startup proposals, introducing them to community leaders and providing resources necessary to launch their ventures. The Joust is one of many entrepreneurial programs sponsored by the UCF College of Business (#UCFBusiness). Finals are open to the public and will be held at The Venue at UCF on April 17, 2015 beginning at 1:00 p.m.
“The Joust is one of a handful of events in the college that squarely align with the vision for the college,” said #UCFBusiness Dean Paul Jarley. “It is at the intersection of town and gown –facilitated by faculty and judged by seasoned business professionals. It is open to any student at UCF and it takes courage to enter, research to prepare a convincing plan and swagger to win.”
New ventures entered in the competition will be judged based on four main criteria:
In addition to a cash prize of $10,000, the winning team will receive a portfolio of in-kind services to help launch their startup. The second-place winner will receive $5,000, and the third and fourth-place winners will take home $3,000 and $2,000, respectively.
The Joust is open to all full-time and part-time undergraduate and graduate students enrolled at UCF during 2014-2015. While the management team of the venture may be composed of alumni or non-students, at least one UCF student must have a key role and ownership stake in the venture. Only UCF students may participate in presentations and answer questions from judges.
Past winners include Oluwafunlola Falade, ’14 (Quarterwear), Alexandra Gramatikas, ’12 (ALTR, LLC), and Taylor Cheeley, ’14, and Nicole Enterlein, ’14 (Entourage Red/Smartway Cup).
The semi-finals of this year’s event will occur on March 27, and the final competition will take place on April 17, 2015.
Sponsors include:
For more information on the competition, visit https://cel.ucf.edu/the-joust/.