Startup Challenge
Investing in student entrepreneurs at UIW
The Startup Challenge at the H-E-B School of Business and Administration invests in the entrepreneurial aspirations of students at the University of the Incarnate Word.
The 13-week competition, held each fall semester, allows students to develop a business model from idea to actualization. The winning team is awarded $8,000 in seed money. The second-place winner will receive $2,500, and the third and fourth-place prizes are $1000 and $500 respectively.
Register from Aug. 15 - Sept. 9 for the 2022 Startup Challenge Competition.
Cultivating Big Ideas
We are looking for students with new and creative solutions to real-world problems that support economic growth. This competition is specifically looking for ideas that:
- Solve social problems on a global scale (health care, healthy food, electricity)
- Offer value and wealth creation for people living below the poverty line in the U.S. and abroad
- Explore international or cross-border opportunities
- Offer and sell products/services to businesses rather than individual consumers
Big ideas require a wide knowledge base. That is why the Startup Challenge encourages participants to build their teams with students with diverse areas of expertise. Marketing students teamed with engineering, or pharmacy students paired with communication arts – these teams can achieve more together than they could as individuals.
LU'UM | 2020
Valeria Ramos Curiel, Diana Jazmin Casas Del Angel and Santiago Meza – a team of students from UIW Campus Bajío in Mexico – won first place and $10,000 in the 2020 Startup Challenge. LU'UM transforms recycled rubber material from car tires and shoe soles into a flooring product for use in a myriad of applications, including schools, gyms and restaurants.
Journey Poles | 2019
Noah Silvas and Yolanda Martinez won first place in the 2019 Startup Challenge for their startup known as Journey Poles, which manufactures unique and colorful IV poles for use in children’s hospitals and health care facilities.
Sinzuca Chocolates | 2018
Mohammed Al-Nasser, Yolanda Martinez, Matthew Silvas and Noah Silvas took home first place in the 2018 Startup Challenge with Sinzuca Chocolates – a health-conscious chocolate product infused with superfoods.
Professional Mentoring
Each team is assigned a mentor to serve as a professional source of feedback and advice throughout the challenge. Mentors are local business leaders, entrepreneurs and professionals in their respective fields.
The mentor relationship is vital to the success of each team. Each mentor will share a practical point of view on the team's business idea based on his or her experience and knowledge. Each team will be assigned a mentor by challenge administrators based on the expertise of each mentor as it relates to the team's business idea.
In addition to professional mentors, the faculty of the H-E-B School of Business and Administration provides guidance to students as they work to develop their business models. Workshops are held throughout the competition to allow participants to learn design-thinking skills including brainstorming, team building, networking and business model innovation.