Middlebury Entrepreneurs is a winter term course for students who want to start their own business or nonprofit organization.

Students spend the month developing their ideas, building their organizations, and preparing for the culminating event—pitching their ideas to a panel of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders.

Overview

Entrepreneurship is a process through which individuals identify opportunities or unmet needs, allocate resources, and create value-adding products or programs. 

Students will follow the process from ideation to launch quickly and effectively through deliverables, class discussions, and hands-on mentoring both from professors and visiting entrepreneurs and investors. Class will be focused on building a prototype, testing the intended market or target group, and engaging with potential clients or customers.

Students should be prepared for hands-on work outside of class time. At the conclusion of the course, students compete with their classmates in a pitch competition for the Schiller Cup. 

The Course

The Middlebury Entrepreneurs course (INTD 1089) is co-taught by David Bradbury and Sam Roach Gerber. 

To enroll, submit a proposal (either a for-profit or nonprofit idea) and meet in person or via Skype with one of the instructors, which you will be prompted to do upon completing the application. 

Note: If you are not already working on an idea, individually or with a group, but are interested in taking the course as a team member, please apply by indicating your interests and relevant skillsets. This course is pass/fail. 

Application and Decisions

Winter term 2024

The application deadline for Middlebury Entrepreneurs 2024 open October 16 and are due by November 3. Applications will be considered on a rolling basis. There will be an informal information session with VCET’s Sam Roach-Gerber on October 10 at 7pm at the Innovation Hub 132 Blinn Lane.

We will send decisions regarding our final class roster before winter term registration, so please plan to register on Banner for a backup class in the case that you are not accepted.

We will be in immediate contact with the registrar with the final class roster, so those who are accepted will be able to add the course on Banner. Apply here.

Questions?

Please reach out to Heather Lovejoy (hneuwirth@middlebury.edu), Director of theElizabeth Hackett Robinson ’84 Innovation Hub with any questions. Thank you!

Apply Now

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