Baylor’s Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship Opens Applications for 2021 New Venture Competition

September 1, 2020

The John F. Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise is now accepting applications for the 2021 New Venture Competition, a two-day elevator pitch and business plan competition for collegiate entrepreneurs across the world.

Media Contact: Eric Eckert, Baylor University Media and Public Relations, 254-710-1964
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by Cerenity Austin, student news writer, Baylor University Media and Public Relations

WACO, Texas (Sept. 1, 2020) — Baylor University’s John F. Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise has opened applications for the 10th annual New Venture Competition, a two-day business plan and elevator pitch competition for collegiate entrepreneurs across the world.

All applications must be submitted through the New Venture Competition website by November 1 to be considered. The Finals will be held March 25-27 at Baylor’s Paul L. Foster Campus for Business and Innovation in Waco, Texas.

As applicants cycle through multiple rounds and receive feedback, the first deliverable is a two-page executive summary. The Top Ten finalists will then compete for over $250,000 in cash and in-kind prizes to grow their business. Each finalist team is paired with an experienced mentor and given opportunities to have presentation-style coaching.

“We offer expert feedback, valuable mentorship and presentation-style coaching to increase the probability of success among the ventures,” said Priscilla James, program manager for the Center. “Year after year, we are impressed by the caliber of teams that apply and subsequent accomplishments.”

Collegiate teams represent a variety of fields, from innovative advances in medical sciences and technology to engineering and recycling. Seattle University’s Renee Owen and Caleb Carr of Vita Inclinata Technologies, a company pioneering hardware solutions for dangerous industries such as aerospace and construction, won the 2019 competition. Past winners have also included Baylor graduates and 2013 winners Austin Barnes and Charlie Gasmire of Vendevor, a service helping businesses sell their products online.

James said the goal of the competition is to encourage and empower the student teams toward profitable and sustainable ventures. This year, competition finalists can expect enhanced feedback and mentorship during the competition cycles.

“We look forward to celebrating 10 years of empowering the student entrepreneurs as the difference makers of society,” said James.

For more information and the full competition schedule, visit the Baylor New Venture Competition website.

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At Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business, integrity stands shoulder-to-shoulder with analytic and strategic strengths. The School’s top-ranked programs combine rigorous classroom learning, hands-on experience in the real world, a solid foundation in Christian values and a global outlook. Making up approximately 25 percent of the University’s total enrollment, undergraduate students choose from 16 major areas of study. Graduate students choose from full-time, executive or online MBA or other specialized master’s programs, and Ph.D. programs in Information Systems, Entrepreneurship or Health Services Research. The Business School also has campuses located in Austin and Dallas, Texas. Visit www.baylor.edu/business and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/Baylor_Business.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for more than 18,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 90 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions.