It's The NEXT Big Thing for students looking to gain experience and a step up in the business world.
The Miller College of Business Entrepreneurship Program has teamed up with the Center for Media Design's Student Technology Incubator to create The New Enterprises with Exciting Technologies (NEXT) Idea Competition.
"It is designed to encourage entrepreneurship, especially with technology for students to begin at Ball State {University}," Karen Vaughn, senior coordinator of public relations and technology for the entrepreneurship program, said.
The program includes a series of workshops on different aspects of business design, setup and implementation. They began this week, but future workshops will be held every Tuesday and Thursday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. until Oct. 20, usually in the Whitinger Business Building, Room 210. The final presentations will take place Nov. 10 in the same room.
Between 15 and 20 students attended the first few workshops, Vaughn said.
"It went very well," Vaughn said about the first workshop. "The students were very receptive, and there was a lot of positive energy in the room. We are very pleased about the response [and] very excited about the interest across campus for entrepreneurship and technology."
Not all of the students come from business programs either. Vaughn said there were students in subjects ranging from telecommunications to chemistry.
Sophomore Chris Thompson is an English secondary education major and signed up when he received an e-mail about the program.
"I saw one of the e-mails and me, a friend and my nephew have always wanted to create our own company," Thompson said. "We have a lot of ideas but don't know how to go about it."
Thompson is interested in creating a company that manufactures and designs computer gaming hardware. He said the workshops have been very helpful with getting him started.
"We had ideas before, but now we have them formulated," Thompson said. "If anything, it gives you initiative."
Students who attend all of the workshops will receive certification in Idea Feasibility Planning and Entrepreneurial Development.
Students are asked to reserve space in the workshops due to limited seating, but Vaughn said they will move the workshops to a larger room if enough interest is shown. The workshops are not required for participation in the competition. Walk-ins are also accepted.
Students are expected to come with a business plan, as the workshops will focus on bringing the plan together.
"The purpose of the workshops is to really help them put together an idea feasibility, which looks at the idea itself, being able to hold it down to a very understandable form and looking at feasibility of the idea in the workplace," Vaughn said.
Senior entrepreneurship major Sarah Creps said that because she has taken so many classes with the professors teaching the workshops, she has not gotten a lot out of the program yet.
"It is a repeat of a lot of my classes, but the stuff once we get halfway through will be new for me," Creps said.
Once the program is completed, there will be a competition with $11,000 in prizes to be used for starting a new business. All entries are due by Oct. 31, but the judging will take place Nov. 18 in the L.A. Pittenger Student Center and will be done by 12 local businessmen. Students who do not win will still receive feedback on their projects.
"The feedback is an essential part of the overall event," Vaughn said. "The ones who do not move on to the semifinal and final rounds will have the chance to speak to the judges and get their feedback."
The feedback and critique is what got Creps involved.
"Except for the prize money and the practice, I have to do this to graduate, but now I get someone else's critique." Creps said. She is interested in creating a child care facility with video cameras so parents can view their children online.
At the moment, the program is using the services of the Student Technology Incubator, Suzanne Plesha, project manager for the Center for Media Design, said.
"We eventually hope to have dedicated space when the new (Communication Media) building goes in for the program," Plesha said.
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