JacoBus Challenge is a business plan competition designed to seek out the best young entrepreneurs. Participants can get a taste of real world challenges, business ideas and necessary entrepreneurial skills in a criteria-based, thematic competition with attractive learning and career opportunities, as well as monetary rewards. This year’s theme, “Food and Water”, encourages participants to create innovative and feasible initiatives providing solutions to various challenges in the two areas.  

Besides providing students with detailed feedback on their business idea(s) from investors, researchers and business leaders, the event will offer networking and recruiting possibilities. Selected finalists will interact with numerous company representatives and the most talented young entrepreneurs will benefit from internship and training opportunities. The structure of the competition can be consulted below.
Students will participate in teams of 2-4 members. All the team members should be enrolled in university - pursuing an undergraduate or graduate degree. The business plan competition is divided into one preparatory phase, two main stages and a Final Event:
Preparatory Phase: Recruiting round
The recruitment of the organizing team for the business plan competition was done in the following period:   August 25th- October 1st. Numerous training sessions integrated in a continuous learning process are organized for the members of the organizing team. Official invitations will be sent to students from across Europe and potential partners (universities, student clubs, international organizations) starting from October 1st.
Stage I: Qualification round – Submission of business ideas (by February 11th, 2013)Each team is required to submit a maximum 2 page executive summary and fill-out the basic information form available on the website. A preliminary selection will be made for establishing entrance in stage 2.
Stage II: Business Plans submission (by March 11th, 2013)
The qualified teams from Stage I will submit their business plans in due time (deadline: 11th of March). In addition to this, all teams are required to upload on the specified web platform a video consisting of an elevator pitch having a maximum time length of 1 minute. A panel of academicians, investors and industry leaders (evaluation criteria to be available on the competition’s website) will decide who the ten (fifteen) finalist teams are.

Final Event: Business Plan Presentations (April 19th – 20th, 2013)
The ten (fifteen) selected finalist teams will be invited to Jacobs University from 19th to 20th of April. The final event will feature workshops and discussion panels held by industry leaders, investors and researchers with a strong interest in entrepreneurship and new ventures ideas. Five finalist teams will be chosen to present their business plans in front of the jury and the audience, after previously presenting their business start-up idea by the means of an elevator pitch with a specific given format and a poster. The top three teams will receive monetary awards and one of the winner ideas might be implemented in a partner company.

Додаткова інформація у відділі міжнародних зв’язків
та роботи з іноземними студентами (каб.219)