Ireland: Student Entrepreneur Awards

The Student Entrepreneur Awards is at the forefront of developing entrepreneurship, giving young entrepreneurs a viable pathway to transform their smart ideas into commercial businesses. This is more than a business competition and can span across all faculties. It aims to stimulate entrepreneurship and to encourage students to start their own business. The competition is a great opportunity for ambitious and enterprising third level students to build a real-world business venture.

The sponsors, Enterprise Ireland, Cruickshank, Grant Thornton and the Local Enterprise Office, bring their expertise to the competition to support entrepreneurs in developing viable businesses and creating jobs. They provide expert guidance in areas such as intellectual property, market research, finances and technology development.

Reasons to Enter

• Opportunity to become an entrepreneur
  • Students can create the businesses they want to work in with unique support from the Student Entrepreneur Awards.
• Helps students stand out
  • Taking part in this prestigious award demonstrates the commitment to innovation and helps build your networks.
• Cash to fund their start-up business
  • €35,000 in cash prizes with the overall winner receiving €10,000.
• Expert advice and mentoring support
  • is available from Enterprise Ireland and the programme sponsors.

A Great Combination of Cash Prize and Consultancy

• With a great combination of cash prizes and consultancy, the Student Entrepreneur Awards can turn great ideas into a winning project, cash and even a business. Winners have access to vital funding and tailored expert advice from Enterprise Ireland, Cruickshank, Grant Thornton and the Local Enterprise Office.
• €10,000 Overall winner
  • €5,000 Cruickshank High Achieving Merit Award
  • €5,000 Grant Thornton High Achieving Merit Award
  • €5,000 Local Enterprise High Achieving Merit Award
  • €10,000 Enterprise Ireland Merit Awards Fund
    • 6 runner-up awards of €1,500 1 academic award of €1,000

Valuable Mentoring to Develop Business Ideas

• Overall business advice and mentoring from Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Office.
• Intellectual property consultancy and protection from Cruickshank.
• Business plan development from Grant Thornton.

How Enterprise Ireland Can Help You Promote the Student Entrepreneur Awards?

They can:

• Deliver an online presentation to your college to outline the benefits of participating in the competition.
• Provide promotional materials including posters, flyers and social media assets.
• Provide €500 to support presentations or mini competitions organized by the college to prepare students to enter the Student Entrepreneur Awards.

Eligibility Criteria

• The Student Entrepreneur Awards are open to full-time registered third level undergraduate and postgraduate students on the island of Ireland.
• Entries can be from individuals or teams. Joint entries from different colleges are eligible but if the entry gets to the final stage one college must take the lead. You can help the students by acting as a Supervisor.
• The Supervisor is the academic who helps the student/s to develop the project. It is not a requirement for projects to have a Supervisor to enter the competition.
• The idea must have commercial viability and export potential.
  • Students must own, control and manage their business Intellectual Property where applicable.
  • Not for profit and social entrepreneurship applicants must operate in a commercial domain.
  • Students must have an ambition to start their business in Ireland and base their headquarters here.
  • The maximum number is five students per team.

For more information, visit Enterprise Ireland.