2023 Andrews University Pitch Competition

Students will present their ideas to a judging panel to obtain funding.

Andrews University will host its second, annual, campus-wide pitch competition. This year, the event will feature two rounds, Semi-Finals and Finals. The competition Semi-Finals will take place on March 29 at various locations. All participants will get an opportunity to present in front of a judging panel during the Semi-Finals round. The top teams from each pool of semi-finalists will move on to the next round.

The Finals, which will feature the top 8 teams, will take place on March 31 at 2 p.m. This event will be hosted at the Howard Performing Arts Center. An awards ceremony at 4 p.m. will immediately follow the competition. A reception in the lobby area will take place to celebrate all participants after the awards have been announced.

More information about the application process, judging rounds, and awards may be found below or at the event website HERE.

Application Process

• Your application includes two steps:
  1. Application form, which is AVAILABLE NOW—CLICK HERE.
  2. Slide deck (presentation):
     • Presentations can only be 9 slides long.
     • Must include all the titles and content suggested in the Template.
     • Colors, fonts can be changed, images, tables, and graphics can be added.
     • NEW template pitch deck is AVAILABLE NOW—CLICK HERE to open and download.
• Deadline to submit both the application and slide deck is March 17 at 7 p.m.

Judging Rounds

All presentations will be judged according to the Official Rubric - CLICK HERE to open and download.

Preliminary Rankings:

• All applications will be reviewed and scored by a ranking committee. This ranking will place participants in a Semi-Final group.
• Participants will receive notification of their Semi-Final group for the next round by March 26.

Semi-Final Round:

• Qualified partcipants will present to a judging panel during Innovation Week (March 29-30).
• Judges will select the participants moving on to the next round.
• Audience attendance is allowed during semi-finalists presentations.

Final Round:

• Top 8 applications will compete in the final round.
• Finalists will present in front of a live audience on March 31 at Howard Performing Arts Center.
• Judges will select the top presentations.
• Awards will be announced based on judges' scoring.

Awards

• Both in-kind and cash awards will be given based on the scores by the judges during Final Round.
• A total amount of about $40,000 of both in-kind and cash awards will be distributed.
• Prior to the distribution of the award, the recipient(s) will be required to:
  • Meet with the Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship to create a budget based on needs and growth plans.
  • Submit a W-9 form to the Office of Innovation & Entrepreneurship.

Social Innovation Award

MA Leadership in Social Innovation is sponsoring the Social Innovation Award - $10,000 in seed grants for innovation projects to be distributed to two (2) teams participating in the 2023 Andrews University Pitch Competition.

This $10,000 award is in addition to the $40,000 mentioned above; and it is specific to these requirements:

• Two (2) teams will receive a $5,000 seed grant to initiate their social innovation project in Berrien County communities.
• Each proposal may customize the capstone project to focus on areas such as:
  • Social Entrepreneurship — to explore business opportunities that positively impact the communities
  • Social Advocacy — seeks to ensure that all people in the communities are able to have their voices heard.
  • Social Services — individual and community development and transformative change.
• The proposal must demonstrate critical knowledge and skills in its project design, implementation, and evaluation strategy to affect change in the Berrien County communities.
• The application process is the same as the Pitch Competition. Please indicate in the application that you wish to be considered for the Social Innovation Award. Consideration for the Social Innovation Award does not disqualify you for other awards.
• The deadline to submit the application and slide deck is the same as the Pitch Competition: March 17 at 7 p.m.

Categories

• No categories. All participants will be eligible for all awards.