Pilot Venture Challenge

Overview

The Pilots Venture Challenge, hosted by the Franz Center for Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation at the University of Portland, is a multi-day competition for student-created, launched, and managed ventures. The competition promotes experiential education in entrepreneurship and fosters new business development. Students receive expert feedback on their business plans and presentations.

Event Information & Key Dates

• Where: University of Portland, Dundon-Berchtold Hall
• When: Saturday, April 26th, 2025, 9:00 am - 1:00 pm
• Agenda: Saturday, April 26th, 2025
  • 9:00 - 9:30am Coffee & Networking
  • 9:30 - 10:30am Presentation Block 1: All sessions (1, 2, and 3) 
  • 10:30 - 10:45am Break
  • 10:45 - 11:45am Presentation Block 2: All sessions (1, 2, and 3) 
  • 12:00 - 12:30pm Lunch & Networking 
  • 12:30 - 1:00pm Awards
• Key Dates:
  • PVC Open Workshops (optional): workshops are open to all students planning to participate in the pilot venture challenge and are intended to help students prepare for the Pilot Venture Challenge, especially students who are not involved in ENT481 or BUS385
    • 9:00-10:30 am, Franz 121
    • Workshop Dates: March 14, 2025, March 21, 2025, March 28, 2025, April 4, 2025
  • Last Day to Register: April 11, 2025
  • Upload Preliminary Business Plans: The day before your preliminary presentation.
  • Upload Final Business Plans: April 24, 2025, by midnight.
  • Upload PDF of Final Presentation: April 25, 2025, by midnight.
  • Pilots Venture Challenge Competition: April 26, 2025, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Competition Details

• Format:
  • Preliminary round: Student teams present their venture plans to a panel of judges.
  • Final round: The top 18 teams advance. Teams are assigned to one of three sessions.
  • Winners are selected from each final session.
• Prizes:
  • Cash prizes are awarded to the top ventures in each final session.
    • 1st Place: $1000.00
    • 2nd Place: $500.00
    • 3rd Place: $100.00

Registration

• All individuals/teams must register to participate, except students in the following courses:
  • BUS385 (Spring 2025)
  • ENT481 (Spring 2025)
• Registered teams will be given access to the Pilots Venture Challenge Moodle site for communication, updates, and document uploads.
• To register: Contact Jon Down (down@up.edu)

Support for Participants

• Expense Reimbursement:
  • Teams can apply for reimbursement of up to $500 for eligible expenses incurred while developing and running experiments.
  • Reimbursement is available to applicants who have registered for the competition prior to the deadline.
  • See the Pilots Venture Challenge Moodle site for details.
• Mentors: 
  • Competitors are encouraged to work with a mentor for advice and guidance.
  • Mentors cannot be part of the team or directly involved in the creation of submissions
• Pilot Venture Challenge Guidelines