You’re a Princeton Student and You Have an Idea… What Next?

After HackPrinceton this past weekend, there’s a lot of energy on campus. Six hundred developers and designers, from Princeton and other universities, came together and worked on a variety of projects from a system to preserve historical monuments by storing digital copies on the blockchain to a bot that writes haikus. Many of these students found impactful ideas that they are super passionate about and want to take further — we would like to help them understand the resources available to them on campus.

Organizations on Campus

There are four major entrepreneurship-focused organizations on campus:

1. The Princeton Entrepreneurship Club (E-Club) is a student-run club, consisting of fourteen teams, that puts on events like HackPrinceton, IgniteSTEM, and TigerLaunch, and also hosts programs like the Intercollegiate Entrepreneurship Network, Company of Female Founders, and the Make Ventures Princeton incubator.
2. Princeton Social Innovation (PSI) is an student organization dedicated to promoting social impact awareness on campus. They put on PSICON, PSICOMP, and TEDxPrinceton.
3. The Keller Center is based in Princeton University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science and seeks to educate undergraduate and graduate students by fostering entrepreneurship, innovation, and design. They connect students across the various disciplines through their entrepreneurship courses and certificate, and programs like the eLab Summer Accelerator and Tiger Challenge.
4. The Princeton Entrepreneurship Council (PEC) was established in July 2015 as the advisory and coordination body on entrepreneurship programs on campus. They primarily focus on engaging alumni, and connecting current students with alumni, through programs like the Alumni Entrepreneurs Fund, TigerTalks in the City, and the new Princeton Innovation Center BioLabs wet-lab/dry-lab incubator.

While each of these organizations has a slightly different focus, they all seek to help students with their entrepreneurial ventures. There are TONS of programs offered, but we’ve highlighted here some of the ones that might be useful for students at various steps in their entrepreneurial journeys.

Photo by Vincent Po.

You are interested in entrepreneurship, but don’t have an idea or a team

Step 1!! There are so many ways to get involved with the entrepreneurship communities on campus, learn more about where you fit in, and meet interesting people.

• Go to a TigerTables event and talk to an exciting guest in a small-group format about a particular industry area.
• Take an entrepreneurship course, like Foundations of Entrepreneurship (EGR 201) or High-Tech Entrepreneurship (EGR 491). (Full list available here.)
• Apply to take part in Tiger Challenge — a Keller Center program during the school year that will develop your design thinking skills as they can be applied to a variety of relevant social issues.
• Apply to be an organizing member of E-Club or PSI.
• Apply to join Make Ventures Princeton (an E-Club team) which will pair you with similar minded students and help you come with an idea, find a team, and create a company.
• Go on one of our TigerTreks to New York or Silicon Valley to have off the record conversations with industry leaders.

Almost all E-Club and PSI events are open to Princeton students, so you can always drop by to see what students have been working on, even if you don’t want to participate in the entirety of the event. These events as well as Keller Center courses are designed to get you thinking about problems that you are uniquely equipped to solve.

You have a great idea! But you are looking for team members to work on it with you

Finding the right team is a critical next step after you have your idea. You want to find people who are passionate about the same problem and have a similar vision for how to solve it, but also teammates who will complement each other and contribute unique perspectives. Here are some ways to find a team:

• Apply to join MVP.
• Go to a TigerTables event to figure out who else is interested in the space you’re interested in.
• Go to HackPrinceton to work on your idea and find others who will work on it with you.

Photo by Princeton Pitch.

You have an idea and a team (woo!!)

Iteration is key. At this step, the goal is to get as much feedback as possible and continue to refine your idea and strategy as a team.

• Go to PEC Office Hours or Keller Center Office Hours to be introduced to alumni or other professionals who can offer advice.
• Apply to the eLab Incubator Program, which the Keller Center runs during the school year offering co-working space at the eHub, an assigned mentor, advisors, workshops, office hours (with lawyers, accountants, entrepreneurs in residence, etc.), and a modest amount of project funding.
• Get practice pitching your idea in a low-stress environment at Princeton Pitch.
• Apply to TigerLaunch to pitch your idea, get paired with a mentor, and win prize money.

You have been tinkering away with your idea and want to make a prototype

Building a prototype is helpful for your team to assess your venture and make improvements.

• Apply to the eLab Accelerator to devote your summer to working on your venture; the Keller Center provides the space, structure, and mentorship necessary to take your idea to the next level.
• Attend HackPrinceton to spend a full weekend with your team to build out a prototype.
• Attend an E-Classes event to learn about a practical skill in the entrepreneurship world, like product management, using UX design tools, or venture capital.

Photo by TigerLaunch.

Idea solidified, prototype in hand…

Time for funding! Princeton Pitch, TigerLaunch, and HackPrinceton all have prize money associated that can be very useful. After reaching out to friends and family, the next step is institutional funding.

• If you (or one of your team members) are a senior, the Alumni Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) is a great fund to reach out to.
• Fitz Gate Ventures and Chaac Ventures are Princeton focused funds that you can pitch to for funding. Princeton Alumni Angels also has startup fund (as well as programming).
• Student focused venture funds such as Dorm Room Fund, Contrary Capital, and Rough Draft Ventures are also great resources for both funding and advice.
• Work with the Keller Center and PEC who can introduce you and your team to members of the Princeton network.

Can’t identify your next step?

This is just an introduction of all the programs offered through the entrepreneurial ecosystem at Princeton. If you have questions about any of the specifics reach out to anyone in the PEC, Keller Center, E-Club leadership, or the PSI leadership team and we’d be more than happy to help out on an individual basis!

Princeton Entrepreneurship Club: leadership@princetoneclub.com

Princeton Social Innovation: http://www.princetonsi.com/contact

Keller Center: kellrctr@princeton.edu

Princeton Entrepreneurship Council: pecinfo@princeton.edu

Alumni Entrepreneurs Fund: labender@princeton.edu

Chaac Ventures: info@chaacventures.com

Fitz Gate Ventures: http://fitzgate.com/contact/

Contrary Capital: princeton@contrarycap.com

Dorm Room Fund: https://dormroomfund.typeform.com/to/DsPlYB

Rough Draft Ventures: https://roughdraft.typeform.com/to/PXM99V

Written by Samhita Karnati, Shreyas Garg, and Christina Huang — the co-presidents of the Princeton Entrepreneurship Club