Over two hundred students received inspirational words of wisdom from some of the UK’s leading entrepreneurs at an event launching the inaugural Scottish Institute for Enterprise (SIE) Business Ideas competition this week(Tuesday 4 November).
Sir Ian Wood, Chairman of Wood Group, University of Aberdeen academic Dr Graeme Paton one of the scientists behind DRAM a process which uses a whisky by-product to clean up water, and Mr Alex Barton, a previous winner of the SIE Business Ideas Competition, provided scholars from both the University of Aberdeen and the Robert Gordon University with an insight into their thoughts on entrepreneurship at the event held at the city's Copthorne Hotel.
The Scottish Enterprise Business Ideas competition invites students studying in Scotland to submit their business idea to be in with the chance to win cash prizes up to £2000.
From a new business or product to a way of making the world a better place, or even an entirely new invention, students from both universities are being invited to enter the initial regional leg of the competition before the deadline for submissions on 30January 2009.
Four finalists from the regional leg will be chosen to compete in the national final which will take place in March next year. The finalists will have the opportunity to continue their work with the SIE Regional Business Adviser, and develop their idea further.
Janice Montgomery, University of Aberdeen Careers Service said: "The clear message from the speakers who presented at the Scottish Institute for Enterprise's Business Ideas competition launch was to have belief in your business idea. Don't be discouraged, don't compromise your principles, know your market, value the people around you who are able to help, and be prepared to fail but keep going regardless as your idea may not just have the potential to win the competition, but also be a hugely successful company in the future."
Supported by academics from both Aberdeen universities, the launch was the starting point for a whole range of entrepreneurial events designed to encourage students to think about business start up as an alternative to working for others at the end of their degree programmes.
Future events include an Enterprise Summit in the Beach Ballroom on the 2nd December which is open to all students in Aberdeen, Inverness and Dundee. Registration for this event which is also open to interested academics is online at http://summit.sie.ac.uk.
The Scottish Enterprise Business Ideas competition is open to both postgraduate and undergraduate students. Entrants must submit their own details, the idea for their business and the kind of customers who might be interested in their product or service, on no more than one page of A4 and send it by email to href="mailto:sie.intern@abdn.ac.uk">sie.intern@abdn.ac.uk</a> before 30 January 2009.
For more information on the competition visit www.sie.ac.uk or Janice Montgomery, University of Aberdeen Career's Service on 01224 273053 or email href="mailto:j.montgomery@abdn.ac.uk">j.montgomery@abdn.ac.uk</a></p>