Students can register for the competition, which aims to turn their ideas into a fully-fledged product or service, until 31 January 2025. An individual or a team of up to four people (international students can also participate) can submit their proposals via an application form available in Czech and English. The competition is not limited by the level of study; students in Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral programmes are all eligible to participate.
“According to last year’s finalists, the biggest benefit of the competition is meeting the expert jury and having the opportunity to develop ideas through mentoring. Just filling in the application form confronts students with questions that often open their eyes and point them in the right direction. The pressure of time and the progress they have to show in the competition has benefited a number of projects, moving them forward much faster than if the students had not entered the competition,” said Jana Joklová Kaňová, coordinator at the Technology Transfer Office responsible for the competition.
Matej Zámečník from the Faculty of Science won last year’s competition with his project Spicy Cells, which aims to launch a new generation of saffron that is accessible to everyone. “I see entrepreneurship as the highest form of self-fulfilment, because you are not just doing something for yourself, but for society as a whole. I will use part of the prize money to cover the time I put into the project and the rest to buy lab chemicals, enzymes and other necessities,” said Matej in an interview after winning. Second place went to Tereza Brzá, a student at the Faculty of Education, who came up with a platform to help teachers prepare for teaching English more quickly. “Just entering the competition and consulting with experts helped me push the whole platform forward,” said Tereza, adding that she particularly appreciated the friendly atmosphere during the competition’s presentation days.
In the fifth year of the Start Your Business competition, the submitted proposals will be judged by representatives from the Technology Transfer Office and the Faculty of Economics and Administration, as well as representatives from the South Moravian Innovation Centre (JIC) and partners (angel investor Miloš Dendis and Michal Daniel from Notino).
Rules, application forms and other information about the competition can be found on the portal podnikavost.muni.cz. If you need help in filling in the application form or would like to discuss your participation in the competition, you can make an appointment with the Masaryk University Entrepreneurial Counselling Centre here.