The Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation compliments any major program at the university by providing a pathway to pursue the study of entrepreneurship and innovation in a cross-disciplinary approach – empowering students to use innovative thinking, in their pursuit of knowledge.

6 students earned their entrepreneurship certificate in 2021-2022

The Entrepreneurship Internship provides College of Business students the opportunity to focus on their business ventures while earning internship credit to graduate.  

This is an alternative option for students who envision starting or growing their own business as opposed to seeking traditional employment upon graduation. The business endeavor may come in the form of researching a nascent (idea stage) venture, assisting/launching an early-stage venture, or working on an existing venture project. 

2020-2021 STATS:

• 4 students completed an internship in the Fall of 2020.
• 3 students completed an internship in the Spring of 2021.

A Family Business/Entrepreneurship Concentration provides management majors with the training and knowledge they need to launch new businesses, develop new entrepreneurial ventures within existing firms, or manage family businesses.

The Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization (CEO) at UW Oshkosh informs, supports, and inspires students to be entrepreneurial and seek opportunity through enterprise creation. In addition to providing a peer support system for students interested in entrepreneurship, CEO provides opportunities in networking, leadership development, and hands-on experience. 

In collaboration with Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization, speakers are invited monthly to share their entrepreneurial experiences with students. The speaker series gives students a glimpse into the life of successful entrepreneurs and fosters beneficial connections within the Wisconsin startup ecosystem.

• September 2021 – Alex Tyink, President of Fork Farms
• October 2021 – Melanie Julian, Co-Owner of Summit Properties
• February 2022 – Shawn Pollack, Poco Pizza
• March 2022 – Alex Mahoney, Culver’s youngest franchisees
• April 2022 – Andrew Schmitz, Co-Founder of Proceed.app

The Titan Accelerator Program is a 10-week cohort-based program that assists student participants with the development of their ventures through a hands-on lean-startup curriculum focused on business model validation and product-market fit. Students are provided with funding, mentors, and other essential resources to gain skills to advance their entrepreneurial knowledge.

2021-2022 STATS:

• In the ninth year of operation
• 13 applications with seven teams accepted into the program

• *Assistive Home Tech | Kevin Dwyer; MBA 

• *College Bound Detailing | Henry Laux; Business 

• *Gerbil Leads | Kyle Jessen; Business 
• *Happy Spa | Noah Bauer; Business 
• Soteria | Runlin Liu (Ethan Volk); Business; UW Oshkosh, Fox Cities 

• Untamed Thrift  | Alyssa Grinde; Communication Studies 
• Wand Professional | Corbin Wisneski; Undecided 

*These four teams were invited to participate in the Summer Incubator Program.

The Summer Incubator Program is an extension of the Titan Accelerator Program that provides participants with additional funding and resources. In 2021, four teams were selected to participate. The companies have an exclusive opportunity to focus 100% on the growth of their businesses. Teams receive office space and additional funding of $5,000, which allows them to work on their businesses full-time throughout the summer. Students receive 1-on-1 consulting with the Center and are connected to mentors during weekly lunches. To date, 18 companies have participated in this program with over $160,000 of capital infused into student businesses. 

• Assistive Home Tech, Kevin Dwyer – MBA 
  Assistive Home Tech provides smart home assistive device consultations, equipment installations, and services to extend our customers’ independence and improve their quality of life. 
• College Bound Detailing, Henry Laux
  College Bound Detailing provides mobile car, boat, yacht, and RV detail services. The company is in the development of an expansion model to grow to other campuses. 
• Happy Spa, Noah Bauer 
  Happy Spa is a device that floats on top of a hot tub or pool that will continuously monitor all relevant chemicals (pH, chlorine, etc) and will then automatically distribute the amount of the necessary chemicals that will bring the water back into the proper balance. 
• Gerbil Leads, Kyle Jessen 
  A web platform that provides contractors with relevant leads. Our methods of obtaining and organizing leads ensures that our clients are being provided with leads in their proper industry & project-size range.