Sabrina Grassi, founder of Sabrina’s Closet.
As part of the Practicum, participants will be paired with mentors and will receive assistance with their business plans. They’ll also have the chance to enter $EED 2015 next May, where they can pitch industry professionals and compete to win up to $5,000 in seed money for their businesses.
Though it was originally only open to current students, the Practicum now also accepts graduates who convocated in 2014. Those who are interested are encouraged to sign up for Rocket Pitches, where participants will have five minutes to pitch their idea to the program’s mentors, who will then select the top 20 pitches for the Practicum.
Past winners include Sabrina Grassi, founder of Sabrina’s Closet; Angelo Esposito, co-founder of Bottle Bookings; and Jonathan Bercu, founder of Paradox Interfaces.
“Being part of the Practicum was an amazing experience, and I am so glad I participated,” says Grassi. “Not only was I able to learn so much from my mentor on a weekly basis, but I took a lot of the things that I learned and applied them to my online business. The experience challenged me and brought me out of my comfort zone, as my mentor made me focus on things I would have otherwise overlooked. Additionally, I met so many people along the way and made meaningful connections. I highly recommend that any student entrepreneur participate in the Practicum.”
Bottle Bookings founders Steven Scalia (left) and Angelo Esposito. | Photo by Maxellende Pycke