ENGINEERING ENTREPRENEURSHIP
In Villanova’s College of Engineering, entrepreneurially minded thinking is incorporated in the freshman core engineering class and applied to exercises in upper-level courses. It can be pursued in depth through the Engineering Entrepreneurship minor and Engineering Entrepreneurship Summer Institute. And campus-wide, Villanova’s Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship offers numerous resources and activities to advance your entrepreneurial endeavors.
“The Engineering Entrepreneurship minor provided an interdisciplinary entrepreneurial education and valuable networking opportunities, while the ICE Institute provided me the connections and funds to pursue a venture of my own.”
Joe Zinno
Mechanical Engineering
“I learned that anyone can be an entrepreneur. It’s important not to suppress your creative mindset as you age, but instead to direct your creativity into new and innovative ideas.”
Francesca Stadtman
Chemical Engineering
“Villanova is a place where ideas are celebrated; the different programs, faculty and staff are tremendous resources when it comes to turning entrepreneurial endeavors into a reality.”
Aldo Pierini
Civil Engineering
Opportunities Through the College of Engineering:
Engineering Entrepreneurship Minor/Engineering Entrepreneurship Summer Institute (E2SI)
The need for entrepreneurial skills is much broader than the focus on starting on a new enterprise. Employers value self-starters who take initiative, show persistence, and demonstrate leadership. These entrepreneurial competencies are invaluable in any career and differentiate students from the competition.
Learn more about the Engineering Entrepreneurship minor and E2SI, both of which are open to students of all majors.
Pre-seed Venture Program
Offers funding and resources to selected tech-based student ventures.
Sports Tech Sprint: Design your game-changing product.
Allows you to ideate, iterate, and test your prototype while practicing the core concepts of design thinking.
Opportunities Through the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship:
Idea Lab
The Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is located at the Idea Lab in the basement of Falvey library. You'll find a maker lab and gaming station as well as other students interested in entrepreneurship and innovation.
Villanova Student Entrepreneurship Competition
This one-semester, interdisciplinary competition asks students to innovate, create and design products, businesses or services to fill a variety of needs. Finalists work with outside judges and mentors and deliver pitches to an investor boardroom. The competition culminates on the University’s “Pitch Day.”
Innovation Fund
Every month, student teams can apply for funding to work on their innovative project, venture or non-profit organization. Funding amounts up to $5,000 are based upon stage of venture development.
ENTREPRENEURIAL ENGINEERS
Villanova Students Develop Innovative Solutions at First-Annual Health Hackathon Focused on COVID-19
Students from Engineering, Nursing, Business and Liberal Arts & Sciences competed in the three-day virtual event hosted by Villanova University’s Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship Institute. In the process they learned design thinking frameworks, conducted design research, and built prototypes. Faculty from the schools and colleges shared expertise and experiences, providing guidance to the participants, who worked as teams in virtual breakout rooms.
Sports Tech Sprint Inspires Game-Changing Technology
Sponsored by the Engineering Entrepreneurship minor, the two-day “hackathon”-style event also featured networking with industry insiders, a panel of expert judges and an appearance by former New England Patriots fullback James Develin, a mechanical engineer.
Entrepreneurial Engineering Student’s Business Supports Campus Organizations
Joseph Zinno, a rising senior in mechanical engineering, has spent the past two years nurturing his business venture, Rooted Designs, which sells engraved Villanova keychains, magnets, coasters and more. Rooted in the communities he is part of, Joe donates 20% of every sale to a Villanova charity chosen by the customer.