The 3 Day Startup program was initiated by Jon Spiegel and Austin who contacted companies like Bigbang, Connecticut Innovations, Inc., and Hobzon Motzer, Inc to sponsor the program. This three day event was designed to help students take plans and turn them into a marketable presentation for potential future investors.
To kick start the 3 Day Startup program students were invited to The 3DS Boot camp which took place on Friday Oct. 30. The participants went through an entrepreneurial workshop with ice-breakers, fun activities and practical exercises. This jump start allowed students to start thinking of new ideas for the start of the weekend workshop.
65 students applied and due to space limitations 46 participated, 22 from the College of Engineering, 12 from the College of Business, 7 were from the HC Lee College, and 5 were from the College of Arts and Science. Buses picked students up in front of Maxcy Hall on Friday Nov. 6, and transported those 46 students to Orange Campus. The first ever 3 Day Startup Event at the University of New Haven began with students throwing out various creative ideas for presentations. Teams were formed by voting for the eight most popular ideas and then splitting up into groups based on which idea you supported. Ideas were very diverse, some solving everyday problems with electronics to daily struggles for those with eye impairments.
UNH students gathered at The Grove in downtown New Haven on Day 2 to survey potential customers. After returning to the UNH Orange campus, teams integrated the real world feedback into their presentations using data to illustrate profitability, need, and market size. Mentors on site critiqued and assisted individuals with their ideas and helped physically create some component models. Day 3 consisted of final preparations and a presentation to panelists including UNH faculty and leaders from businesses in the area.
Ron Harichandran, the Dean of Engineering of Tagliatela College at UNH said that “The 3-Day Startup Weekend held this past weekend at the Orange Campus was a resounding success.” One of the mentors and alumnus, Mike Ambrose from Sikorsky said, “I was really impressed by the students during my review of their projects. Great energy, some good ideas, and good communications skills. I would like hear how the event ended. This is definitely something that should be continued.”
Students defined 3DS as “a networking opportunity to meet with like-minded individuals passionate enough to create something new as well as being an immersive, interactive experience to tap into the entrepreneurial potential we have inside.”
