BIG IDEA GATOR BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION

A competition designed to bring students’ cool ideas to life.

1^st$25,000

2^nd$10,000

3^rd$5,000

4^th$1,000

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New! $5,000 Award for the Team that Best Leverages Artificial Intelligence (AI)

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Registration for 2022 Competition Now Open!

• Intent to Compete
• Join a Team

The Big Idea Gator Business Plan Competition was created to help students grow their business ideas. It is a four month competition in the spring where teams of students begin by creating growth-oriented business models. These teams go on to research and produce rough drafts to complete business plans. The top 4 teams compete for a chance to win over $40,000 in prizes. The Center offers mentoring and various other helpful resources along the way.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS & REGISTRATION

The entry period for the 2021 Big Idea Competition is now open. Please submit your intent to compete by December 15th.

• Students can enter the competition individually or form teams
• The team leader must be an enrolled student at any college or school at UF
• A business plan is not required to register. You will have an opportunity to develop a business plan during the competition. Competitors will have access to the Business Plan Lab during the spring semester.
• The business submissions must be the team’s own original work and ideas
• Have a clear vision of what business you’re trying to create, and have a good idea of the potential as well as the issues of the intended business.
• Register online by 11:59 pm on December 15.

If needed, team members can be updated throughout the competition.

Please note that the entrant must certify that at least one member of the team was an enrolled student at the University of Florida during the Fall and/or Spring semesters of the academic year in which the competition falls.

If you do not have a team, but you are interested in collaborating with others, complete the Join a Team Form.

COMPETITION FORMAT

Graduate and undergraduate competitors enter individually or in teams to create growth-oriented business models.

Teams submit their basic business models for judging in the preliminary round, which takes place in early February. At this point, teams need only submit a plan overview.

The second phase begins when judges review the preliminary entries for the strongest high-potential ideas.

The competitors who make it to this point must finish researching their new ventures and write a complete business plan by April 6th.

Judges will then narrow down the field to 16 semi-finalists who will present their plans to a panel of investors on Thursday, April 22nd. From there, four teams will have one day to refine their pitches before delivering one final presentation on Friday, April 23rd for the chance to win $25,000 in first place prize money. The events on April 22-23 will be delivered virtually for the 2021 competition. These two events are open to the public.