1. Determine you are eligible
Startup City Scholars is open to Grainger College of Engineering undergraduate students of all majors with an interest in entrepreneurship who have at least Junior credit standing.
To be eligible, your team must have:
- One Grainger College of Engineering
- One University of Chicago undergraduate student
- One student who meets the course requirements below, and is available to take the course for credit – living in or traveling to Chicago each week of the course.
Course Requirements:
- 3.2 GPA recommended
- Junior or Senior credit standing
- Grainger Engineering students who meet these requirements and enroll in the course may be eligible for a $5,000 scholarship
2. Submit Interest Form
Interest forms are reviewed on a rolling basis by a faculty committee. Students will be notified if they are eligible to participate and eligible to receive the scholarship by Nov. 7th. Eligibility does not guarantee selection for the program.
Submissions from the links above can be viewed here:
3. Participate in CNVC events and activities
Stay engaged with events throughout Fall 2022 to find teams/teammates and fine-tune your CNVC project application.
You can also attend any of the Quick Pitch events listed on the Polsky website.
| Date/Time(Central) | Event | Location |
| Thursday, Sept. 29 5:30 p.m. | CNVC Kickoff ***Roundtrip transportation will be provided to Chicago from campus. Startup City Scholars Information Flyer.pdf | U Chicago Booth Harper Center 5807 S Woodlawn Chicago, IL 60637 |
| Thursday, Oct. 13 5:00 p.m. | Virtual Feasibility Summary Workshop | Register Here! Online event |
| Thursday, Oct. 13 5:00 – 6:20 p.m. | Startup City Scholar/CNCV Quick Pitches | Online event |
| Wednesday, Oct. 19 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. | Social Fuse Social Fuse Flyer.pdf | Online Event |
| DEADLINE Monday, Nov. 7 @ 11:59 p.m. | College New Venture Challenge (CNVC) Application Deadline | Click to Apply |
| Wednesday, Nov. 16, 5:00 p.m. | Startup City Scholar/CNCV Quick Pitches | Online event |
| Wednesday, November 30, 2022 5:30-7:00 p.m. | CNVC Teambuilding and Orientation Event | UChicago Booth Harper Center, Classroom 219 5807 S. Woodlawn Chicago, IL 60637 |
| Wednesday, December 7, 2022 4:00 pm-5:00 pm | Startup City Scholars/CNVC Information Session | Online event |
| Tuesday, January 3, 2033 | TE398 Course begins every Tuesday from 3:30 p.m. – 6:20 p.m. for 8 weeks | UChicago Booth Harper Center, 5807 S. Woodlawn Chicago, IL 60637 |
| Thursday, February 28, 2023 | CNVC Finals | UChicago Booth Harper Center, 5807 S. Woodlawn Chicago, IL 60637 |
4. How to be selected for the class
Enter my team in CNVC
- Meet with Prof. John Thode to discuss your project idea and team. Contact him to schedule a meeting: jthode@illinois.edu.
- All teams must have a UChicago team member. To recruit UChicago undergrads to your team, attend CNVC events and activities. Also ensure that you have submitted the interest form submitting your team.
- Learn more and submit official proposal for a University of Illinois student-led project on the CNVC website. The application deadline is Nov. 7, 2022.
- Application requirements, questions and FAQ’s found on CNVC website.
- Submitting a project proposal means you intend to join the Startup City Scholars class if accepted.
Find or join a CNVC team
- Attend all CNVC events hosted throughout Fall 2022.
- If you join a team prior to November 7th deadline, that team should list you on their application. If that team is chosen, you will be accepted to the City Scholars class.
- You may also join a team after the November 7th deadline. Attend the CNVC Phase 2 Kickoff (date TBA) to meet teams selected for the program. If an accepted project invites you on to their team you can be admitted into the class and granted a scholarship (as scholarships are still available, first come first served for eligible students and teams).
- Grainger College of Engineering students who are on a selected CNVC team are eligible for a $5,000 scholarship.
5. Acceptance into Startup City Scholars Program
TEAM APPLICATIONS will be notified shortly after November 7th if their team has been selected to participate.
INDIVIDUALS LOOKING FOR TEAMS should attempt to identify a team to join by January 6th. An admitted CNVC team should officially request your participation by emailing the UIUC Course Instructor: John Thode at jthode@illinois.edu.