The spark starts here: Ignite your ideas and entrepreneurial potential
You have great ideas. Attend Entrepreneurship Week to find out how to unleash them and start your innovation journey by adopting an entrepreneurial mindset. Many Faculties, departments and clubs across campus are coming together to celebrate Entrepreneurship Week in our community. Discover a collection of activities, competitions and events to get inspired and take action.
McMaster Entrepreneurship Week is hosted in partnership by Student Affairs, The Forge and The Clinic @ Mac.
Submit Entrepreneurship Week events
We encourage faculty, staff and student groups to submit their events for inclusion in McMaster’s Entrepreneurship Week.
Makers Marketplace
September 26, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. | MUSC AtriumMakers Marketplace is for students (at all levels of study) with startups or small businesses to showcase their ideas and sell products. In addition to the marketplace, various resources available to students will be present to answer questions or showcase services and support.
Featured startups and businesses:
- Animal Yarn
- BeadzByAnu
- Canadian Courage Project
- HarmonEase Innovations
- Medium AI
- MENT
- Shopp Dorée
- Swahili Fusion
Hosted by: The Forge and Student Success Centre
Falling in Love with the Problem
October 2, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. | The Forge, 175 Longwood Rd. S, Suite B21Ready to enter the world of entrepreneurship but unsure how to begin? This workshop will help to uncover the challenges you’re facing and learn the essential steps to start your journey. Discover how to pinpoint the problem your product solves, validate it with your target audience and equip yourself with the tools needed to transform your concept into a problem-solving product.
Hosted by: The Forge
Innovation Inspo: An Introduction to Health Innovation and Entrepreneurship
October 3, 12:00 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. | The Clinic, Health Sciences Library HSC 1B10Are you curious about health innovation and entrepreneurship? Join us for insights from fellow McMaster entrepreneurs who transformed their ideas into startup companies! During this panel session, Lianna Genovese, CEO and Founder of ImaginAble Solutions will interview two entrepreneurs, Mason Kadem, Co-Founder of Ro, Research Online, and Dr. Patricia Hewston, Co Creator Geras Dance, to learn about their journeys, lessons learned and tips and tricks to get started! Pizza and refreshments will be provided.
Hosted by: The Clinic @ Mac
Innovate 1X03 Guest Speaker
October 3, 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. | Togo Salmon Hall 120Katarina Poletto will talk about her real world experiences starting a niche food business in Hamilton with a Q&A afterwards.
Residency Demo Day
October 3, 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. | The Clinic, Health Sciences LibraryThis is a drop-in showcase, where innovators from Residency @ The Clinic bring their prototypes and showcase the health innovations they have been working on. Residency @ The Clinic is a nine-month cohort program designed for health care innovators seeking to validate and accelerate their health innovations, grow their businesses and expand their professional networks.
Hosted by: The Clinic @ Mac
Talk to an Entrepreneur
October 3, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. | Gilmour Hall 110At this speed networking event, you’ll get to chat with entrepreneurs from the McMaster community and learn about their ideas, including how they started, the challenges they had to overcome, the resources they used and the skills that helped them build resilience and achieve success along the way.
Hosted by: Student Success Centre
From Sparks to Success: McMaster's Startup Trailblazers Panel
October 4, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. | Burke Science Building (BSB) 117This event brings together student and alumni entrepreneurs who’ve transformed their ideas into thriving startups. Learn firsthand from your peers as they share their strategies for success, resilience in the face of failure and valuable lessons on managing expectations. Get inspired and gain insights from real-world startup achievers, propelling you toward your own entrepreneurial journey.
Hosted by: The Forge
Commercializing Your Research Drop-In
October 5, 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m. | Alumni Memorial Hall, West RoomMcMaster researchers, including faculty members and graduate students, are invited to join this drop-in session focused on commercializing your research. Drop by for a light lunch and learn more about research commercialization pathways, entrepreneurship opportunities and best practices. Meet investors, connect with successful McMaster startup companies and get support from McMaster Industry Liaison Office (MILO) Business Development experts to take your research to the next level.
Email milodesk@mcmaster.ca to register.
Hosted by: Office of the Vice-President, Research
Office Hours with The Forge
October 5, 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. | Gilmour Hall 110 or ZoomIf you’re not sure where to start, trying to decide between multiple ideas, curious about upcoming opportunities or wondering if entrepreneurship is right for you, let’s chat! Join us for our office hours in person on campus or via Zoom. Our team is available every Thursday to answer any questions you may have.
Hosted by: The Forge
The Forge Startup Survivor Pitch Competition
October 5, 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. | CIBC HallThe Forge Business Incubator and McMaster University are proud to present our Annual $75k Pitch Competition: Startup Survivor. Watch McMaster’s Top 6 student entrepreneurs pitch their startups for cash before a panel of expert judges.
Hosted by: The Forge
Career Conversations | Student Success Centre
Participate in Career Conversations to expand your professional network and gain firsthand knowledge about what it means to be an entrepreneur. These one-on-one conversations can help you explore your options, build confidence and discover resources to help you get started.
Apply on OSCARplus > Student Success Centre > Career Conversation.
DeGroote Entrepreneur
DeGroote Entrepreneur hopes to give everyone the opportunity to further their knowledge through entrepreneurial presenters and test their knowledge in business-related competitions.
Experiential Learning Opportunities Resource | EXPLORE
Use this tool to explore and filter experiential learning opportunities based on your goals and interests. There are options for undergraduate students in any level or Faculty, ranging from courses for credit to experience-building programs, community engagement and more.
Tip! Use the innovation filter to find opportunities that will help you ignite your ideas.
The Forge
The Forge is a startup incubator for the McMaster University and Hamilton region that’s open to anyone pursuing scalable companies — or companies you can grow. The Forge leads programs and events, including the Startup Survivor Competition and Business Incubator to inspire and educate you, the community of entrepreneurial-minded students and innovators at McMaster.
Hamilton Business Centre
The Hamilton Business Centre provides information and tools that entrepreneurs need to grow their businesses. Its a one-stop source for business information, guidance and professional advice on starting and leading a successful business.
Impactus Labs
Impactus Labs aims to provide low-stakes opportunities for the Hamilton community to explore social entrepreneurship and develop scalable, socially-oriented start-ups. Highlights include the Startup Lab innovation event.
Innovation Factory
Innovation Factory is a regional innovation centre for Hamilton that provides workshops, programming, one-on-one mentoring and support and access to funding. Its mission is to help startups commercialize their ideas and small–medium enterprises innovate within their organizations.
MDG Health Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship (ICE)
MDG Health Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship works with McMaster students, researchers and health professionals to create a community of health entrepreneurship, innovation and commercialization.
Entrepreneurship Week 2022 in McMaster's Daily News
From idea to impact: Marking Global Entrepreneurship Week at McMaster
At McMaster, innovative thinkers are working hard to turn brilliant ideas into reality. As we mark Global Entrepreneurship Week, we are shining a light on the community members working to make positive change through their inventions, startups and emerging innovations.
Visit McMaster’s Daily News to read stories from last year’s Entrepreneurship Week highlighting exciting research, innovation and student-led projects helping to make a brighter world.
Fuel your innovation by discovering topics you care about — the Challenge Cards tool can help
The Challenge Cards can help you get inspired about your career direction and take action to build the career you want. If you need some support in creating an action plan, our team of career counsellors are here to help!
Whatever stage you’re at in the career planning model, this tool is available to inspire and help you consider what type of impact you want to make.
In exploring the world through a challenge mindset, we encourage you to to think creatively, make connections between interests and consider career options based on purpose and meaning.
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