Contest offers winners free tuition
April 25, 2012
A New York college recently held a contest with a valuable prize. Clarkson University's Young Entrepreneurs and Innovators Competition invited individuals to present a business idea to a panel of experts in exchange for college tuition to the university - a prize worth more than $37,000 per year, according to CNN.
In exchange, the school will purchase a 10 percent stake in each of the winning firms.
"We receive a return on that investment that offsets the cost of tuition, not just for him, but for other students," Clarkson University president Anthony Collins told WNYF-TV News. "It's out-of-the box thinking to try and promote others to think of ways to contain the cost of higher education."
In addition to covering the cost of tuition, the winners will receive specialized guidance and support from faculty and alumni mentors. They will also keep their businesses going in Clarkson business incubator office space, while pursuing their undergraduate degrees.
In order to qualify, students submitted a completed business plan, a 90-second video and a brief description of their business. During the competition, five finalists had 15 minutes to pitch their idea and 15 minutes of questions from the panel.
Two winners were chosen. Junior Hanna Hladkik's business idea, Feels Like Home Inc., is a Web-based company that will provide the international community living in the U.S. access to their favorite international products while living in small communities.
"Today, many students come to the U.S. to study for a few years, or even a semester, and many of them would like to expand their shopping choices in rural areas, which often have only a small international presence," said Hladkikh. "Feels Like Home will supply the value and comfort that will enable them to have products they appreciate and value while they are away from home."
She will have the remainder of her tuition paid for.
The other winner, high school senior Paul Hyman, proposed a company that designs innovative and creative technologies for emergency responders and improves home appliance safety. He will begin as a freshman at Clarkson in the fall, tuition-free.
"Safety Technology Solutions is dedicated to the utilization of innovative and creative technologies at not only the lowest possible cost, but also the highest standard of quality to ensure the safety of emergency responders and the victims of any incident, as well as to guarantee the utmost efficiency in action during any aided scenario," said Hyman.
Moms with an entrepreneurial urge may consider competing in the contest next year. However, those who want to find another way to offset the cost of their college tuition should know that they often qualify to recieve various grants for parents, scholarships for mothers and single mother scholarships.
