Explore resources here to help make the real-world impact you envision
Connect with resources and programs on and off the CU Boulder campus to help you make the real-world impact you envision.
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Ascent Deep Tech Accelerator
Part of Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A startup accelerator for research teams building deep tech startups coming out of CU campuses. The program supports launching and growing deep tech startups through IP support, entrepreneurial training, mentorship and advising for university graduate students, postdocs and faculty commercializing research.
CU Boulder Campus, Virtual Spring
ASSETT Innovation Incubator
Part of the Center for Teaching & Learning
Engaging teams of faculty, undergraduate students and staff from the College of Arts and Sciences in cycles of design thinking to develop innovative education technology projects. A total of $200,000 is available to award to up to four interdisciplinary teams over the three-year funding period.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Restricted to students, faculty and staff in the College of Arts and Sciences
ATLAS Institute
Part of the College of Engineering & Applied Science
Home to research and academic programs transcending disciplinary structures of engineering, design, science and art to inspire new realms of invention. In our laboratories, we make tangible and digital tools and methods that shape how people interact with the world for a more inclusive, inspired and sustainable society.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
BioFrontiers
Undaunted exploration of the greatest challenges in human health and welfare.
Blow Things Up (BTU) Lab
Part of the ATLAS Institute
An inclusive community maker space facilitating projects at the intersection of art, design, engineering and architecture through prototyping, physical computing, mentorship and training, building and testing, conceiving and exploring, team building and networking with undergraduate and graduate students, faculty and staff.
CU Boulder Campus and Virtual Fall/Spring
Burridge Center for Finance
Part of the Leeds School of Business
Working to enhance and elevate finance at Leeds, building superior innovation and talent. Burridge operates in a collaborative fashion with CU Boulder partners to build programs focused on the funding and financing needed to launch and grow the innovative businesses of tomorrow, focusing on VC and PE firms.
CU Boulder Campus, Virtual Year Round
Restricted to undergraduate students enrolled in the Leeds School of Business
Business Minor
A 12-credit minor designed to help CU Boulder students gain business fundamentals. Option to add on the Entrepreneurial Studies Certificate.
Career Services
Dedicated to helping students gain clarity about their future through accessible and inclusive guidance at any point in their career. Offers workshops and meetups with career advisors for help with cover letters, resumes, interview skills and more.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Catalyze CU
Part of the College of Engineering & Applied Science
An accelerator helping to launch and grow the University’s best start-ups open to students, staff and faculty by application. The program provides content as well as funding.
CU Boulder Campus Summer
Center for Translational Research (CTR)
Part of Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A campus-wide resource for both existing and aspiring university-originated startups seeking non-dilutive funding and financing. The center provides mentorship and advising to teams on best practices for seeking non-dilutive capital to support their intellectual property.
Colorado, Virtual Year-Round
CESR Fellows
For all CU undergraduates who have a passion for values-driven business.
Community Impact Grants
Part of the Office for Outreach & Engagement
These $5,000 grants fund the creation or expansion of public and community-engaged scholarship projects. Specifically, research, teaching or creative work projects that address community-identified needs and questions and advance CU Boulder's public good mission.
Virtual Feb./Aug.
Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)
A partnership of NOAA and CU Boulder where environmental scientists work to understand the dynamic Earth system.
Creative Labs Center
Offering specialized workshops and studio space focused on advanced technologies for design visualization, production and simulation.
Creative Technology & Design (Minor, BS, MS, PhD)
Part of the ATLAS Institute
ATLAS offers rigorous undergraduate and graduate degrees in Creative Technology and Design (CTD) granted by the College of Engineering and Applied Science at CU Boulder. Our project-based academic programs equip the next generation of strategic problem solvers, designers and makers with cross-functional expertise valued in leading industries.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Crowdfunding at CU Boulder
Part of CU Advancement & CU Foundation
This official crowdfunding platform for CU Boulder is available for all campus community members. The opportunity to source funding to build, test, launch and grow endeavors of any kind and any sector.
CU Boulder Year-Round
CU Environmental Center
Nation’s largest and most accomplished student-led center of its kind.
CU Innovation & Efficiency Awards
Tell us how you’ve re-engineered operations, enhanced communication, built employee engagement, improved customer service, or otherwise made CU work better.
Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
Part of the Leeds School of Business
A one-stop shop for students, staff, faculty and community members interested in entrepreneurship. Home to 20+ faculty teaching entrepreneurship, programs for undergraduate and graduate students, year-round entrepreneurship-focused events and other resources for entrepreneurially-minded individuals.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Deming Center Venture Fund (DCVF)
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
A venture fund for emerging companies, providing experience to Boulder's next generation of entrepreneurial leaders. Graduate students are eligible to serve on the investment team and invest in early-stage startups in the Boulder community, gaining experience in hands-on due diligence, interaction with entrepreneurs, presentations to advisory board members and direct participation in investment decisions.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Design for America
An award-winning, nationwide network of university students using design innovation for social good.
Designing for Defense Course (D4D)
Part of the Center for National Security Initiatives
An opportunity for students to work with the U.S. Department of Defense to address emerging threats and security challenges. Teams are assigned a real-world problem and then utilize Lean Launchpad tools to develop appropriate solutions and products. The DOD may provide follow-on funding.
CU Boulder Campus, Virtual Year Round
Destination Startup®
Part of the Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A collaboration among leading research universities and federal laboratories across the Intermountain West to showcase the best companies from their innovation ecosystem for investment funding. This opportunity is for launching and growing startups commercializing an innovation from or in official partnership with participating institutions.
Colorado Fall/Spring
Embark Deep Tech Startup Creator
Part of the Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A deep tech startup creator matching entrepreneurs with university-owned innovations. The program provides IP rights, salary support, grant funds and investor introductions to selected entrepreneurs.
Colorado See website for details
Engineering Entrepreneurship (Minor)
Part of the College of Engineering & Applied Science
The undergraduate engineering entrepreneurship minor prepares students with the knowledge, understanding and skills to essential entrepreneurship in a start-up venture or within a larger corporation. This minor develops entrepreneurial and leadership skills while introducing students to the multiple facets of entrepreneurship, innovation, creative development and the overall entrepreneurial process.
CU Boulder Campus, Virtual Fall/Spring
Restricted to undergraduate students enrolled in the College of Engineering & Applied Science
Engineering Excellence Fund
Funds and supports engineering innovations.
Engineers Without Borders
Goal of creating positive change for developing communities through combined efforts.
Entrepreneurial Law Clinic
Part of the Law School
Offering valuable legal services to local startup businesses lacking access to legal resources without charge. The ELC assists with entity formation, founders agreements, intellectual property matters, contracts, and other startup legal needs.
Denver Metro Fall/Spring
Entrepreneurial Solutions
Part of the Leeds School of Business
A boutique consulting firm owned and operated by MBA candidates. Students can participate in this learning opportunity to work with growing ventures in marketing strategy, business development, financial strategy, operations management and product development.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Restricted to MBA students in the Leeds School of Business
Entrepreneurial Studies (Certificate)
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
A certificate program available to undergraduate students that provides an opportunity to focus on three elements of entrepreneurship: academic expertise, professional experience and exposure to the startup ecosystem. Students gain unique experiences that demonstrate to employers a familiarity with innovation and comfort in small, adaptable teams.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Restricted to undergraduate students enrolled in a major or minor in the Leeds School of Business
Entrepreneurship & Empowerment in South Africa (EESA)
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
CU Boulder students join students from the University of Notre Dame, the University of Florida and the University of Western Cape to provide consulting services to local entrepreneurs in the townships of Cape Town. Students will apply their entrepreneurial education to help entrepreneurs grow their businesses and gain world-class consulting skills.
CU Boulder Campus Summer
Entrepreneurship Center for Music
Equips today’s music students with the skills and tools they need to create sustainable careers in the arts.
Get Seed Funding
Part of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative
A micro-funding opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students that provides up to $500 in funding for entrepreneurial ideas in the making.
CU Boulder Campus Spring/Fall
Global Engineering (MS, Minor, Certificate)
Part of the Mortenson Center in Global Engineering & Resilience
For students who want to expand student their understanding of how to operate within an international context from an engineering perspective and to understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental, and societal context.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Global Seminar: New Venture Creation in France
Part of Education Abroad
Gain real-world skills by doing a for-credit internship and going through the process of launching a new venture—experience the unique challenges presented by starting such a venture abroad.
International Fall
High Growth Venture Fellowship
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
An academic fellowship providing students with a two-year immersive program with academic and experiential learning unique to growth-stage companies. The highly competitive program offers financial support in addition to master classes, exclusive networking opportunities and career support. Students walk away with the knowledge, skills and relationships to join any startup or growing company and help them scale.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Restricted to MBA students in the Leeds School of Business
Idea Forge
Part of the College of Engineering and Applied Science
A cross-disciplinary prototyping facility where students can design, build and test solutions to meet societal needs. The space supports students, staff and faculty working in academic courses, as well as design and development driven by campus-affiliated for-profit and not-for-profit groups and student organizations.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Impact Design Initiative
The Idea Forge's Impact Design Initiative provides students the opportunity to hone their skills by designing for social impact.
Industry & Foundation Relations
Helping entrepreneurs and businesses from anywhere find academic partners, new hires, employee education, training and assisting in cultivating new product ideas.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Innovation Action Team
Part of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative
CU Boulder undergraduate and graduate students from various backgrounds and sectors support innovation efforts on the CU Boulder campus. This a great opportunity for students to begin and cultivate their experience leading innovation and entrepreneurship and access mentorship and advising, team building and networking.
CU Boulder Campus Spring application
Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR)
CU Boulder’s oldest institute, with a long history of responding to pressing environmental issues.
Integrated Teaching and Learning Program (ITLP)
Part of the College of Engineering & Applied Science
A workspace offering workshops, resources and high-end equipment open to engineering and non-engineering students, staff and faculty use. In addition to technical equipment like 3D printing, laser cutting, sewing stations, 3D scanning, wood and metal workshops, electronics labs and more, we have meeting rooms available for reservation and a team of full-time engineers dedicated to helping ideate, prototype and build your ideas.
CU Boulder Campus Year-round
JILA
A partnership of NIST and CU Boulder. One of the nation’s leading research institutes in the physical sciences.
Lab Venture Challenge (LVC)
Part of the Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A funding competition for top innovations from CU Boulder, Denver and Colorado Springs with grants of up to $125,000 for licensing university-owned Intellectual Property (IP). Applicants must be a professor with a lab in advanced manufacturing, aerospace, bioscience, electronics, energy and natural resources, infrastructure engineering, or technology and information.
Colorado Fall
Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP)
The world’s only research institute to have sent instruments to all eight planets and Pluto.
Leeds Social Impact Consultants
An MBA studentrun consulting service for social enterprises and local Boulder/Denver companies.
Map The System
A competition to promote a systems-thinking approach to tackling social and/or environmental challenges.
Mentor Matching
If you are looking for a mentor, check out our stellar list below of founders, entrepreneurs, C-suite business leaders and more.
Mortenson Center in Global Engineering
Training engineers to work in partnership with organizations in developing communities worldwide.
Multicultural Business Students Association
A community that assists diverse students with networking and communicating with corporate representatives from well-known companies. With these skills, our members can increase their opportunities in the business world, like landing an internship or a full-time job.
Multimedia Equipment Lending Library
Part of University Libraries
Students, staff and faculty may borrow a variety of multimedia equipment, including cameras, audio equipment, tripods and smartphone accessories.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Music Entrepreneurship (Certificate)
Administered by the Entrepreneurship Center for Music. Open to music majors.
National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps™ Hub: West
Part of Venture Partners at CU Boulder
A multi-university customer discovery program led by Venture Partners supporting the pathway to success from beginning to growing ventures based on IP. It offers opportunities for entrepreneurial training, mentorship and advising, and licensing and industry partnerships. Eligible participants include graduate students, postdocs, faculty, and staff. The program supports licensing intellectual property and for-profit ventures in any sector.
Boulder, Virtual Year-Round
New Venture Challenge (NVC)
Part of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative
A competition—cash prizes up to $50,000—that supports the pathway to success from the beginning through launching ventures. It offers IP support, entrepreneurial training, mentorship, advising, funding, team building and networking. Anyone with a BuffOne Card is eligible and supports any venture type in any sector.
Boulder Fall/Spring
New Venture Launch Class
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
An in-class accelerator for cross-disciplinary teams, individual founders and entrepreneurially-focused graduate and undergraduate students. Seeking for-profit and not-for-profit founders interested in building, testing, launching and growing their ventures. An excellent way to prepare for the New Venture Challenge (NVC).
CU Boulder Campus Spring
Now What?
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
For students looking to take their idea to the next level, book a free appointment with a business expert or attorney to ask questions about your startup and/or how to get your idea off the ground. This mentorship opportunity is open to enrolled CU Boulder students working on for-profit or not-for-profit ventures.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
President's Sustainable Solutions Challenge
Part of the Environmental Center
Students pitch ideas for sustainable innovations and solutions that address environmental quality, natural resource use, social justice and economic longevity in the CU system. Winning proposals will be awarded $1500, while a runner-up and an audience favorite will each be awarded $500.
CU Boulder Campus Spring
Propel Accelerator
Designed to build relationships and prepare entrepreneurs for the world of funding.
Renewable and Sustainable Energy Institute (RASEI)
A joint institute between CU Boulder and NREL addressing complex problems in energy.
Research & Innovation Seed Grants
Part of the Research & Innovation Office
Provides funding and financing to support CU Boulder faculty investigators pursuing inter- and multidisciplinary work on research, scholarship and creative activity projects that have high potential for leadership, innovation and/or impact.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Silicon Flatirons Center
Propelling the future of technology policy and innovation.
Social Innovation (Certificate)
The Certificate program in Social Innovation prepares undergraduate students for working in fields that seek to improve the lives of society's most vulnerable and disadvantaged people. The program teaches students how to design and execute evidence-based strategies for advancing human welfare.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Startup Summer
Part of the Silicon Flatirons Center
A program for students interested in entrepreneurship. Learn from local founders and c-suite executives, pitch a startup with a team and win thousands in cash prizes at the end-of-summer pitch competition. Come to weekly meetups for entrepreneurial training, mentoring and advising, team building, networking and funding.
CU Boulder Campus Summer
Startup Variety Show
Part of the Silicon Flatirons Center
Come network with the local entrepreneurial community. Monthly shows regularly feature Startups, up-and-coming research, an investors corner and talks on tech, legal and policy issues, arts and other community interests.
CU Boulder Campus Year Round
Startups & Sandwiches
Part of the Deming Center for Entrepreneurship
Bringing seasoned entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and tech leaders together with the best sandwiches in Boulder, these events are open to any CU student, faculty or staff member interested in startups in food and beverage, sustainability, AI and much more. Previous guests include the founder of Skratch Labs, Editor in Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine, and founder of Sanitas Brewing Company.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Startups2Students (S2S)
Part of Career Services
A series of events in which Colorado startups share internships and jobs in a pitch-style presentation. Positions are open to undergraduate and graduate students in all disciplines, years in school and experience levels. S2S events are also great opportunities to connect with a network of professional connections and mentors in the startup community.
CU Boulder Campus Fall/Spring
Strategic Communication Design (MA)
Part of the College of Media, Communication and Information
A professional master's program for undergraduate students to become design professionals and leaders through a comprehensive approach focusing on two aspects: branding design and UX/UI design within a single academic calendar year.
Boulder Year Round
Sustainability Hackathon
Part of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship Initiative
A week-long competition for students to solve environmental challenges. After networking and building teams, participants get entrepreneurial training, mentorship and advising, and ultimately compete for funding with support from beginning and cultivating to building and testing solutions.
CU Boulder Campus Fall
T9Hacks
A welcoming and safe place for women and traditionally underrepresented students to explore hackathons. Great opportunities for newcomers to explore a hackathon environment while learning and solving compelling problems.
Boulder Fall/Spring
TEDxCU
Showcases innovative Coloradans who each give the “talk of their life.
The BOLD Center
Our staff engages students with academic, cultural, social, professional, and leadership experiences to enhance their skillsets and preparedness to implement engineering and social solutions in an increasingly complex and diverse world.
Venture Partners at CU Boulder
Part of the Research & Innovation Office
The commercialization arm of CU Boulder, Colorado Springs and Denver (Physical Sciences) campuses with support for beginning through growing ventures based on university-owned IP. It provides service in the areas of IP support, entrepreneurial training, mentorship and advising, funding and financing, and licensing and industry partnerships to CU innovators in any sector.
Denver Metro Year-Round
Women in Science and Engineering
Coaching, mentorship, networking and discussion to support women in STEM fields.
All
Activate Fellowship
Activate empowers scientists to reinvent the world by bringing their research to market. The two-year Activate Fellowship provides early-stage hard-tech science entrepreneurs $100,000 in research funding, yearly stipends of up to $110,000, intensive entrepreneurial training, mentorship, networking and other benefits. Applications open each fall.
National, Virtual July-Oct.
Alchemy Creative Workspace
Coworking, shared offices.
Antler Founder Residency
A generalist, pre-seed Venture Capital firm investing in founders from day zero through its Founder Residency to find co-founders and build exceptional teams, test their ideas and rapidly launch startups in Austin, Boulder and New York City. Founders participating in the Residency can pitch for a $250,000 investment.
Boulder/International Year Round
Black Lab Sports
A distribution center, creative collective, sports performance laboratory and sports accelerator.
Boomtown
Strives to be the world’s most innovative and effective startup accelerator.
Boulder Chamber Esprit Business Challenge
Showcases the next generation of risk-taking Boulderpreneurs.
Boulder New Tech
Monthly meetups with local startups and other inventors sharing innovations in technology.
Denver Metro Fall/Spring
Canopy Boulder
A seed-stage cannabis investment fund and business accelerator.
Catalyst HTI
A community of health-tech pros and businesses working to quicken the pace of healthcare advancement.
Cleantech Open (CTO)
Fosters entrepreneurs with ideas to solve our greatest environmental and energy challenges.
Climate Investment Challenge
The Climate Investment Challenge calls on students to develop and describe creative financial solutions and innovations addressing the defining challenge of our time – climate change.
Creative Density
Denver’s friendliest coworking spaces in Uptown and Capitol Hill.
Denver Startup Week
The summit of entrepreneurial energy, innovation and connection in Denver.
Denver Startup Week Pitch Challenge
By the community, for the community.
Expansive
Fully furnished, amenity-rich workspaces with direct fiber internet and WiFi in prime locations.
Exponential Impact
An accelerator for tech startups.
Fckup Nights Denver
A global movement to publicly share business failure stories.
Fitzsimons Innovation Community
Unrivaled opportunities to life science research and development of companies at all stages.
Founder Institute
World’s premier idea-stage accelerator and startup launch program.
Galvanize
A home base for individuals, startups and establishd companies looking to increase productivity and innovation.
Go Code Colorado
Taking a lead in the worldwide Open Data movement so its potential can be realized.
I.E.C.T. Harmann Hauser
This success-proven program is known for attracting the best talent from around the world, enabling cross-border collaborations and fostering entrepreneurship.
Industry
An ecosystem of constant evolution where people, places, ideas and invention converge.
Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program
Part of the U.S. Department of Energy
A two-year fellowship offered to founders in clean-tech. The program offers pay for founders, insurance benefits, travel coverage, mentorship by a lab scientist, an annual demo day and networking benefits. The most local node for this program is located in Golden, CO.
Colorado, National Year Round
Moonshot edVentures
Building the pipeline of diverse leaders to design and launch the schools of tomorrow in Metro Denver.
NewCo Boulder
Welcomes attendees into the offices of innovative organizations.
Next Top Entrepreneur Competition
Students from any college or university with a solid business idea, concept product or existing business are invited to pitch in front of a panel of seasoned entrepreneurs for a chance to win the top prize of $10,000. Teams traveling out of state for the competition are eligible for travel reimbursement of up to $1,500.
National April
Northern Colorado Food Incubator
Provides support, guidance and assistance to food-related businesses and entrepreneurs in Northern Colorado.
NREL Industry Growth Forum
The nation’s premier clean energy investment event.
Oil & Gas Cleantech Challenge
Connects clean technology solutions to the oil and natural gas industry.
Prime Health Innovation Challenge
Accelerates the adoption of emerging healthcare technologies that address community and safety net needs.
SecureSet
Learn to hack with SecureSet’s cybersecurity bootcamp.
Shift Workspaces
Flexible coworking, desk, virtual and private office services.
Techstars Boulder
Welcomes savvy entrepreneurs and product innovators.
Techstars Startup Weekends
Build an amazing startup in Boulder, all over the course of one weekend.
TEDxBoulder
Showcases innovative Coloradans who each give the “talk of their life.”
TEDxMile High
Showcases innovative Coloradans who each give the “talk of their life.”
The Hive
A boutique coworking space in the heart of downtown Denver.
The Latino Chamber of Commerce of Boulder County
Promoting economic development, growth and sustainability for its members by enabling access to business opportunities and developmental resources through strategic initiatives. Partnered with the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT). An excellent resource for entrepreneurs of Latino backgrounds.
Boulder Year Round
The Studio
Creative collaborative workspace and industrial chic venue.
Thrive
Cultivated sophisticated share workspaces in Denver.
Tradecraft Industries
Bringing coworking to the construction industry.
Traxion
Brings local governments, corporations, educational institutions and individuals together.
Uncharted
Connects people best positioned to solve specific problems and gives them access to what they need.
UpRamp
A next-gen startup accelerator focused on helping you find product/market fit inside the global cable industry.
Watson Institute
A reimagined model of education for innovators, leaders and entrepreneurs.
WeWork
Premium office amenities, flexible memberships and utilities included.
Zigzag
A global innovation platform that empowers entrepreneurs to build and launch ideas quickly. Using an AI-powered platform, Zigzag enables entrepreneurs to build an entire business validation roadmap, including an enhanced lean canvas, brand wheel, elevator pitch, hypothesis list and more, in less than two minutes.
Virtual Year Round