Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship

We are a dedicated institute for student entrepreneurs across campus and beyond. We aim to maximize your success by fostering your entrepreneurial mindset, promote inter-disciplinary collaboration and provide support for the creation and development of your new ventures. Jumpstart your ideas and get involved today!

Tune in for excitement!

Passion. Potential. Pitches. Don't miss any of the 2025 New Venture Challenge excitement.

Tune in Friday, April 11 at 1 p.m. for great ideas and fierce competition. Then, join the judges, mentors, spectators and teams as they see who is going home with thousands of dollars in venture financing. The awards broadcast begins at 6:30 p.m. and one team will walk away as the overall best venture.

2025 NVC Competition Live Stream

2025 NVC Awards Live Stream

Start your entrepreneurial journey

Central Michigan University’s College of Business Administration is the home of the Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship and the first Department of Entrepreneurship in the state of Michigan. We are a student-centric hub where experiential, curricular, and external entrepreneurial opportunities intersect.

Our mission is to maximize student success by fostering a campus-wide entrepreneurial mindset that promotes inter-disciplinary collaboration and the creation of new ventures.

We aim to create innovative programming, boost cross-campus and ecosystem collaboration and provide a comprehensive mentoring program.

Our institute provides extracurricular opportunities and is open to all undergraduate and graduate CMU students.

Student opportunities

Meet experienced alumni, faculty, entrepreneurs, investors, and other business and political leaders.
Learn practical skills, innovative thinking, and connect with mentors and entrepreneurial resources.
Attend skill-building workshops and compete in pitch competitions and Hackathons.
Take part in special scholarship programs and travel experiences.
Pitch your venture at our signature New Venture Challenge event and compete for up to $20,000 in cash awards.

Find your path

Are you interested in becoming an entrepreneur?

Every journey is unique. Explore the opportunities that interest you.

A student standing with a faculty member holding big winning checks from the New Venture Challenge 2024.

Start up

Build up your venture idea.

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A student smiling and standing in front of his venture display at the 2024 New Venture Challenge.

Family business

Explore the Alternative Entrepreneurial Pathways category at NVC.

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A close-up of the Prusa i3 MK3 printer in the entrepreneurship makerspace, the IDEA Den in Grawn Hall 166.

Product and prototype design

Create and patent your ideas.

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Innovation

Explore your ideas and build your skills.

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CMU named to list of best online programs

by Aaron Mills

Central Michigan University’s online bachelor’s in psychology program ranks first among all Michigan colleges and universities in the U.S. News & World Report 2025 Best Online Programs rankings.

Four additional programs rank second in the state with three others in the top four.

CMU online programs ranked by U.S. News & World Report:

Bachelor’s in psychology: #1 in Michigan (#21 overall)
Bachelor’s in business: #2 in Michigan (#54 overall)
Bachelor’s for veterans: #2 in Michigan (#65 overall)
Master’s in education: #2 in Michigan (#71 overall)
MBA for veterans: #2 in Michigan (#87 overall)
Master’s in information technology: #3 in Michigan (#55 Overall)
MBA: #3 in Michigan (#150 overall)
Bachelor’s: #4 in Michigan (#113 overall)

"Central Michigan University has been a pioneer in online, and at distance, education since 1971. The rankings from U.S. News 2025 Best Online Programs just further solidifies CMU as a leader in delivering high quality, relevant, online degree programs," said Kaleb Patrick, interim vice president of CMU Innovation and Online. "The commitment to supporting online education by our deans, faculty, and staff is demonstrated in these rankings and in the successes of our students. By delivering excellent online degree programming, CMU is stepping forward to meet the needs of Michigan’s workforce and to increase the number of working-age adults with a college degree as identified by the office of Sixty by 30 initiative."

U.S. News has published school rankings since 1983 and ranked online degree programs since 2013. Schools are assessed based on a variety of objective factors, such as student engagement, faculty credentials, and services and technology.