Start up
Build up your venture idea.
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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.
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.
CMU ranks in the Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings for a second year
by
Henry Heller
Central Michigan University ranked in the Quacquarelli Symonds World University Rankings for the second consecutive year. The QS World University Rankings is an international system that incorporates the research output of universities. The evaluation includes the impact, quality, and amount of research generated by a university.
Various metrics are used to rank the universities, with citations per faculty accounting for 20% of the QS criteria and participating in international research accounts for 5% of the criteria. Other factors affecting the overall ranking include sustainability and employment outcomes.
QS World University Rankings is one of three major systems to evaluate universities. Ranking in the QS World University Rankings system places CMU above other universities which remain unranked. Such rankings hold particular importance for international graduate students. Many countries will not send graduate students to universities that are not ranked in one of the three major systems.
The other two systems are Times Higher Education World University Rankings and Academic Ranking of World Universities (Shanghai Ranking). THE is seen as one of the most prestigious ranking systems. David C. Weindorf, Ph.D., CMU’s Vice President for Research and Innovation, believes now that CMU has ranked for a second year in QS, it has a chance of ranking in THE in future years.
CMU recently surpassed Western Michigan University in scholarly output. WMU is currently ranked in both QS and THE. Surpassing WMU is another reason why Weindorf believes CMU will soon rank in THE.
One goal which Weindorf has for CMU is for the university to evolve in the way it views itself. CMU has long had a reputation for excellence in teaching, but he hopes that in the future, it will view itself as a truly comprehensive university – that is, one focused dually on teaching and research excellence. He says, “CMU’s research is unmistakably high in quality. We are addressing society’s grand challenges head on, not only in Michigan, but nationally and internationally as well.”
This story is brought to you by the Office of Research and Graduate Studies.
Signature Programs
Isabella Bank Institute for Entrepreneurship
Explore special opportunities to learn new skills and travel the world.
Compete & Win
New Venture Challenge 2025
Present your venture and win BIG at the New Venture Challenge.
Build your skills
Workshops and events
Boost your entrepreneurial skills through our workshops, mentor meetups and pitch competitions.
Develop your ideas
IDEA Den
Learn about the entrepreneurship makerspace on campus in Grawn Hall.
Ready, Set, Pitch!
Make-A-Pitch 2024
Present a 2-minute pitch at the Make-A-Pitch Competition and you could win prizes and bragging rights!
Meet Mentors
Mentorship and support
Connect with mentors and faculty who are here to support the next generation of CMU entrepreneurs.
Support students
Make an impact
Are you a CMU alum looking to support CMU student entrepreneurs? Learn how you can support or donate to the Entrepreneurship Institute.
View our programming newsletter
Alumni give back to students through mentorship, real-world experiences
The Wakeling Gendron Entrepreneurial Scholars program wrapped its first cohort this academic year.
Students compete to win cash prizes at the New Venture Challenge
Pitched 40 ventures at NMV Challenge, Friday, April 19, CMU. Judges awarded $100,000 in cash prizes.
Wakeling Gendron Scholars make a life-changing trip to Texas
Wakeling and Gendron Scholars attended SXSW in Texas, meeting industry leaders and gaining entrepreneurial insights.
Business barriers lead CMU students to a new venture
Justin Ashman and Philip Mundt won Central Michigan University's New Venture Competition with their 3-D printing operation, Form Further.
