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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.

      Scholarly pursuits: Slovak Republic

      by Sanjna Jassi
      CMU student Grace Pawluszka receives a Fulbright award to teach in the Slovak Republic.

      Grace Pawluszka, a Central Michigan University senior from Warren, Michigan, has been awarded a Fulbright U.S. Student Grant to teach English in the Slovak Republic.

      Pawluszka, a music education major with a minor in business administration, worked with CMU's National Scholarship Program and faculty mentors from the School of Music to complete her application.

      Each year, fewer than 2,000 U.S. students, artists and young professionals receive Fulbright grants to study, conduct research and teach English abroad. Fulbright student programs are offered in more than 140 countries around the world. Students are selected based on their academic merit, leadership and cultural competency.

      Pawluszka plans to pursue a career as either a music educator or a business professional in the music industry, roles which require significant collaboration with people from diverse backgrounds.

      "This international teaching experience will not only help me develop my teaching skills in a unique setting, but also my ability to collaborate with others," she said. "My Fulbright experience will be instrumental in expanding the skills I'll use in my future career."

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      Questions?

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