A Unique Experiential Learning Opportunity for Students
We are scaling up to offer 1000 high-school and university/college
students a hands-on experiential learning opportunity, which we hope
will give them a unique opportunity to reflect on, and challenge their
career assumptions – with a view to making more informed career
decisions.
During the weekend startup experience, students will be led through
our structured design thinking approach: finding an important problem,
developing viable solutions, validating the optimum approach and
building a compelling business case. During the intensive interactive
experience, they will also get the opportunity to creative problem solve,
and work in dynamic teams, in order to learn about themselves, their
passion and the impact they might have on society.
IMPACT
The BEST Weekend Startup Experience will enable students to;
• Discover their passion, and if entrepreneurship is right for them
• Connect with like-minded people during a shared experience
• Learn if they have what it takes to start a company
• Explore future career options
• Identify a real problem, develop potential solutions, select and validate best solution
• Build a business case, create a pitch, receive expert feedback
• Nurture a team and develop their experiential learning and leadership skills
SCHEDULE
Friday November 8, 2019 from 6:00 PM – 11:00 PM
Students meet each other and identify a problem
Saturday November 9,2019 from 8:00 AM – 11:00 PM
Students form teams, develop / test solutions, and develop the
business case
Sunday November 10, 2019 from 8:00 AM – 1:00 PM
Students practice pitch, and receive feedback
Closing event: Sunday November 10, 2019 from 1:00 PM – 3:00 PM
Invited teams will make the main pitch, receive feedback and be
awarded prizes
The Team
Our Sponsors & Partners
Our Speakers
Dr. Karine Rashkovsky
Brain Power Enrichment Programs Ltd.Founder & Director
Karine is well-known for her award-winning entrepreneurial work (winner of CSPN’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2019, named a top entrepreneur in the City of Vaughan 2018 and 2019, City Mogul 2019, recipient of York Region’s Passion into Practice Award 2018).
Douglas Kennedy
RBC Managing Director at the Centre for Global EnterpriseOver a decade of advising entrepreneurs and SMEs on new venture formation, scaling up strategies, business planning and international market strategy. More than 25 years international experience in investment banking, including over 15 years leading business units at major financial institutions covering markets across the Far East, Europe and the U.S.
Jimmy Chan
Managing Director, Odyssey3DJimmy’s vision for Odyssey3D began from a trip to Israel to study technology entrepreneurship. Since graduating from the Schulich School of Business, he was the winner of Schulich’s 2016 Start-Up Day and has since brought his project to the market to launch the award-winning real estate startup Odyssey3D.
Alon Eisenstein
Educator, Experiential Learning at the Impact Centre, University of TorontoDr. Eisenstein obtained his BSc and MSc in Chemistry, both with honours, at the Ben-Gurion University in Israel. For the past five years, Dr. Eisenstein has been responsible for teaching and enhancing the Impact Centre’s Entrepreneurial Work Integrated Learning (E-WIL) programs, in particular the undergraduate course-based internship “Exploring New Ventures”.
Meredith Drost
Enactus Design thinking: How might we?Manager, Programs, Enactus Canada
Meredith Drost works for Enactus Canada, a non for profit organization focused on shaping generations of entrepreneurial leaders passionate about advancing the economic, social and environmental health of Canada. At Enactus Canada she is the Program Manager for Western Canada and Quebec.
Erich Ko
NextCanada, YSpace, Sandbox by DMZCo-Founder & CEO of Hop In Technologies
Erich is Co-Founder & CEO of Hop In Technologies. He is a Next 36 graduate from the 2019 Cohort. Erich is also a graduate of the Legal Innovation Zone Startup Bootcamp and the DMZ Startup Certified Program. He has 6 years of experience in government, in public relations.
Kevin Monte de Ramos
Failure is Just a MilestoneData & Analytics Strategist
Kevin Monte de Ramos is a Data & Analytics Strategist exiting his employ at Accenture to explore his next start-up venture. Kevin Monte de Ramos will share his start-up experiences with you; demonstrating that failure is just a milestone on the journey to succeed.
Juanita Lee-Garcia
Social Innovation Lead at Venture4CanadaJuanita Lee-Garcia currently works at Venture for Canada, a national charity focused on accelerating the growth of Canadian youth, startups and small businesses through offering immersive learning opportunities and an expanding entrepreneurial network.
Mackenzie
Build a Product that Users LoveProduct Designer
Mackenzie is a 4th-year student at the University of Waterloo majoring in liberal arts. Last summer, he worked at Google as a UX Design intern on the G Suite team. Previously, he co-founded a startup called Node App which enables brands to connect with influencers.
FAQs
What is the event? Why should I participate in the Startup Experience weekend?
The BEST Startup Experience is a great experiential learning opportunity that provides a safe space for you to experience an entrepreneurial mindset, to expose yourself with new challenges and explore yourself and find out what you are good at and what areas you need to improve on. It will also help you to make more informed career decisions.
Is it for everyone or only students who have business ideas?
Everyone is welcome to participate in this event. You can bring your own challenge or choose one of the challenges
that will be presented on the first night of the event.
Does it require an overnight stay and will an accommodation be provided?
The days will end at 10-11 PM so no overnight stay is needed. Attendees are responsible for booking their own transportation and lodging (if needed)
What does the ticket include?
– Meals over the course of the weekend
– Amazing team of mentors and support
– An opportunity to connect with startup co-founders, leaders, developers and entrepreneurs
– Free internet and coffee throughout the weekend
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
BEST Lab
Bergeron Entrepreneurs in Science and Technology
Lassonde School of Engineering – York University
bestlassonde@gmail.com