The startup spirit at the college level is strong and motivated. According to the Young Entrepreneurial Council, nearly 90 percent of young people believe entrepreneurial education is important. Today’s technology has made launching a startup feasible with minimal capital. This lowers the barriers to entree and gives students the opportunity.
Through our work with Universities and Colleges across the state we see these institutions as the prime startup hubs for Kentucky.
As we stated above, the startup spirit is alive and strong in our students. Many college students have strong ambition, work ethic and drive which are required characteristics of a startup founder. Younger generations tend to see things through a new lens and can envision a different way of doing things. They grew up with technology from the start and do not know life without it. So while we may still remember life before technology took over, for young people it is all they know. This gives them a different perspective in functioning in everyday life.
Younger individuals are also more adept to take risk. For most, their responsibility is low and roots are not grounded. Most do not have a mortgage, family and bills to be concerned about in life. They have not had the time to climb the corporate ladder and risk leaving a job that they worked so hard to get. Startups are all about risk and it is why many individuals are not the founder type. The abundance of risk takers is not lacking at the university level.
The founding team is a crucial part to the success of a startup. Being immersed into a university or college environment students are surrounded by similar minds as well as minds with various skills and interests. A diverse set of skills is a requirement to have the capability of building a startup. Having access to individuals with various skill sets gives students an upper hand that others do not typically have.
So if Kentucky has numerous universities and colleges everywhere, what are we missing to get on the startup map?
Universities and college students still report the lack of entrepreneurial support and resources despite the strong efforts of our professors. To solve this we need to push for mentorship programs, experiential opportunities, cross campus collaboration and dedicated work space that foster teams.
At KY Pitch, we are focused on working with our Kentucky universities and colleges to drive these efforts forward. We have strong and ambitious goals for the future but we know we do not have all the answers, nor can we do it by ourselves. We want to hear from all of you and collaborate together to make Kentucky a place where startups can not only launch, but thrive.
Reach out to us at [email protected] and in classic startup fashion… let’s grab coffee!
