Applications for the Winter Cohort are now closed. Please check back in September.
Do you have a business idea? A problem you think needs to be solved in a new and innovative way? Maybe a policy solution or social impact strategy? Would you like to be a start-up founder?
90% of start-ups fail. There are a lot of reasons for this – but a common reason is that there is a mismatch between what founders create, and what a potential customer actually wants to use and pay for. This is why high-quality customer discovery is important.
Collide is a seven-week program designed to help give students the skills and confidence they need to validate their business ideas. We will help students learn to combat their fear of reaching out to potential customers, be aware of confirmation bias, and identify the skills they need to develop to run their own business.
Do you have an entrepreneurial spirit but you haven’t identified a problem? No worries! Complete the application form with any potential ideas you do have (there can be more than one), and we’ll help you narrow it down once the program starts.
This program runs twice per year – once in the fall, and once in the winter. The fall program is designed to be pre-introductory, while the winter sessions dive deeper into topics introduced in the fall. It is recommended that students participate in both sessions, however if you did not attend the fall session you can still apply for the winter (you may be required to review the fall content before the winter sessions start).
Note that there will be 1-2 hours of take-home content between sessions. This means the full commitment is 3-4 hours per week for the Content Stream, and 4-6 hours per week for the Mentorship Stream.
Spaces are limited! Please apply through the Expression of Interest form here by January 28th at 11:59pm.
Winter Session Streams
Content Stream: This stream is for students who want to learn about entrepreneurship generally, but may not be looking to move forward with their idea immediately. It is also suited for students who want to participate in the program but do not have time for the mentorship component (roughly 1-2 extra hours per week).
Mentorship Stream: For students who have a clear business idea they want to pursue in the near future. Students in this stream will receive light mentorship from external experts, and will be required to commit an extra 1-2 hours/week.
Mentorship structure:
Session Dates & Location
Offered on Tuesdays from 5-7pm beginning February 8th and ending March 29th 2022. Sessions will be virtual until the Dalhousie campus re-opens. When campus is open, sessions will be held in Room 2600 of the Killam Library.
Eligibility
Note: You are able to sign up as an individual or as a startup team. Please indicate which one you are in the application form.
Benefits to Students
Overview of Content
| February 8 (Week 1) | Intro, Teambuilding & Idea Formation |
| February 15 (Week 2) | Human-Centered Design |
| February 22 | Reading Week |
| March 1 (week 3) | Menteeship Workshop |
| March 8 (Week 4) | Legal Aspects |
| March 15 (Week 5) | Financial Forecasting |
| March 22 (Week 6) | Customer Discovery |
| March 29 (Week 7) | Marketing & Pitching |
The Mentorship Stream will also attend mentorship sessions on Monday February 14th, 28th, March 13th, and 27th. The timing of these sessions will be determined based on mentor availability.
Collide is made possible by the support of the Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency (ACOA)
