Koch saw the pitch competition in Saint Louis as a way to gain valuable experience.
“Taking advantage of as many pitching opportunities as you can is important as a student entrepreneur,” said Koch.
And while winning prize money is always an alluring possibility, she notes, that’s just part of the draw for students who compete in such competitions. “Pitching, especially in front of big crowds, is an opportunity to get your idea in front of other people and sharpen certain details of it that you might not have thought of before.”
Koch received financial support from the Innovate Carolina Dreamers-Who-Do Program. The program is designed to help students at UNC-Chapel Hill delve into real-world entrepreneurial learning experiences.
“The Dreamers-Who-Do Program gives students who have innovative ideas the financial support they need to go and explore those ideas through experiential learning,” said Sheryl Waddell, director of the Innovate Carolina Global Network. “This program provides students opportunities that they wouldn’t otherwise receive to learn firsthand what it means to be an entrepreneur.”
Waddell notes that the program supports a wide range of learning activities for students, such as participation in conferences, events, competitions or student-led projects that allow students to put ideas into practice and develop an entrepreneurial mindset and skillset.