Welcome to The Launch Pad!
The Launch Pad is a career guidance component of the Toppel Career Center, providing resources to entrepreneurs and inventors at the University of Miami. We serve students and alumni from every school and college to support our community of entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurship is a career choice; a career that you can start now!
Our team is available Monday through Saturday to help you with:
learning business basics
WeMedia Pitch It Competition
Attention Launch Pad Members:
The Launch Pad is proud to be partnering with WeMedia (wemedia.com) to help sponsor and promote the WeMedia Miami ’10 Elevator Pitch Competition where two ventures will receive $25,000 in funding. There are only 12 days left to register your business and submit your venture for the contest. This could be a great opportunity for some of you looking for seed or growth financing and we hope that you will participate.
Results of The Launch Pad's First Annual Elevator Pitch Competition Announced
The Launch Pad's First Annual Elevator Pitch Competition was a great experience for everyone involved!
The student grand prize winner was Sean Goldfaden of www.wayfarerworld.com and 1st prize was Christopher Lee Bennett from Oygo Sound.
In the alumnus category, the grand prize winner was Matt Rosenberg of GameJuice and the 1st prize winner was Rodolfo Saccoman from www.MyTherapyJournal.com.
Global Entrepreneurship Week: November 16, 2009 through November 20, 2009 was an incredible success!
The Launch Pad of the University of Miami is celebrating Global Entrepreneurship with events from November 16, 2009 through November 20, 2009. This year’s educational sessions, keynote speakers and unforgettable special events will certainly create an amazing forum for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Global Entrepreneurship Week is a growing movement of innovative thinkers promoting entrepreneurial activities worldwide (administered by the Public Policy Institute in Washington D.C.), committed to inspiring young people to embrace innovation, imagination and creativity. Last year, The Launch Pad was the #1 US Global Entrepreneurship Week partner (out of 1174 participants).
The Launch Pad receives Kauffman Foundation Planning Grant!
'The Launch Pad' provides hands-on guidance to all students on an entrepreneurial career path
(KANSAS CITY, Mo.) Oct. 1, 2009 – The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation announced today that it has awarded a grant to the University of Miami to help sustain and grow The Launch Pad, a unique career center program that helps students explore and launch new firms while they are still in school, before they have other commitments such as mortgages and full-time jobs.
Programs and Initiatives
ONE-ON-ONE CONSULTATIONS: Trained advisers are available Monday through Saturday to assist in the development of your idea or project. From finding your target market to negotiating term sheets, we provide the tools that help you to assess situations and make expert decisions. Our team members are equipped with backgrounds and expertise in law, business marketing and management, as well as other areas to offer direction to start-up ventures in a wide variety of industries. To schedule a consultation, you must have a profile in order to fill out a Venture Assessment Form (VAF).
The Launch Pad Fellows Program
We are pleased to announce The Launch Pad Fellows Program, providing current students and recent graduates with opportunities to gain first-hand experience in preparation for future careers in entrepreneurship.
Scheduling an Appointment: Member Profile vs. Venture Assessment
Once your profile is accepted then you may fill out a Venture Assessment Form to receive help with your business or non-profit, even if you just have an idea.
To become a member of our website and gain access to our network of budding and existing entrepreneurs, we ask that you please fill out a member profile. The member profile is available for others to see, as it speaks about you as a person. We want to make it clear that this is NOT where your ideas are mentioned, this section is open to other members of The Launch Pad, so the information in this section is shared.
Venture Assessment Form
Before we can help you, we would like you to tells us more about your idea or venture.
Venture Assessment FormAfter you complete and submit the form, a member of The Launch Pad team will contact you to set up an appointment.
Upcoming events
- Branding and Differentiation - Center For Non-Profit Management(2 days)
- Forming the Entity - Entrepreneurship Practicum(3 days)
- Structuring Ownership - Entrepreneurship Practicum(10 days)
- Funding Post: Miami VC and Angel Investing Event(16 days)
- Building a Web Presence - Entrepreneurship Practicum(17 days)
- Banking and Credit - Entrepreneurship Practicum(24 days)
