The deadline for students from third level institutions with an innovative business idea, technology or solution to apply to this year’s 39th Enterprise Ireland Student Entrepreneur Awards, co-sponsored by Cruickshank, Grant Thornton and the Local Enterprise Offices is this Friday, 13 March 2020.
Finalists will be selected to compete for several awards such as the Cruickshank Intellectual Property High Achieving Merit Award, the Grant Thornton Emerging Business Award and the Local Enterprise Office ICT Award.
The overall winner will share in a €35,000 prize fund and receive mentoring from Enterprise Ireland to develop the commercial viability of their concept. The winners will also share in a €30,000 consultancy fund that will enable them to turn their ideas into a commercial reality.
while finalists also receive €30,000 worth of mentoring and support from business experts.
www.studententrepreneurawards.com Picture Clare Keogh
NUI Galway student Christopher McBrearty was named as last year’s Enterprise Ireland Student Entrepreneur of the Year for his cancer detection technology, NanoDetect – which provides an advanced PSA screening technology to GPs and hospitals that will improve detection rates of prostate cancer.
StomAssure, an implantable alternative to the current stoma treatment method developed by students in Cork Institute of Technology was awarded the Cruickshank Intellectual Property Award while the Grant Thornton Emerging Business Award went to Ulster University’s Jenny Gregg of Crafted Equestrian.
Crafted Equestrian creates products for the equestrian market that positively impact the lives of horses and their owners, a patented pressure relieving girth that prevents girth galls.
The Local Enterprise Office ICT award was presented to Micron Agritech from Technological Institute Dublin. Their innovative Tastail Kit allows farmers to instantly test their animals on-site for parasites, receiving an instant text with results, as opposed to the current 3-5 day waiting time.
The company has gone on to receive Competitive Start Funding from Enterprise Ireland and is now a High Potential Start-Up.
Richard Murphy, Manager of LEO Support, Policy & Co-ordination Unit, Enterprise Ireland said, “For close to forty years, the Student Entrepreneur Awards have been a hot bed for entrepreneurship in Ireland.
Last year’s awards attracted 1,000 high quality, innovative entries that identified challenges across a range of sectors and provided solutions to overcome them.
“Nurturing this talent and helping to foster that entrepreneurship is essential in driving Ireland’s global reputation in business.
“We are looking to support great ideas with fast growing export potential and if you have an idea with a strong commercial focus then the Student Entrepreneur Awards is the right competition for you. It could be the first step on the way to becoming a business leader in 2020.”
The award winners will be announced at a ceremony in NUI Galway on June 12th later this year.
