VentureWorks Programs

VanArsdale Business Pitch Competition

All students of SUNY Geneseo are eligible to participate in the annual Geneseo VanArsdale Business Pitch Competition. This event allows all students on campus to pitch their new business ideas in front of a panel of expert entrepreneurial judges. 

The VanArsdale Business Pitch Competition celebrates small businesses and social enterprises. Based on the number of entries, categories may include products, services, software, social, storefront, and family businesses.

Each student is given 8 minutes to pitch their business and is subject to a 6-minute Q&A period with our judges. The Judges will score the presentation and Q&A session based on criteria such as idea creativity, market opportunity, product differentiation, business model, financial feasibility, and business sustainability. 

Cash prizes will be awarded to winners for starting their businesses, with the overall winner receiving the VanArsdale Prize of $2,500. 

If you would like more information, please click here.

To register, please use the following form: https://forms.gle/YSmHfFDvVqR3fSAa6

NYBPC, Finger Lakes Regionals 

Geneseo students enrolled in the VentureWorks program compete annually in the Finger Lakes Regionals of the New York Business Plan Competition (NYBPC). This is a competition for both undergraduate and graduate students.  Preliminary rounds are hosted locally by the University of Rochester.  Participating colleges and universities include UR, RIT, St John Fisher College, Hobart William Smith, Nazareth, SUNY Brockport, SUNY Geneseo, etc.  This competition occurs annually in mid-April. The top twelve teams from our region, who are selected as finalists, advance to the statewide competition in Albany. 

NYBPC, State Finals, Albany

Finalists from each of the 10 major regional competitions (Capital Region, Central New York, North Country, Mohawk Valley, Finger Lakes, Western New York, Southern Tier, Mid-Hudson, New York City, and Long Island) advance to the statewide competition of the New York Business Plan Competition(NYBPC), hosted by SUNY Polytechnic in Albany.  There, up to 120 teams go head-to-head for more than $225,000 in cash and in-kind prizes.  Since the commencement of the VentureWorks program, Geneseo has sent between 3-7 teams each year to the state finals with numerous awards won.