UO students to challenge for Venture Quest business plan awards

EUGENE, Ore. -- (June 2, 2009) -- Entrepreneurial undergraduate students at the University of Oregon will present venture ideas and compete for $1,500 in cash prizes at the Lundquist Center for Entrepreneurship's Venture Quest business plan competition beginning at 9 a.m. on Friday, June 5. The event will be held in room 211 and 212 of the Lillis Business Complex, 955 E. 13th Ave. The event is free and open to the public. Awards will be presented at 12:15 p.m.

The competition will include four teams of business major and three teams of business minor undergraduate students. Venture business concepts for the competing teams include innovative snowboarding accessories, camera stabilization systems, a childcare and mentoring service; and several web-based applications including key advertising agency personnel matching service, a library for action video effects, and a job search service to establish an expanded digital presence.

Each team will give a 15-minute presentation of its venture plan to a judging panel of top local area business professionals. Following the presentation, each team will face a "live fire" 15-minute question-and-answer session during which members must further clarify and defend their plan. Teams are judged on the quality of their plans, presentations, the plan's investment potential, and their ability to handle the judges' inquiries effectively.

There are two separate Venture Quest competition events held during the school year. The fall term event is for Masters of Business Administration (MBA) students. The spring term competition is for undergraduate majors and undergraduate minors. The Venture Quest competition is one element of the Lundquist College of Business's experiential learning opportunities for students.

About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of the 62 leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Contact: Julie Brown, 541-346-3185, julbrown@uoregon.edu
Link: www.lcb.uoregon.edu/lce

###