The fifth annual Allegany County Startup Collegiate Competition will take place on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Teams of students from Alfred University, Alfred State, and Houghton College will pitch their ideas for creating a business to a panel of judges with a chance to win cash prizes.
The fifth annual Allegany County Startup Collegiate Competition will take place on Saturday, April 12, 2025. Teams of students from Alfred University, Alfred State, and Houghton College will pitch their ideas for creating a business to a panel of judges with a chance to win cash prizes.
The competition will be held from 1-4 p.m. and is hosted by Alfred State College, which also hosted the event in 2023. Alfred University served as host for the inaugural 2021 competition, as well as the 2022 and 2024 events. Last year, teams from Alfred University took first and second place.
This year’s competition will be streamed live from 1-3 p.m.
Teams of undergraduate students have been working hard to identify a business need in our area and how they would solve a problem for their customers and turn that into a viable business. Students have had the guidance of knowledgeable industry and academic mentors along the way.
The mission of the competition is to:
- Bring together students from the three Allegany County colleges to work together to move the local economy forward.
- Cultivate the entrepreneurial spirit in the student population.
- Retain the talent of young professionals in Allegany County.
- Help the growth of area small businesses.
- Provide real-world experiential learning opportunities for students.
Teams of students present their business ideas, with the winning plans determined by a panel of judges. There is $8,500 in cash prizes available; top winners will receive cash toward the launch of their business as well as in-kind donations of professional services. Undergraduate students of any major are welcome to participate.
The competition is a partnership of Alfred University, Alfred State College, Houghton University and IncubatorWorks. It is made possible through a committee of partners from Alfred University, Houghton University, Alfred State College, IncubatorWorks, Allegany County, Western NY Wilds, the ACCORD Corporation, and the Western New York Incubator Network. Event sponsors are The Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology (CACT) at Alfred University, the Alfred University College of Business, Alfred State College, and Sealing Devices Inc.