A Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management program supported by CREA

The Johnson Entrepreneurship Track builds on the MBA curriculum to support students in development of their business ideas through an immersive 2-year program geared towards helping entrepreneurially-minded MBA students launch new businesses.

Entrepreneurs in Residence

The Entrepreneur in Residence program guides Johnson MBA students in their entrepreneurial pursuits helping them connect with entrepreneurship programs, and funding.

Meet the EIRs and request a meeting. 

Johnson Summer Startup Accelerator 

Johnson Summer Startup Accelerator is a 10-week summer intensive that will continue to momentum of student startups finishing their spring semester. Supported by the numerous Cornell and Ithaca Entrepreneurial resources, teams will participate in weekly workshops and regularly meet with Entrepreneurs in Residence. The summer program is open to graduate student-led teams at the SC Johnson College of Business that want to spend their summer working on a startup. 

Learn more about the Johnson Summer Startup Accelerator. 

Funding and Fellowship Opportunities

The Professor Vrinda Kadiyali Student Entrepreneur Fund

The Professor Vrinda Kadiyali Student Entrepreneur Fund provides stipends to MBA students so they can continue building momentum with their startups while they participate in the Johnson Summer Startup Accelerator between their first and second years. The stipend empowers MBA students to stay focused on their startups, while reducing the financial pressures they may face to accept a paid corporate internship.   

The Kadiyali Fund gives MBA students the opportunity to move their startups forward with coaching, connections, and training from the Johnson Summer Startup Accelerator—a cutting-edge program dedicated to helping MBA students confidently accelerate the launch of their startups. 

Learn more about the Kadiyali Fund.

The Jonas Weil Entrepreneur Fellowship Fund

The Jonas Weil Entrepreneur Fellowship is a loan forgiveness program to assist students who pursue entrepreneurial ventures. It was established by a generous endowment gift from a distinguished alumnus and entrepreneur, Jonas Weil MBA ’59. The purposeof the fund is to assist Johnson students with substantial educational debt to pursue entrepreneurial careers that might otherwise need to be delayed. It provides eligible graduates with funding to help cover their regular student loan payments for up to a maximum repayment of $50,000 over 5 years. 

Learn more about the Jonas Weil Fund.

Applications are now open for the Jonas Weil Entrepreneur Fellowship Fund. Apply now.

Co-Curricular Activities

MBA students at Cornell University have the opportunity to take a number of courses based on their interests. Students interested in the entrepreneurship track can take entrepreneurial-focused courses to compliment their MBA experience. Entrepreneurship offerings include: Designing New Ventures, Entrepreneurial Strategy, Big Red Ventures, etc. Find the full list of entrepreneurship courses here.

Big Red Tech Strategy

Students work with Cornell PhDs to develop a monetization strategy for their research, Great hands on practice around strategy and business models.

Learn more about BRTS.

Big Red Ventures

Student run venture fund, that provides hands on experience in the venture capital space. Students are exposed to an investor’s thought process, which allows students to better understand startup financing.

Learn more about BRV.

Extra-Curricular and Networking Opportunities

Entrepreneurship Club

Providing a community of students looking  to start their own companies, and is a place for students to pool resources to further develop each other as founders.

Meetups and Speakers

Students should attend campus meetups and guest speakers. This is a great way to deepen knowledge around entrepreneurship and meet students in other disciplines.

Hackathons and Conferences

Interdisciplinary exposure that allows students to network with other programs, and depend their knowledge around specific industries. These events will allow entrepreneurs to connect and understand key technical insights in select fields.

Rev Networking Nights

Students will receive exposure to the broader Ithaca startup community at Rev: Ithaca Startup Works.

Other Startup Resources

• The Center for Regional Economic Advancement at Cornell University fuels economic growth and diversity in Upstate New York through entrepreneurship and innovation.
• The eLab Student Accelerator at Cornell University launches 8-12 real businesses each year.
• Rev: Ithaca Startup Works is a business incubator and co-working space located in downtown Ithaca.
• Entrepreneurship at Cornell is a diverse, university-wide program that finds and fosters the entrepreneurial spirit in participants from every college, every field, and in every stage of life.
• The Blackstone LaunchPad powered by Techstars network helps students succeed in entrepreneurship and in their careers.

Johnson Entrepreneurship Track News