Pitch Dingman Competition Boosts Prize Funding to $65K, Seeks Applicants

Applications are now being accepted for the University of Maryland’s “Shark Tank”-style event for student entrepreneurs, the Pitch Dingman Competition.

Undergraduate and graduate students from all majors are invited to compete for a record $65,000 in startup money—doubled from previous years, thanks to a generous gift from David MBA ’05 and Robyn Quattrone—and exclusive access to venture development resources.

This year, the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship is expanding the virtual competition by adding three competition tracks:

• The David and Robyn Quattrone Venture Track for students with scalable ventures that already have traction (revenue, users, investment and/or grants).
• Main Street Track for small businesses with revenue and/or initial customers but not focused on scale.
• Fearless Ideas Track for students who do not yet have a developed venture. It challenges students to improve or solve a specific problem through venture creation. This year’s challenge will be released soon.

The online application for the first two tracks will close at 11:59 p.m. Feb. 12. Pitch Dingman Competition semifinals will be held on April 16, and the final competition on May 4, with finalists providing a live pitch streamed through a virtual platform in front of an expert panel of judges and a live, online audience.

For more information on the Pitch Dingman Competition, including eligibility, timeline and breakdown of prizes, visit go.umd.edu/pitchdingman.

Questions? Contact the Dingman Center team at dingman@rhsmith.umd.edu.