Starting your own business from the ground up is definitely an incredible feat, more so when you are a student. Student entrepreneurs have to face the heat of building their businesses and remained committed to their education.
Channeling back the profits to reinvest into the business, creating valuable connections and double-down on marketing are just some of the things that are running in student entrepreneurs’ minds all the time.
To aid these young entrepreneurs, Entrepreneurs’ Organisation (EO) will host Global Student Entrepreneur Award (GSEA), a premier awards program for students who own or operate a business while attending college or university, on the 15th of February 2023.
Unlike other competitions, GSEA looks for students who exhibit the resolute spirit of an entrepreneur. GSEA’s unique scoring rubric rewards a competitor’s resilience, adaptability and passion as they overcome the obstacles of entrepreneurship more so than the financial performance of their companies.
Students who demonstrate the ability to navigate the complexity of starting a business will be crowned champions.
“Participating in this competition has really helped Luminary grow to the next level. It helped us build our credibility,” said Wong Shy Kit, the winner of the Global Social Impact Award of GSEA 2020 Chairman’s Award.
Wong Shy Kit, Founder and CEO of Luminary, an off-grid and autonomous system to provide basic necessities such as accessible clean water and electricity in rural areas, has mentioned that participating in GSEA aided him in forming once-in-a-lifetime relationships with his mentors and EO committees.
“Being mentored by top entrepreneurs in Malaysia has enriched student entrepreneurs’ journey as these mentors take the time off their busy schedules to share personal experiences and thought processes to guide and care for our business and us as persons,” said Wong Shy Kit who is also an associate consultant with Bain & Company.
Speaking about the importance of encouraging youth entrepreneurship, Raymond Chou, President of EO Malaysia, said, “When this global competition started in 1998, it was founded to cultivate business innovation from a young age.”
Raymond elaborated that today the competition has produced many young ideas and talents from Malaysia to compete at the global stage, and this brings out the spirit of entrepreneurship from an early age.
“In 2017, Malaysia got second place. We would really like to see Malaysia one day winning the first prize. It is truly inspiring to see innovation and creativity coming from the young minds” he added.
It is truly inspiring to see innovation and creativity coming from the young minds.
Raymond Chou, President of EO Malaysia
In addition to networking and mentoring, global finalists have the opportunity to win cash prizes of up to $25,000 in cash and international exposure.
To apply for the GSEA competition, visit: GSEA
For more information, please contact Anitha Campos at anita.campos@eonetwork.org.my
