We've already discussed DECA, a great organization for anyone interested in entrepreneurship. However, there are many opportunities to learn and practice entrepreneurship in high school and middle school. Here are some examples:
- Diamond Challenge
The Diamond Challenge is a unique entrepreneurship challenge as it offers two competition tracks. A traditional business-focused track and a social venture in which the purpose is to solve a social problem. - The National Business Plan Competition
The NBPC has teams of students present business plans to a panel of industry professionals. Being a member of one of the top six teams means you get connections to the business community. - Kidbacker
What sets Kidbacker apart from other competitions is that it supports entrepreneurs starting at age 10 up to 23. Their goal is to support young individuals learning how to start and run a business. - Startup Weekend
Startup Weekend is sponsored by Google. This is a 54-hour competition in which you build a team, create a business plan, make a product and pitch it to a panel of judges. Search the website for an event near you. - Whiteboard Youth Adventures
This is a selective program that invests in startup companies run by high school students. Their Global Startup Challenge is a competition designed to develop startup skills and their Incubator is a program that will actually help startups with legal advice, office space, and more. - Catapult
Catapult is a program made for promising students willing to put in hard work. Whether you have a startup idea or are simply would like to gain entrepreneurship experience this could be the right opportunity for you. - MIT Launch
MIT Launch is different than other competitions as rather than asking you to build a business plan, they give you resources to create an actual start up. You start by creating a club at your school and go from there.
