Opportunities

A one-semester cohort program built specifically for BU first-years, teaching design thinking, customer discovery, prototyping, and pitching, with a $500 seed grant and a HUB co-curricular unit. The First-Year Innovation Fellowship is a semester-long experiential program designed to help first-year students turn an idea into something real. Fellows get personalized coaching and hands-on practice in design thinking, customer discovery, prototyping, and pitching, alongside a $500 seed grant to move an idea forward. The cohort meets weekly on Tuesdays from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., and the program now carries 1 HUB Co-Curricular unit in Creativity & Innovation. It is open only to first-year students (Class of 2030) and does not accept transfer students, but welcomes every major and background with no prior experience needed. Applying takes three steps: create a one-time Insiders Profile, record a short video answering a few prompts, and wait for a decision. For BUPB members: a strong fit for incoming first-years who want to build a plant-based project — a campus dining campaign, a food product, an awareness initiative — with structure and a small budget behind it. Eligibility: First-year BU students only (Class of 2030). Transfer students are not eligible. All majors and backgrounds welcome; no prior experience necessary. Tags: BU, On campus, First-years only, Funding, HUB credit, Cohort, Beginner friendly, Deadline soon

$500 plus mentorship for student projects tackling sustainability challenges on the BU campus, aligned to the BU Climate Action Plan — one of the closest funding fits for plant-based campus work. A partnership between Innovate@BU and BU Sustainability, these seed grants fund student projects that address sustainability challenges at Boston University. Recipients get $500 and mentorship to carry the project out. Projects must align with the BU Climate Action Plan and address at least one of five areas: Climate Change Resilience, Emissions and Energy, Education and Engagement, Environmental Justice, or Zero Waste. Applications are judged on impact on BU campuses and the community, connection to the Climate Action Plan, clarity of planning and implementation, originality, and feasibility. For BUPB members: this is probably the single best-fit funding source on this page for the group's core work. Plant-based dining advocacy maps cleanly onto Emissions and Energy and Education and Engagement, and a food waste or plant-forward menu project fits Zero Waste directly. All fields of study and experience levels are welcome. Eligibility: Current BU students from all fields of study and experience levels. Tags: BU, On campus, Funding, Sustainability, Climate, Mentorship, Beginner friendly, Verify dates

$500 plus mentorship for student projects addressing campus wellbeing across seven dimensions, including physical and environmental wellbeing. Run jointly by BU Student Wellbeing and Innovate@BU, these seed grants support students launching projects that address wellbeing challenges on campus. Recipients receive $500 and mentorship. Funded projects should map to one of seven dimensions of wellbeing: emotional, physical, environmental, social, intellectual, financial, or spiritual. Scalable solutions that could benefit other higher education institutions, not just BU, are explicitly encouraged. Applications are evaluated on problem and customer identification, alignment with Student Wellbeing's mission, feasibility, and potential impact. For BUPB members: a plant-based nutrition education project, an affordable healthy eating initiative, or work on dining hall food quality would each have a credible path here through the physical, environmental, or financial wellbeing dimensions. Worth applying alongside the Sustainability grant with the same project framed differently. Eligibility: Current BU students. Innovations from all fields of study and experience levels welcome. Tags: BU, On campus, Funding, Health & Wellbeing, Nutrition, Mentorship, Beginner friendly, Opening soon

A free five-module online course that pressure-tests whether the problem you want to solve is real, specific, and urgent — the recommended first step before applying to any funded Innovate@BU program. The Problem Validator exists because, as Innovate@BU puts it, too many student founders discover late that the problem they set out to solve was not as real, specific, or urgent as they assumed. The course walks through five short, self-paced modules: Your Innovative Insight, on why you care about this area; Breaking Down Opportunity Domains, on splitting a broad topic into investigable pieces; Defining the Problem, on who experiences it and what makes it painful; Exploring Alternatives, on current solutions and workarounds; and Sizing the Opportunity, on how widespread and severe it really is. Finishing produces a personalized problem statement summary and action plan that you can submit directly to programs like the Innovation Pathway. For BUPB members: the lowest-commitment item on this page and a sensible starting point. An afternoon here makes every other application on this list stronger. Eligibility: Open access through the Innovate@BU platform. No stated restrictions. Tags: Virtual, Free, Self-paced, Beginner friendly, Low commitment, No deadline, Prep for other programs

A free, cohort-based learning program run by the Brown Alt Protein Project and BU Plant-Based for the fall 2026 cohort. Open to students from any background — no prior experience needed.

A self-paced venture accelerator for BU students and recent alumni, pairing you with a Founder-in-Residence and non-dilutive grant funding as you take an idea from problem validation to a launched company or nonprofit. Innovation Pathway is Innovate@BU's flagship venture-building program, open to any BU student or recent alum with an idea worth testing — for-profit or nonprofit. The program runs on a stage-gate model with three phases. In Walk (roughly 2–4 months), you work with a Founder-in-Residence to find problem/solution fit, experimenting with possible solutions and building deep stakeholder knowledge. In Run, you are matched with an industry-specific expert coach to build a launchable version of your product and define a go-to-market strategy. In Fly, the venture launches and scales with real customers, supported by an expanded mentor network focused on revenue and sustainable impact. Teams advance by presenting to a monthly investment panel — a 10-minute pitch followed by 15 minutes of Q&A — and receive written feedback within a week of the decision. Advancing from Walk to Run unlocks a $1,500 non-dilutive grant, and Run to Fly unlocks $3,000. Before applying, candidates complete a four-step preparation guide covering problem validation, competitive landscape, opportunity sizing, and pitch development, then meet with a Founder-in-Residence for feedback ahead of the panel interview. For BUPB members: this is the most direct route on campus to fund a plant-based, food systems, or alt protein venture. Teams need at least one BU-affiliated member, and international students are welcome. Eligibility: Current BU undergraduates, master's students, and PhD candidates, plus alumni who graduated within the past year. Open to all schools and majors. International students are welcome. Teams must include at least one BU-affiliated member. Both for-profit and nonprofit ventures qualify. Tags: BU, On campus, Entrepreneurship, Funding, Mentorship, Rolling deadline, Open to alumni, International students welcome

A paid 10-week summer incubator that splits your time between interning at a social impact organization and building your own social venture, with a $10,000 stipend. The Enlight Fellowship is a 10-week summer incubator for students who want to work on social impact from both sides at once. Fellows spend part of their time interning at a social impact organization and the rest developing their own social venture with support from Innovate@BU, backed by a $10,000 stipend. There are two placement routes: let Innovate@BU match you with a partner organization, or secure your own qualifying organization. Note that the internship component itself is unpaid — the fellowship stipend is the compensation — and housing is not included. For BUPB members: one of the few campus opportunities that funds a full summer of social impact work. A plant-based food access nonprofit, a sustainable food policy group, or a food justice organization would all be plausible placements, and the venture track pairs naturally with a food systems idea. Eligibility: BU undergraduate and graduate students across schools. Specific criteria are confirmed when the application cycle opens. Tags: BU, Paid, Summer, Social Impact, Full time, Stipend, Applications closed

BU's flagship $85K pitch competition, with a dedicated Social Impact track alongside the general track, open to solo founders and teams at any stage of an idea. The New Venture Competition awards $85,000 in prizes to current BU students and alumni who graduated within the past year. Beyond the money, Innovate@BU describes it as providing coaching on your idea and your pitch, help building founder and team skills, and media exposure. There are two tracks. The General Track is open to for-profit ventures from any sector. The Social Impact Track is for ventures aimed at large-scale positive change, particularly those serving underserved or disadvantaged populations. Each track pays out $20,000 for first, $10,000 for second, $6,000 for third, and a $500 Audience Choice Award. Solo founders and teams are both eligible, no prior entrepreneurship experience is required, and early-stage ideas are welcome — you do not need a fully developed product to enter. Applications are judged on idea potential, clarity, feasibility, and fit with the chosen track. International students are eligible if actively enrolled. For BUPB members: the Social Impact Track is the obvious home for a plant-based venture, and the low bar to entry makes this worth pitching even at the napkin-sketch stage. Eligibility: Current BU students and alumni who graduated within the past year. International students are welcome if actively enrolled. Solo founders and teams both eligible. No prior experience required; early-stage ideas welcome. Tags: BU, On campus, Competition, Prize money, Social Impact, Open to alumni, Beginner friendly, Opening soon

A free, cohort-based learning program run by the Brown Alt Protein Project and BU Plant-Based for the fall 2026 cohort. Open to students from any background — no prior experience needed.

A 10-week, full-time summer intensive with a stipend of up to $10,000, twice-weekly workshops, mentorship, and a closing investor pitch — for ventures ready to move fast. The Summer Accelerator is Innovate@BU's most intensive venture program: 10 weeks of full-time work on an early-stage venture, supported by a stipend of up to $10,000 so participants can commit their summer to it rather than take another job. The structure combines twice-weekly workshops with ongoing mentorship, building toward a final investor pitch event. Both for-profit and nonprofit ventures are welcome, and eligibility extends to current BU students and alumni who graduated within the past year. This is a step up in commitment from the Innovation Pathway. It suits a venture that already has some validation behind it and needs concentrated time to build. For BUPB members: if a plant-based product, service, or nonprofit idea has already been tested through the Innovation Pathway, this is the natural next escalation. Eligibility: Current BU students and alumni who graduated within the past year. For-profit or nonprofit ventures welcome. Tags: BU, On campus, Paid, Summer, Full time, Accelerator, Stipend, Applications closed

BU's campus-wide innovation and entrepreneurship hub — free coaching, workspace, events, and a portfolio of funded programs open to every student regardless of major or experience. Innovate@BU is the university's central home for entrepreneurship and innovation, open to all BU students regardless of school, major, background, or experience level. The IDG Capital Student Innovation Center on Commonwealth Ave, known as the BUild Lab, gives students a physical place to work, prototype, and meet collaborators. Beyond the space, Innovate@BU runs free office hours with coaches, the Experts-in-Residence mentorship program, an Innovation & Entrepreneurship minor, and annual events including IDEA Con and Innovators' Night, which awarded $80,000 in prizes in 2026. A weekly newsletter circulates event invitations, funding and internship opportunities, and happenings across the Boston startup scene. For BUPB members: this is the front door to every other Innovate@BU opportunity on this page. Joining the Insiders list is the single highest-leverage step, because most of the funded programs announce their application windows there first. Eligibility: All Boston University students, any school or major, any experience level. Some individual programs extend to alumni who graduated within the past year. Tags: BU, On campus, Free, No application, Entrepreneurship, Coaching, Workspace

A twice-monthly virtual discussion club run by Switch4Good's Campus Action Now, unpacking how food, culture, health, and politics intersect in the media — open to students at any level with no background required. CAN Media Club is a national, virtual discussion community hosted by Switch4Good's Campus Action Now program. Members meet twice a month to look critically at how food, culture, health, and politics show up in media — advertising, journalism, documentaries, and social platforms — through open dialogue and critical reflection in a space built to be safe and inclusive. The current syllabus runs across six themes, one per month: Dairy in Media, Health & Nutrition, Children & Dairy, Environment, Culture & Politics, and the Future of Dairy & Food Systems. Each theme gets two sessions — the first orients the group to the topic, and the second goes deeper into discussion. Sessions are designed for people with minimal background in food systems as well as returning members, so no prior knowledge is expected. For BUPB members: this is a low-commitment way to build fluency in the arguments and media literacy behind plant-based advocacy, and to connect with students at other campuses doing similar work. Campus Action Now has recruited 223 students from 31 schools as of Spring 2026, including Northeastern, the University of Michigan, and UC Berkeley. Switch4Good also offers related opportunities worth exploring alongside the club — remote internships and service-learning placements, campus dining advocacy support via the Climate Healthy Campus Handbook, and free evidence-based materials for student organizations. Eligibility: Open to high school and university students nationwide, as well as professionals and community members. No affiliation, application, or background knowledge required. Tags: Virtual, Nationwide, Beginner friendly, Low commitment, Plant-based advocacy, Media literacy, Networking, Rolling