Haslam College of Business - Graduate Entrepreneurship Programs

MBA Concentration in Entrepreneurship & Innovation

In the E&I concentration, we go out of the classroom to “learn by doing” in applied environments to help individuals think critically about building a business. The top 10 reasons for our program are:

1. Prepare for the gulf between start-up and running a business. Starting a business is tough. Building the business is even tougher. The UT MBA gives you the skills to build that business.
2. Build a strong network with entrepreneurs & business people. Being an entrepreneur can be a lonely journey, but we have great faculty and regional entrepreneurs ready to mentor you and help you build your business support network.
3. Start a business while in school. This isn’t a course with a test – we really want you to start a business while in this program. Are you ready to actually start a business? Are you ready to become part of a start-up business?
4. Innovate within a creative problem-solving framework. Learning to see things others miss is a critical skill all business builders need, and is at the heart of our applied learning experiences.
5. Learn to fail to succeed. There is no gentle way of saying it: you have to learn how to fail and learn from those failures to succeed. This is a safe place to do just that, and learn how to go forward and pivot directions – fail forward fast.
6. Learn outside of the classroom. You will walk in the footsteps of successful business and social cause entrepreneurs and learn how to make real business decisions.
7. Learn to think like a General Manager in approaching problems. You can try problem-solving yourself, but the critical skills you learn in everything from marketing to finance to supply chain will greatly accelerate your business-building journey.
8. Find your business partner. You need a co-founder, and UT is a great place to find that person for your business, or become the co-founder of a business.
9. Focus on phases of an entrepreneur’s life. Our curriculum is designed around the five phases of your entrepreneurial life: seeing things others miss, building a business model, strategy development and execution, growth, and exit.
10. Entrepreneur Fellowships are available. Come to UT and start your business while in school, working 10 hours a week on your business, and receive up to $30,000 to pay for your education.

MBA Entrepreneurship Graduate Fellows

The MBA Entrepreneurship Graduate Fellows recruits outstanding full-time MBA students to start a technology-enabled business while pursuing their degree. Through coursework, applied learning experiences, faculty collaboration and mentorship, aspiring student entrepreneurs will develop the skills and connections to successfully launch their new ventures.

Benefits

MBA Entrepreneurship Graduate Fellows receive:

• $10,000 scholarship award for three semesters
• Access to experienced faculty and entrepreneur mentors
• Opportunity to work on your own business in lieu of an outside MBA summer internship

Requirements

MBA Entrepreneurship Graduate Fellows must:

• Maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA in MBA coursework each semester
• Complete appropriate coursework for the entrepreneur and innovation concentration in the MBA program
• Achieve satisfactory progress toward his or her business goals as defined jointly by the student and assigned faculty mentor upon acceptance of the award
• Not accept employment unrelated to his or her business (including graduate assistantships or other job opportunities inside or outside the university) during the semesters that the scholarship award is received
• Submit any summer internship other than working on the student’s own business to be approved in advance by the Entrepreneur Fellow faculty mentor.

Application Process

All applications must be submitted electronically to MBAAdvantage@utk.edu with “MBA Entrepreneur Fellow” in the subject line and include the following attachments:

• Statement of Interest: Include a description of your business idea and progress to date. This should be no more than one page in length and be representative of your pitch when communicating your business idea to external audiences.
• Resume

Special emphasis will be given to aspiring entrepreneurs with previous start-up experience and who desire to start a technology enabled business while in school. Finalists will be asked to participate in a personal interview. Finalists must be admitted to the MBA program to be considered for this award.

Deadline: February 1
Initial selection: On or before April 1