This year, we participated on August 30 and 31 at the Măgurele Summer School of Science and Technology through the Entrepreneurship Module and Contest, led by our colleague, Roxana Lupașcu, Innovation and Business Development Expert.
There weres two intense days, filled with new information and creativity for the students, who challenged their imagination by applying the new concepts they had learned during the module.
Throughout the event, besides the information conveyed to the students, they also enjoyed the presence of guests from the MSP community, who either encouraged them or provided advice and suggestions for their projects.
What happened on the first day?
The event kicked off with motivational and encouraging remarks from Mădălin Ioniță, the Executive Director of the Măgurele Science Park Association. He emphasized the importance of paying attention to the value of research products or services early on, even during adolescence. His speech aimed to inspire students to focus on entrepreneurship and research.
“Your decision as students to dedicate yourselves to developing a business or engaging in research in the future can be influenced by the information provided in an entrepreneurship module like this.” — Mădălin Ioniță, Executive Director, Măgurele Science Park Association.
The day continued with a presentation by Roxana Lupașcu, who, along with delivering dedicated and passionate information to the students, brought valuable guests to the stage of the Aula at the Faculty of Physics. These guests included Emil Niță (founder of Steady Cut and winner of LVIB 2024) and Dragoș Butufei, who mentored all the participants equally and patiently throughout the module. Together with Roxana, he guided the students from the team formation stage and the actual project work, all the way through to the final judging phase.
The day wrapped up with a DryRun session, where students pitched their projects and received questions and feedback from the module participants regarding their work.
What happened on the second day?
The second day began with renewed energy at the Aula of the Faculty of Physics on the Măgurele platform, where the students quickly resumed working on their projects, guided by the feedback they had received the previous day.
A highlight of the day was a talk by Dragoș Butufei, who shared his entrepreneurial journey with the participants, discussing what motivated him and how he identified his business’s target audience. This moment offered valuable insights and inspiration for the students.
Following applause, the students got back to fine-tuning their projects. Later, they were randomly selected to present their work in front of the audience, concluding with the final project presentations.
The judging panel consisted of:
- Roxana Lupașcu – Innovation and business development expert
- Dragoș Butufei – Founder of Doctor Tom
- Bogdan Popovici – Researcher at INFIN-HH and coordinator of MSciTeh 2024
After the students presented their projects, the judges deliberated to determine the winners. During this time, Adrian Rotaru, founder of Seedpods and winner of LVIB 2023, was invited to speak. He shared his entrepreneurial experiences, discussing how his business idea emerged and how technology can contribute to environmental protection.
At the end of the day, the participants received applause and participation certificates, along with congratulations for their dedication and involvement. The award ceremony took place on 3th of September, marking the event with a mixture of emotions and suspense as the winners were announced.
We once again congratulate the winning teams and wish them much success in the future:
- 1st Place – Yapuccino
- 2nd Place – ONTime
- 3rd Place – Geo Safe
- 4th Place – Pills & Deals
- 5th Place – Plasma Vision
- 6th Place – Alfa Toc
- 7th Place – Sigma Sports
Below, we share Roxana’s reflections, which best summarize what the students developed and applied during these two adventurous and emotional days.
“Through this competition, we wanted to encourage young entrepreneurs to express their thoughts and turn their dreams into viable business plans. Each participant who went through the entrepreneurship module was part of a team, generated ideas, discovered ways to assess whether an idea has the potential to become a successful business. I stimulated them to investigate the business concept validation process and develop their entrepreneurial thinking. We hope that we have contributed to the development of entrepreneurial skills, such as innovation and creativity, adaptability, leadership, risk management, planning and organization, global vision, social responsibility, essential aspects that contribute to success in the business world. Maybe, in a few years we will hear about them in the top of the successful unicorns! We thank everyone who joined us in this event, from the guests, organizers and students, and we look forward to the next edition where we hope to bring as much excitement to the hearts of the students.”
We thank everyone who joined us in this event, from guests, to organizers and students, and we look forward to seeing you again at the next edition where we hope to bring as much excitement to the hearts of students.
