START UP Events and Workshops
Connect and establish skills to help you start or grow a business or self-employed career
START UP Events and Workshops
Find events matched to where you are on your founder journey —
- Discover - Find out what's possible and meet your community, no business idea needed!
- Develop - Build skills, test your idea, grow your confidence
- Launch - Register, trade, pitch - get ready to make it real
- Grow - Accelerate and scale your business, and grow beyond the university
All events are open to Newcastle students and graduates within two years of completing their degree.
Discover working for yourself
These events help you meet like-minded people, hear real founder stories, and find out whether entrepreneurship could be for you.
| Date & Time | Event | |
|---|---|---|
|
Fri 16 October 15:00-17:00 |
The Goals Club The Goals Club is a relaxed, cosy and supportive space for female and non-binary students interested in freelancing, side hustles, business ideas or creative projects. |
|
|
Tues 20 October 17:00-19:00 |
Community Social: The Tech Founder & Building in the Real World Our START UP Community Socials are relaxed, informal gatherings where you can meet new people, hear real founder stories and get inspired by what’s possible. |
|
|
Weds 21 October 14:00-15:30 |
Discover: Spotting Gaps and Finding Solutions This interactive workshop is for students who want to explore creative thinking, problem-solving and new ideas. You don’t need a business idea or any previous experience - just bring your curiosity! |
|
|
Tues 17 November 09:30-11:30 *Autumn Sprint |
Breakfast Meet & Greet Start the day with coffee, breakfast and new connections. Meet local start-up founders, people from regional support organisations and other entrepreneurial students and graduates in a relaxed, informal setting - a chance to swap stories, ask questions and discover the people and support available to help you take your next steps. |
|
|
Tues 17 November 14:00-15:30 *Autumn Sprint |
Discover: Is Freelancing for you? Curious about freelancing, but not sure if it’s for you? This reflective workshop gives you the chance to explore what freelance life can look like and consider whether it could be part of your future. You’ll think about your own skills, strengths, interests and preferred ways of working, and how these might connect with freelance opportunities. |
|
|
Tues 17 November 16:00-18:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Discover: Pitching Competition Want to practise pitching and public speaking without needing a business idea of your own? This fun, fast-paced pitch challenge is all about having a go, thinking on your feet and building confidence communicating ideas. |
|
|
Thu 19 November 14:00-16:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Discover: Explore your Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Join us for an Ecosystem Crawl and discover some of the places, people and resources you can tap into. |
|
|
Fri 4 December 15:00-17:00 |
The Goals Club The Goals Club is a relaxed, cosy and supportive space for female and non-binary students interested in freelancing, side hustles, business ideas or creative projects. |
|
|
Tues 8 December 17:00-19:00 |
START UP Community Social: Bootstrapping a Creative Service Business Our START UP Community Socials are relaxed, informal gatherings where you can meet new people, hear real founder stories and get inspired by what’s possible. |
Develop your skills
These events will help you build skills, test your idea and grow your confidence.
| Date & Time | Event | |
|---|---|---|
|
Tues 27 October 14:00-15:30 |
Develop: Market Research and Business Validation Stop guessing and start finding out. You’ve got an idea and you’re starting to develop it - but what do your customers and the market have to say? |
|
|
Thurs 29 October 14:00-15:30 |
Develop: Pitching Skills Being able to communicate an idea clearly can open up opportunities, whether you’re developing a business, exploring an opportunity or simply getting other people on board with your thinking. |
|
|
Weds 4 November 14:00-15:30 |
Develop: The Business Plan Game Can you build a business that works? In this fast-paced, team-based challenge, you’ll build and test a business idea in real time, making decisions about your customers, offer, marketing and finances along the way. |
|
|
Weds 18 November 12:00-13:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Develop: Define your Vision, Mission and Values What does success look like for you, and are you building a business that will actually take you there? In this interactive session, you’ll explore how purpose, vision, mission and values can give your business direction and help you make better decisions as it develops. |
|
|
Weds 18 November 10:00-12:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Prototyping SOLIDWORKS Discovery Session If you're developing a tangible product, this session is a chance to get started with 3D CAD in a supportive environment. |
|
|
Weds 18 November 14:30-16:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Develop: Market Research Lab Now let’s find the evidence. This practical lab gives you dedicated time and support to research your market, customers and competitors using specialist market and industry resources. |
Launch your ideas
These events will help you register, trade, pitch - get ready to make it real. Best for students with a validated idea ready to turn into a real business.
| Date & Time | Event | |
|---|---|---|
|
Wed 18 November 13:00-14:00 *Autumn Sprint |
Launch: Calculate your start-up costs How much will it cost to start your business? This practical workshop will help you work out the numbers behind your business or social enterprise, from one-off start-up costs to ongoing income and expenses. |
|
|
Thurs 19 November 11:00-13:00 *Autumn Sprint
|
Launch: Expert Drop-In Launching your business? Join our Expert Drop-In for informal, one-to-one conversations with specialists who can help you tackle the practical challenges of launching your business. Get advice on IP & patents, Legal, Accountancy, Product design, Web & digital, Marketing & branding and LinkedIn. |
All our events and workshops are delivered by experienced industry professionals and advisers. They are open to students and graduates for up to two years. We also welcome colleagues to attend.
Students and graduates can register for events and workshops through MyCareer. Colleagues can email us to reserve a space.
To view all of our upcoming events, click the button below and select the 'Work For Yourself' and 'START UP Workshops' event types.