Student and Staff Enterprise Competition 2026
Applications for our 2026 Student and Staff Enterprise Competition are now open. With a total funding pot of £5,000, awarded by Converge, available to help aspiring student and staff entrepreneurs. The funding pot will be used to provide up to three grants with each grant valued at a minimum of £1,000. Find out more below and apply!
Our competition aims to support students and staff at an early stage of development by providing training and a small pot of funding to allow you to invest in your business idea and will also give you an opportunity to explore undertaking a full Converge application for additional funding and support.
The competition will help participants:
- Identify problems/issues which matter to you
- Develop your enterprising skills
- Explore and refine your ideas
- Discover more about yourself
- Be introduced to Scotland’s start-up ecosystem with a purposeful focus on Converge.
Eligibility
Eligibility
- The competition is open to all students and staff across our partnership.
- Applicants must not be actively trading/registered with HMRC prior to the closing date.
- Group applications are allowed.
Application process
Application process
Participants will have to submit an initial online application. The judging panel will then shortlist up to 10 entries who will be invited to present for the prizes on offer.
In between the shortlisting and judging of the final presentations, finalists will have the opportunity to receive one-to-one support on presenting their ideas.
Key Dates
Key Dates
- Monday 5 January 2026: Competition open for applications.
- Friday 6 February 2026: Competition closes for applications.
- Week commencing Monday 9 February 2026: Applications are considered by a judging panel.
- Week commencing Monday 16 February 2026: One to one support for presentations.
- Week commencing Monday 23 February 2026: Finalist presentations and judging.
- Week commencing Monday 2 March 2026: Finalists confirmed
Contact and follow-up support
Contact and follow-up support
For more information, please contact Darlene Russell via email: darlene.m.russell@uhi.ac.uk
Applicants will also be asked if they are happy to be contacted again by UHI and/or Converge regarding other opportunities.
We can also offer shortlisted entries into our UHI Business Competition 2026 and the 2026 Converge Challenge.
All recipients will be invited to attend a national one-day event to be held in person in Edinburgh (date and venue TBD) to receive additional training to support the development of their business and for networking.
You can apply for the competition by completing the online application form.
The data shared will be used for equalities monitoring purposes, including demographic analysis (e.g., gender, age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and disability). Personal data will be collected and processed solely for the purpose of the competition and will not be shared with third parties, except with the judging panel to facilitate the decision-making process.