Volunteer

All of our programmes blend leading academic thought, cutting-edge teaching methodology, and real-life experiences from people who have been there and done it. To bring our programmes to life, we rely on volunteers from the entrepreneurial and business communities to share their experiences and empower the next generation of changemakers. 

“Supporting smart, enthusiastic people learn and grow in their understanding is perhaps the most rewarding thing you can do – and in this case, we’re working with the brightest talent in New Zealand. So many of the teams are looking to truly change the world with their innovations – and they know it’s possible because of those who have gone before them in earlier years. It is immensely rewarding for the mentors to see real-life outcomes, sometimes many years later, from a team that benefited in its early days from just a few hours of your time.”

Debra Hall – entrepreneur, investor, director

We invite you to get involved in any of the opportunities below (or even all of them!): 

This challenge is also known as the “1,000 words for $1,000 competition”. Around 300 entries are assessed by 60-80 judges with relevant knowledge and expertise. In judging teams of three to four, you will evaluate about 10-15 entries, selecting the best ones to be nominated for a prize. The time commitment is about 10 hours over one week.

For four weeks, participants attend regular workshops and learn the basics of venture creation, with a focus on validating their ideas with their target market. The teams that are ready to progress their idea will be matched with a mentor to help support them on their journey by providing advice and guidance.

Teams are encouraged to enter the Velocity $100k Challenge at the end of the programme. The time commitment is one hour per week over four weeks (though many mentors invest more time).

Approximately 50 judges read around 90 entries to the Velocity $100k Challenge. Each judging team assesses about eight to 10 entries. The submissions for this challenge are more in-depth and frequently more technical. The judges select 15 teams to go through to the final round of the competition. The time commitment is about 10 hours over one week.

A four-week ideation and validation programme. Frequently, this is the first step for participants into entrepreneurship. The programme finishes with a team presentation to a panel of judges. The time commitment is about two hours per week over three weeks. Please note that this programme is based on very early-stage ideas.

We are always keen to hear from people in the entrepreneurial ecosystem who would like to contribute to the development of our students and staff. Whether you would like to be a volunteer speaker, subject matter expert mentor or explore the opportunity to run a workshop within our existing offerings, please register: