About University Sparks

Do you have an amazing business idea? Take the first step to turn your idea into reality.

University Sparks is a crowdfunding competition that brings together university students from all over the UK and Ireland to find the best new business ideas and nurture the next generation of entrepreneurs. It was created by students from different colleges around Ireland in partnership with Spark Crowdfunding.

The unique aspect of this competition is that students choose the winners by investing virtual funds into their favourite ideas. Any student can invest regardless of whether or not they have submitted a business idea to the competition.

The winning ideas with the most investment are awarded cash prizes, empowering students to begin their entrepreneurial journey.

Last Year’s Irish Finalists – Congratulations to All the Winners:

Disposably

Driving the adoption of the Circular Economy in Takeaway Packaging through Science, Human Performance, and Design! - A Social Enterprise, Rethinking Plastics! When you order ta

By Conor Brennan, Rutticka Kedare, Rachael Sleath, Evan Murphy

€ 2,181,196

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
KleanBeans

Klean Beans is a social enterprise aiming to create natural, affordable skincare products made from repurposing spent coffee grounds that would otherwise be sent to landfill. Used

By Tim O’Kelly, Roisin Clune, Ben Herlihy, Ailbhe King

€ 2,171,029

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
Prep n' Chef

This launch stems directly from the COVID-19 pandemic and the market shock that it has brought forth. In response to this, a number of features have been included in this innovatio

By Aoife O'Leary, Niamh Duggan, Mary Leneghan, Inez O'Callaghan

€ 2,110,105

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
Speakeasy

An innovative platform transforming student well-being. Speakeasy is a wellbeing-focused classroom management system used by teachers and school officials to gain analytical ins

By Tara Gibney, Erin Hession, Eoin O'Malley,

€ 2,997,709

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
EthiCart

Do you often feel overwhelmed by the amount of information around climate change? It’s hard to tell what actually makes a product sustainable and what claims are just greenwashin

By Laura Brennan, Lara Páircéir

€ 2,060,350

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
VegaNite

VegaNite - the worlds first social media platform & marketplace specifically tailored to sustainability-focused individuals Do you care about the environment and want to meet ot

By Tobias Luken, Conan McLucas, Tomas Baltrunas

€ 2,955,313

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
ReFRAME

We are ReFRAME, a social enterprise committed to promoting and empowering sustainable transport by developing commuter bikes made from recycled plastic. Our bikes will offset plast

By Timothy McGrath, Caoimhe McGuirk, Aodh Ó Gallchóir, Niamh

€ 2,095,579

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
The Bubble

• The Vision: Create a platform for new and emerging artists and support personnel across all disciplines in the Arts industry to display and advertise their talents. • The

By Ronan Kelly, Morgan Cocoman

€ 3,251,013

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021
InfoSafe

InfoSafe will provide a platform which will better educate consumers on data security and will work to stop companies from using data to manipulate their customers. InfoSafe is

By Andrew Fahey, James Barry, Sarah Chifor, Killian Larkin

€ 2,126,093

Invested

Campaign

Ending on 11-04-2021

Competition Rules

Investment Rules

  • You must spend all of your available funds before your investments will appear on your chosen campaigns.
  • All students are allocated €/£10,000 in virtual funds to invest regardless of whether they have submitted an idea or not.
  • €/£4,000 - maximum investment in a campaign.
  • €/£6,000 - maximum total investment in campaigns from a single university.

Prizes

  • There is a total of €3,000 in cash prizes for the ideas with the most investment in Ireland:
    • 1st place = €1,500
    • 2nd place = €1,000
    • 3rd place = €500
  • There is a total of £3,000 in cash prizes for the ideas with the most investment in each region of the UK:
    • 1st place = £1,500
    • 2nd place = £1,000
    • 3rd place = £500
  • There is a total of €/£10,000 in cash prizes for the ideas with the most investment in the UK & Irish Grand Final:
    • 1st place = €/£5,000
    • 2nd place = €/£3,000
    • 3rd place = €/£2,000

Competition Format

  • The initial entries will be evaluated by our committees who will shortlist the 30 (maximum) best ideas in Ireland / Northern Ireland and each subregion of the UK.
  • Each shortlisted team will then be asked to create their campaigns by submitting a logo, 3-minute video and short slide deck, explaining their idea in more detail.
  • The top 10 ideas that received the most investment in the first crowdfunding round will progress to the finals of their respective regions.
  • The ideas that then receive the most investment in the second crowdfunding round will become the Irish and UK regional winners.
  • The winners of the Irish and UK regional competitions will then progress to the overall UK & Irish Grand Final.
  • The idea that receives the most investment in the UK & Irish Grand Final crowdfunding round will become the overall winner.

Key Dates

  • TBA

    - Idea submissions open

  • TBA

    - Idea Submissions close at midnight

  • TBA

    - Irish semi-finalists announced

  • TBA

    - UK regional semi-finalists announced

  • TBA

    - Irish semi-final crowdfunding round

  • TBA

    - UK regional semi-final crowdfunding round

  • TBA

    - Irish finalists announced

  • TBA

    - UK regional finalists announced

  • TBA

    - Irish final crowdfunding round

  • TBA

    - UK regional final crowdfunding round

  • TBA

    - Irish winners announced

  • TBA

    - UK regional winners announced

  • TBA

    - UK & Irish Grand Final crowdfunding round

  • TBA

    - UK & Irish Grand Final winners announced