Coffee with Mentors from the Fund of Funds - How to Implement a Startup Project

The Startup Hub of the Inter-University Center for Career Development /ICCD/ met students with mentors on startup projects. Guest mentors were Dr. Eng. Dotchka Vassileva, Acting Director of Project Information and Financing Division at Fund Manager of Financial Instruments Bulgaria and Mr. Ivaylo Ivanov, Director of Founder Institute Eastern Europe. During the Coffee with Mentors  from the Fund of Funds the students in the hall received answers on issues related to the implementation of startup projects: where to start, how to prepare a plan, what kind of team is necessary, which are the most effective steps to start the project and where to find sources of funding.

Г-н Атанас Димитров, директор на Междууниверситетския център за развитие на кариерата, г-н Ивайло Иванов, проф. д-р Цветана Стоянова, в.и.д. зам.-ректор по институционално и бизнес сътрудничество и студентски политики, г-н Илиян Чабуклийски, председател на Студентски съвет, д-р Дочка Василева

Prof. Dr. Tsvetana Stoyanova, Acting Vice-Rector for Institutional and Business Cooperation and Student Policies, expressed her gratitude to Dr. Eng. Dotchka Vassileva who consults our students every second week of the month as well as to Ivaylo Ivanov. "I am glad that they are with us and I am sure that those of you who share your ideas today will find in them a consultant who will reveal to them the secrets of a good presentation to investors. Reminding about the last year startup competition in which 10 teams participated, she said: "This year we want to build upon it and along with the teams from the UNWE there will be teams from other universities. Our idea is to have a good competitive environment where the best teams will win and get prizes for which we will be grateful to our sponsors. This year we have also decided to do a hackathon related to the innovative ideas in ecology. I hope that our university will be a leader in this field as well."

"What the Startup Hub provides as a service is how to get your startup idea to the funding phase and get it implemented in the easiest and fastest way", emphasized Mr. Atanas Dimitrov, Director of the Inter-University Center for Career Development. "It will be an honour and pleasure for us if you, as our students or those who use the services of the only Inter-University Center for Career Development in the country, together reach this stage of realization of a startup idea.There are three roads ahead of you: to work for someone else, not to work or to work for yourself. I suppose you would like to work for yourself. We will support you with all the means at our disposal. We also count on you as admirers of the startup community, to be messengers and spread the information so it reaches other students. I believe that if we work together we could succeed to realize your ideas."

Mr. Ilian Chabukliisky, Chairman of the Student Council, greeted the ICCD for the initiatives, which are useful for every student and a good start for the development of ideas. "Meeting students with people from business from whom they can gain knowledge and experience, is a wonderful opportunity that our university provides."

“The guest mentor Mr. Ivaylo Ivanov presented the work of the company Founder Institute and defined it as the world's largest presit accelerator. "We find people with ideas and hold 15 weeks of training and at the end they build a startup structure. 10 000 companies from 100 countries and 200 cities have gone through the accelerator. Every year 2 groups of 70 applicants each are assembled but only 10-15  of them graduate . Over 60% of people fail to complete it which is fine. Because when you quickly realize that the idea doesn`t work, that you're not ready to give 2 years of your life to it, or that you don't have the knowledge, skills and resources to make it a reality - saving your time is the biggest favour anyone could do for you. Because once you go on the entrepreneurial path, ideas come very quickly, but how you implement them is what that matters.

"We would be glad if we could help you develop your business ideas and startups. We welcome you to come to us and share them and we can give you guidance and funding", said Dr. Eng. Dotchka Vassileva. She urged the students to prepare and develop their ideas. 

Dr. Vasileva invited the attendees to take part in the National Youth Start-up Competition pointing out that the students of UNWE have the capacity and have good ideas.

Chief Assist. Dr. Victoria Nedeva-Atanasova and Chief Assist. Dr. Shazie Yusein-Myashkova from the Career Center at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences with whom the ICCD has a longstanding and fruitful partnership received gifts with the new logo of the Center

The meeting was attended by students and lecturers not only from UNWE, but also from other universities, as well as Doctorla students from BAS.

Fund of Funds - "Fund Manager of Financial Instruments in Bulgaria" EAD allocates targeted public funds from the European programmes and national co-financing through specialized support mechanisms. The company ensures efficient and sustainable use of the EU funds and builds capacity for managing financial instruments at a national level. Its main mission is to help turn the innovative ideas into successful businesses by attracting foreign investment.

The Founder Institute is the world's proven network for transforming ideas into fundable startups in the global business. The company was founded in 2009 by serial entrepreneur Adeo Resi and his colleague Jonathan Grichan. The idea for the programme has come by the work of TheFunded.com where it become clear that most entrepreneurs in the idea and startup stages have lack of structure, feedback, and a network for support necessary to succeed.