More than a class

In csciStartup, you will incorporate and run a startup. You must apply as a team to be a part of a class to remove the mystery from starting a company, and to focus entirely on a product you're passionate about.

Apply as a team

You should apply if you have a team in place and a product in mind. Teams of two to four are probably best, and a great team might not be all CS students. We will focus on products that a small team can implement in months — web sites and mobile apps will be the norm.

If you nearly have a team in place, and want to meet other students who are looking for a team (or vice versa), you might check out this Facebook group. Applications are closed for 2017.

Product Focused

We will learn by doing. Each team will incorporate, build a product for real customers, advertise their product, and improve it week after week.

We'll spend at least half of our class meetings with individual attention to each group's progress and how to improve your offerings.

Assignments will be designed to apply to any company, with enough flexibility to ensure you're always working on things that make sense for your business.

Lectures / Talks

We meet twice a week, Tuesday and Thursday from 6:40pm-8pm. Usually one meeting is "normal" class, and the other is a guest lecture. Last, year guests included:

  • Evan Stites-Clayton, Teespring's start
  • Ted Howell, Legal questions
  • Nick Kishfy, Mojotech, Addressing risks first
  • Jon Mellon, TripAdvisor, SEO
  • Ben Simon, Down Dog, Mobile app engagement
  • Melissa Withers, Betaspring
  • Adam Leventhal, Delphix, After the MVP
  • Chris Erway, Appneta, Hiring / Funding
  • Eliot Horowitz, MongoDB
  • Louis Forward-Henry, moo.com, Sales

Many will return, and we'll look for more speakers that fit with team needs this year.

Syllabus »