Have a business idea? Want to launch a product or service?
ABVentures is the University of Aberdeen’s support programme for student and recent graduate entrepreneurs — whether you’re just exploring an idea or ready to launch. We empower our students and recent graduates (within the last two years) to build entrepreneurial skills and launch successful ventures. No business degree or experience required – just ambition and passion for the problem you want to solve.
Through ABVentures, you can:
Get 1:1 tailored business support advice
Learn how to pitch your idea and get feedback from professionals
Apply for funding to kick-start your business – over £40,000 funding opportunities available annually
Attend workshops on ideation, business development, branding, and more
Join a network of like-minded aspirational students and recent graduates
Running your own business can be a lonely place, especially if you are a sole trader or the sole director.
One-to-one business advice
Access personalized advisory sessions with Enterprise Executives, Entrepreneurs in Residence, and external experts.
These confidential, tailored meetings help tackle specific business challenges and provide strategic direction.
ABVentures provides University of Aberdeen students and recent graduates (within the last two years) one-on-one business advice sessions with the Enterprise Executive, Entrepreneurs in Residence, and external referrals.
These business advice meetings provide you with the chance to talk to an experienced Business Advisor about issues or questions you are facing within your business – all in an impartial, confidential space.
Each business is unique and each business advice meeting is customised to provide tailored support accordingly.
The University of Aberdeen is delighted to currently host over three Entrepreneurs in Residence through the Royal Society Entrepreneur in Residence (EiR) scheme which aims to increase the knowledge and awareness in UK universities of cutting-edge industrial science, research and innovation.
If you’d like to discuss your options in person, please arrange an appointment by emailing ABVentures.
Young Company Finance (YCF) is a monthly publication which has been reporting since 1998 on all aspects of the financing of early stage high growth companies in Scotland, from start-up to maturity, flotation, or sale. Here you will find some useful information in how to get started in finding the finance for you company right through to closing the deal.
Creative Scotland funding is open to individuals, groups or organisations to apply for, supporting a wide range of activity in the arts, screen and creative industries. It’s also worth looking at their funds delivered by partners section.
Santander X runs regular funding and competition calls for start-ups and University students, graduates and staff.
GRANTfinder strive to make funding as simple and accessible as possible, by keeping up to date on the latest funding opportunities and trends.
Scottish Enterprise’s SMART: SCOTLAND grants aim to support high risk, highly ambitious projects to conduct feasibility tests and develop prototypes. They are available to small and medium enterprises based in Scotland.
The UK Government’s innovation agency, Innovate UK, part of UK Research & Innovation, supports new businesses with a range of services including funding opportunities.
Zero Waste Scotland provide a number of options on funding specific to reducing environmental impacts.
SHIL encourages ideas and innovations from healthcare professionals then uses well-established processes and extensive experience to assess, protect, develop and commercialise – working collaboratively each step of the way.
Social Enterprise funding
Firstport is a registered charity that started work in 2007 to help social entrepreneurs bring forward their ideas and to make them happen.
Big Issue Invest offers social enterprises, charities and profit-with-purpose businesses loans and investment from £20,000 to £3 million
CyberASAP, funded by DCMS in collaboration with Innovate UK & KTN, helps academics in UK universities commercialise their cyber security ideas.
Venture Capital
Creator Fund is a student led venture capital fund where students are trained to source opportunities and invest in their peers.
LINC Scotland is the national association for business angels in Scotland, with a membership which includes many active individual investors and most of the main angel groups or syndicates.
LendingCrowd is a fast-growing fintech lending platform. They enable British businesses to grow by connecting them with investors seeking a better return on their money
Crowdfunding
Kickstarter is a funding platform for creative projects. Every project creator sets their project’s funding goal and deadline. If people like the project, they can pledge money to make it happen.
Crowdcube was inspired by an unshakable belief in entrepreneurs that dream big, push at the edges and want to make a difference, big and small. They support ambitious entrepreneurs to raise money to bring their innovative ideas to life and turn their vision into reality.
Seedrs aspire to make it simple to buy into the businesses you believe in and share in their success. They enable all types of growth-focused businesses to raise capital and a community in the process.
Indiegogo’s crowdfunding campaigns are where new and ground-breaking products take flight, sometimes long before they hit mainstream availability.
Crowdfunder is the equity crowdfunding leader for sourcing and funding high-growth ventures with a network of over 130,000 entrepreneurs and investors.
ABVentures microfinance fund
Offers at least £1,000 in seed funding, supporting side-hustles and early-stage ventures.
Sponsored by Santander Universities, it’s open to students and graduates within two years of completing studies.
Lightbulb is the University of Aberdeen’s annual business idea competition open exclusively to University of Aberdeen students which takes place in February each year.
It is open to students of all disciplines in every year of study and gives you the opportunity to gain validation and feedback on your business ideas or simply taste the start-up environment on campus. If you don’t have a business idea at the moment, we run various workshops through the year that can help you develop your concept and provide you with the knowledge and support necessary to start a business.
The Lightbulb Ideas Competition is designed to inspire entrepreneurial thinking among the student community – undergraduates, post graduate taught and research students. Also, to help participants develop skills for the future, network, validate any business idea you have, and a chance to secure funding.
This free competition provides the knowledge, skills, and confidence to take the first step toward turning ideas into impactful ventures.
Objectives of the competition include:
Boost your CV – participants get a Certificate of Achievement upon completion
Put your knowledge into practice
Improve your communication and public speaking skills, refine your creativity, boost your confidence
Network with like-minded peers and professionals
Follow us on social media to be the first to hear about the next Lightbulb competition.
Take Off Accelerator
An eight-week, fully funded accelerator structured around three core stages: Discover, Prove, and Deliver.
It’s designed to flexibly fit around academic commitments while helping participants validate ideas and launch impactful ventures.
Benefits include hands-on workshops, ecosystem networking (via Ecosystem Day), and mentorship.
Open to University of Aberdeen students and graduates within the last two years.
Converge Challenge is Scotland’s leading company creation programme for staff, students and recent graduates of all Scottish Universities and Research Institutes. Converge is funded by The Scottish Funding Council, all Scottish Universities, Creative Scotland and a network of commercial partners:
Santander Universities Entrepreneurship Awards has grown to be one of the UK’s largest student and graduate business pitching competitions offering entrepreneurs the opportunity to win cash prizes, mentoring and start-up support.
Scottish EDGE is a competition aimed at identifying and supporting Scotland’s up-and-coming, innovative, high-growth potential entrepreneurial talent.
Available facilities and equipment
ABVenture Zone (8th floor of the MacRobert Building) is an incubation space for new start-up and spin-out companies associated with the University of Aberdeen. It is a comfortable, collaborative working space with state-of-the-art equipment designed to support growing businesses and to encourage entrepreneurs to develop new products and services.
It is particularly suitable for the development of ideas in the digital and IT sectors but is open to entrepreneurs targeting other sectors. It also provides a focus within the University of Aberdeen for events and training in entrepreneurship.
This area has a small kitchen area and break-out space and will allow an opportunity to chat with other occupants, your team members, advisors and business mentors. A relaxing, communal space.
Meeting zone (MR810)
Contains all the infrastructure that you need for larger meetings and small conferences and a place where entrepreneurs can literally use the walls for presenting ideas and planning.
3D CAD zone (MR826)
Holds two 3D printers and a 3D scanner, occupant storage lockers and a fridge for event catering.
Sherlock meeting room (MR830)
Set aside for private meetings and conferencing. It is the perfect place to hold small meetings such as one-on-one meetings with mentors.
Lab zone (MR831)
Provides a space for events, for collaborative working and for teaching and training. Out with these uses, it provides hot desk space which may be used by ABVenture Zone occupant entrepreneurs.
James McIlroy, a previous medical student at the University of Aberdeen, on the support he received for his start-up, EuroBiotix, as one of the first ABVenture Zone tenants.
