Interest in entrepreneurship at McIntire is surging, and students have made that much obvious.
Take, for instance, when Abby Fifer Mandell, Director of the Galant Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, launched a new venture capital internship for undergraduates; the response was massive. “We knew it would be a popular offering,” she said. “We received even more applications than anticipated.” The strong demand signaled something larger.
Students across the University are eager for meaningful, hands-on opportunities to engage with innovation and venture building. McIntire, its Entrepreneurship Minor, the Galant Center, and a host of pan-University programs are seeing to it that interest is being met and expectations are exceeded.
Expanding Access to Experiential Entrepreneurship at UVA
One recent example of entrepreneurial excitement generated by students from across UVA was on full display at the third installment of the 2026 Founders Forum held in McIntire’s Shumway Hall on Feb. 25. Featuring a varied group of high-profile global business leaders from a wealth of industries, many students from Professor Chip Ransler’s courses enticed them to come share their experiences on Grounds. The result of a packed and enthusiastic crowd in the McIntire Atrium was a testament to both the power of entrepreneurship storytelling as a motivating factor and earnest student interest in learning directly from successful startup founders and business leaders.
For Mandell, who moderated some sessions during the Founders Forum, her entrepreneurship philosophy begins with access, much like the kind provided at the event. But it runs deeper. She sees that openness as an essential educational avenue that needs to be provided to all University students, regardless of personal networks or resources.
She has worked quickly to make that a central part of the newly revamped Galant Challenge Program, the Center’s namesake pitch event that has provided upwards of $37 million in seed and early-stage capital to emerging ventures. No longer just one invigorating night (which has been rebranded as the Galant Challenge Showcase, to be held on April 23), the Challenge is now a full-fledged learning program.
With a venture capital internship for six undergraduates established, the program ensures mentorship by MBA students at UVA’s Darden School of Business. Additionally, the student interns will also work alongside University alumni investors known as the VC Collective, reviewing Galant Challenge team startups. These investors, who support the growing list of UVA-affiliated ventures, will make it possible for students to participate in what Mandell calls “a real live season of diligence and selection,” gaining exposure to the actual decision-making process behind startup funding.
Breaking into venture capital is notoriously difficult for young graduates; Mandell notes they are historically ignored by firms in this area, as they often lack the experience and expertise. By giving students direct exposure to diligence and investor thinking, McIntire equips them with practical credibility before they enter the job market.
She sees this enabling a virtuous cycle. As UVA-affiliated startups pitch their ideas to receive seed funding at the Galant Challenge Showcase, Mandell hopes that alumni who once benefited from McIntire’s support as entrepreneurs will return as investors and mentors, creating opportunities and reinvestment in education and funding.
The same commitment to access shapes the Summer Subsidy Program, which will begin with a pilot cohort in partnership with biotech industry nonprofit CvilleBioHub, Co-Founded by Executive Director Nikki Hastings (Biomedical Engineering ’09), McIntire M.S. in Commerce Biotechnology Track Program Director. Mandell’s long-term goal is to place considerably more students each year in startup internships; unlike large finance firms that recruit visibly on campus, startup positions are harder to identify, and often only found by students based on personal connections. “Creating structured pipelines and financial support lowers barriers for both students and early-stage companies,” says Mandell.
Broadening the Definition of Entrepreneurship at McIntire
Mandell is equally focused on redefining who sees themselves as an entrepreneur. Many students with entrepreneurial instincts do not identify as businesspeople: Some are artists, some are writers, and some are building creative ventures on the side.
“The line between artists and entrepreneurs is really arbitrary,” Mandell insists. She points to alumni who launched theater companies, fashion lines, and other creative enterprises that required raising capital, assembling teams, and pitching ideas. She points out how their journeys mirror those of founders in any sector and require the same skills and drive that many ascribe to more traditional ventures.
To support these students with outside-the-box ideas and viewpoints, Mandell is developing an undergraduate fellows cohort, a co-curricular program to meet regularly, receive mentorship and coaching, and connect with alumni aligned with their aspirations. The goal is to cultivate imaginative thinking and unshakable confidence. “It takes courage to do something different, to say something different, to dream of something different,” she says.
Yet Mandell maintains a practical view of these programs, recognizing the realities of risk. Not every student can afford to turn down a stable job for an uncertain venture. “When we talk about entrepreneurs, we often talk about risk taking,” she explains. “I do not want to take for granted that some people are better positioned to take those risks than other people.” By embedding entrepreneurial thinking into supportive spaces, she ensures students can build skills and develop ideas that may flourish at a later time in their lives, when they can better afford to take chances.
Strengthening the UVA Entrepreneurship Ecosystem
Mandell’s work at McIntire is closely tied to UVA Innovates, a University-wide initiative designed to elevate entrepreneurship and coordinate efforts across schools. Its pillars include the Licensing and Ventures Group, which translates research into business ventures, the student-focused Foundry, and the CvilleBioHub. As such, Mandell remains actively engaged in aligning McIntire with this broader ecosystem.
For Mandell, entrepreneurship at McIntire is inclusive, experiential, and connected. It is about opening doors, expanding definitions, and building structures that empower students to act on their ideas. “If we reimagine the words innovation and entrepreneurship,” she said, “we will create a lot more opportunity to respond to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.”
