Rules

ELIGIBILITY RULES

• Student Eligibility: UNDERGRADUATES ONLY

  • Eligible Students: Only currently enrolled undergraduate college students taking classes during the 2025-26 academic school year (August 2025 – May 2026) are eligible. Students who completed their studies and will graduate in December 2025 are also eligible, provided they have not started graduate school or are taking graduate-level courses at the time of the competition.
  • Ineligible Students: Undergraduate students who completed courses and graduated prior to December 2025, are enrolled in a graduate program, or are taking graduate courses are ineligible to compete. They may be listed on the team, provided there are at least two undergraduate students also on the team. Graduate and graduated students on the teams may attend the competition, but will not be permitted to pitch, present or take part in any Q&A.

• Venture Eligibility: VALUES-BASED & FOR-PROFIT VENTURES ONLY

  • Ventures that have participated and won money in previous Values and Ventures® Competitions are not eligible.
  • Ventures submitted for the Values and Ventures Competition must be for-profit, values-centered enterprises. Nonprofit ventures are not allowed.
  • Ventures must demonstrate a societal or environmental need to be filled, as well as the profitability of the business.
  • Ventures that are not in keeping with the values of TCU or otherwise deemed unethical or objectionable will not be considered.
  • Ventures must be majority owned by undergraduate team members.

• Team Eligibility

  • A university may have multiple applications/ventures, but a maximum of only 1 team or venture per university will be selected for the competition.
  • Teams are to be composed of a minimum of 2 undergraduate members to a maximum of 5 undergraduate members.
  • If selected as a semifinalist venture, at least 2 undergraduate team members must participate in the presentation. More may do so with a maximum of 5 presenters.
  • Team members can attend different universities but must select one university to represent.
  • Team members may represent any discipline of study and are not limited to the business school.
  • Teams must have a faculty/staff sponsor who will authenticate that the business plan was prepared under faculty supervision or as part of regular university coursework. Faculty members are not required to attend the competition.

GENERAL RULES

• All submissions must be the original work of the students. Proposals and plans that constitute "academic dishonesty" will be disqualified even if discovered after the competition ends.
• Teams will be disqualified and all prizes revoked if the recipients are found to have violated any of the competition's rules, regulations and guidelines.
• Associated Risk: TCU Values and Ventures® events, activities and presentations are open to the public. TCU can't assume any responsibilities or provide any guarantees with respect to confidentiality of contestant team proprietary information. While the judges will be expected to use discretion with respect to proprietary information, they cannot guarantee non-disclosure. All participants must acknowledge the public nature of the competition and assume all risk associated with any disclosure during the competition.

FAQs

1. How much does it cost to compete?

We do not charge any fee to participate. If you are selected as a semifinalist, the TCU Values and Ventures program will cover the costs for lodging, local transportation within Fort Worth and most meals. Semifinalist competitors are only responsible for their own travel to and from TCU’s campus in Fort Worth, Texas.

2. What is the criteria for a values-based venture?

A values-based venture contributes to the well-being of specific internal or external stakeholders through products, services and/or profits. A V&V business could be a for-profit business that supports the social goals of the customers, contributes to sustainability, or provides innovations in healthcare or energy. The Values and Ventures team has identified 5 values categories to align your venture to:

• Environmental Sustainability
• Health Care
• Education
• Economic Development
• Equality

Examples of previous V&V competitors include:

• Phil’s Finest: https://www.philsfinest.com/pages/our-story
• KLAW Industries: https://klawindustries.com/about-us
• La La Land Kind Café: https://lalalandkindcafe.com/pages/about-us
• Revive Eco: https://revive-eco.com/the-revive-eco-mission/
• CarePilot: https://www.carepilot.com/about
• Sups.AI: https://www.sups.ai/