Get closer to the UoB Startup society at Birmingham

Did you know there is a Startup society based at the University of Birmingham?

This week we caught up with our friends at UoB Startup society and invited them to tell us what life is like in a university society during a global pandemic and the unexpected connections and opportunities that have come their way.

Meet Kushal Patel, Andin Farrell, Ian Arrindell and Munir Maricar from UoB StartUp society and find out about the exciting Birmingham Startup Games competition they are running for Birmingham and Keele students at the end of this post.

Kushal Patel (2nd Year, BSc Computer Science)

My first contact with Startup Society was at the Societies Fair during my first year of University. Prior to this, I had some experience in business through competing in a small entrepreneurship competition and so the mission of the society resonated with me. Throughout the year, I kept returning to the events and was always impressed by how much new knowledge I gained at each one, my passion for entrepreneurship progressing throughout the year. This was thanks to the varied guests which were brought in to run each session and was refreshing from other society events / talks I had attended, where it sometimes felt as though the same common information and topics would come up frequently. Wanting to get further involved in second year, I was lucky enough to be voted in as Vice-President (subsequently transitioned to President).

I wish to continue hosting events as inspirational as those which first attracted my interest the society this year, so that we can continue passing on knowledge to others and encouraging entrepreneurship within UoB.

Andin Farrell (3rd Year, BSc Computer Science):

This pandemic situation is new for everyone, and we are no exception. What we’ve been most struck by a(nd has kept us going) is the social aspect of the society.

One of our society's biggest values has been its ability to provide a platform for students to network with exciting guests and one another. We have seen from time to time how powerful a network can be. Our past members have now gone to be VCs, working at Google, started their ventures, and so forth.

This year we try to deliver the same experience, but virtual. However, this has proven to be more challenging than it seems to be. With the current technology, networking through zoom sessions won't be able to replace actual meeting in person.

Our work, however, has been pretty efficient, granted the circumstances. Our committee members have had experience working remotely, thus transitioning to online zoom meetings wasn't as hard. We always make sure to meet once a week and log everything vital that we have discussed. The logs would usually contain, main agenda, action points, and progress of previous action points, and all of these are saved on Notion. This way, everyone will have a bird's eye view of what's been happening, even if some couldn't attend the meeting.

We also apply the same principles for our upcoming main event, Birmingham Startup Games 2021, which involves collaboration with societies from UoB Dubai Campus and Keele University to set this up. More on the competition format from Munir below.

Ian Arrindell (2nd Year, BSc Maths with Business Management)

We try to cater to the diversity among our members, so our events are never the same. 

For example, in November we held an event about EduTech with former PhD Student Manjinder Kainth. He spoke about 6Bit Education, an AI powered platform that helps reduce grading time for teachers while providing high level feedback for students.

On the other hand we held an event with Syncify, a fledgling social podcast startup aiming to change the way people interact with podcasts. There is really something for everyone in what we do.

Munir Maricar (3rd Year, BSc Artificial Intelligence & Computer Science)

Compared to the other committee members, I am the newest. I came across the Startup Society when I was browsing through all the University of Birmingham's societies. It immediately caught my eye.

I was always passionate about how Silicon-Valley-Esque startups came about and wanted to learn more about them throughout my life. I joined as a member, and when I heard they had a position open, I applied for the position.

Here, I am now, in charge of Marketing and Public Relations of various events that the Startup Society organises. Speaking of such events, the biggest annual event organised by the Startup Society is taking place soon!

Your chance to enter the Birmingham Startup Games:

The Birmingham Startup Games 2021 is the only competition at the University of Birmingham that gives students a possibility to win a cash prize or mentorships to grow their businesses further or make their business idea a reality. The finals are on the 15th of March, but the submissions have been open since the 26th of January. Everybody who is a student at the University of Birmingham (U.K. or Dubai campus) or Keele University is welcome to participate! For more information, visit our social media
platforms!

Apply for the Birmingham Start-Up Games here. The UoB Startup society welcome new members so get join them and get involved by visiting the UoB Startup society website here.

Written by Kushal, Andin, Ian and Munir from UoB Startup society Edited by Bob Lee, B-Enterprising