Farley Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Farley Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation The Farley Center is Northwestern University’s primary source of entrepreneurship education, open

Entrepreneurship starts with a problem. Farley teaches you how to pin down those problems and unravel them to find innov...
04/07/2026

Entrepreneurship starts with a problem. Farley teaches you how to pin down those problems and unravel them to find innovative solutions. 🧶📌

How has getting to the heart of a problem helped in your entrepreneurial ventures? Let us know in the comments!

Calling all Northwestern student founders: VentureCat applications are now open!VentureCat is Northwestern University's ...
04/03/2026

Calling all Northwestern student founders: VentureCat applications are now open!

VentureCat is Northwestern University's annual student startup competition, bringing together the most innovative student-led ventures competing for over $175,000 in non-dilutive funding.

This is your opportunity to gain visibility, connect with investors and mentors, and secure funding that doesn't dilute your equity. Apply by April 9 at venturecat.nu/apply.

That’s a wrap on NUvention Medical! 🎉🩺This quarter, student teams tackled real-world healthcare challenges, from stroke ...
03/18/2026

That’s a wrap on NUvention Medical! 🎉🩺

This quarter, student teams tackled real-world healthcare challenges, from stroke detection and relieving pregnancy pain to improving clinical workflow, while working across disciplines and learning directly from industry leaders. ⚕️⛑️

Many students called the experience transformative, highlighting the power of collaboration and hands-on learning in med tech innovation. The course is a collaborative effort with McCormick School of Engineering, Kellogg School of Management, and Feinberg School of Medicine.

The journey doesn’t stop here! Several NUvention Medical teams are heading into NUvention Launch in the Spring. Good luck, innovators! 🚀✨

Shoutout to this year’s teams: LumaLift, HydroFlo, OmniVue, CliniQ, ClinicFlow Beacon, and FutureFlow.

Farley students stopped by the Perch today to fuel up before tackling their exams.Good luck with finals, wildcats! ☘️Don...
03/16/2026

Farley students stopped by the Perch today to fuel up before tackling their exams.

Good luck with finals, wildcats! ☘️

Don’t forget, Farley Finals Fuel Up will be back in the Perch tomorrow, 3/17, from 9 AM to noon! 🥯☕️

We had so much fun at the mHUB Fourth Revolution Awards following the HardTech Summit! Several top Northwestern entrepre...
03/06/2026

We had so much fun at the mHUB Fourth Revolution Awards following the HardTech Summit! Several top Northwestern entrepreneurial students joined Farley Center Director Hayes Ferguson at the event, connecting with NUvention Medical faculty Tyler R. Wanke and other friends and mentors like Patrick Hunt.

Congratulations to the award winners — it won’t be long before these students are picking up prizes for their work in hardware! 🛠️🥇

Adaptability is key! Entrepreneurship can come with many twists and turns, and Farley gives you the tools necessary to t...
01/27/2026

Adaptability is key! Entrepreneurship can come with many twists and turns, and Farley gives you the tools necessary to take them in stride. 🏃

When has flexibility come in handy in your entrepreneurial endeavors? Drop a comment and tell us about it!

What makes a great entrepreneur? A Farley class says it’s not what you might think.In ENTREP 395: The Psychology of Entr...
12/16/2025

What makes a great entrepreneur? A Farley class says it’s not what you might think.

In ENTREP 395: The Psychology of Entrepreneurial Leadership, Professor Jennifer Tackett is debunking the “born entrepreneur” myth with a course that bridges personality science and entrepreneurship.

The approach: Students from diverse majors (engineering, journalism, neuroscience, economics) work in cross-functional teams; Research-backed personality assessments reveal natural strengths and blind spots; and students build leadership strategies based on who they are, not who they think they should be.

The key insight: There are no “good” or “bad” traits for founders.

💡Risk-takers drive innovation (but need grounding)
💡Risk-averse leaders bring stability to uncertainty
💡Self-awareness > personality change

As Tackett puts it: “What matters is awareness of what you have control over. If I know my traits, I can assess who to co-found with, who my mentors are, and how to draw on other personalities to succeed.”

Read more at the link in our bio.

🎉 Huge congratulations to our Farley Center students and alumni named to the 2026 Forbes list!We’re proud to celebrate...
12/05/2025

🎉 Huge congratulations to our Farley Center students and alumni named to the 2026 Forbes list!

We’re proud to celebrate these incredible alumni whose ventures are redefining what’s possible in biotech, health care, and education:

✨ Ana Cornell — Founder, Acorn Genetics, building low-cost, accessible genomics tools
✨ Lauren Huttner — Founder, Pebble Community Labs, empowering community-driven science
✨ Benjamin Somers — Cofounder, Recess, reinventing online, project-based learning for kids
✨ Casey Qadir — Founder, Hubly Surgical, creating safer, simpler neurosurgical tools

These founders embody the spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship, and impact that drives the Farley Center every day. 💡💜

📍 Inside McDonald’s HQ! 🍔🇹🇼As part of their two-week entrepreneurship summer program at Northwestern, students from Nati...
08/14/2025

📍 Inside McDonald’s HQ! 🍔🇹🇼
As part of their two-week entrepreneurship summer program at Northwestern, students from National Taiwan University got an exclusive look behind the scenes of one of the world’s most iconic brands.

From lunch at the Global Restaurant to exploring Speedee Labs, the tour was packed with insights on how innovation happens at scale. 🙌✨

Shreya Pugalia (’23) went from:🌱 launching a sustainability startup in high school🎓 studying entrepreneurship at the Far...
08/13/2025

Shreya Pugalia (’23) went from:
🌱 launching a sustainability startup in high school
🎓 studying entrepreneurship at the Farley Center
💼 building a career in finance and tech private equity

Her take on entrepreneurship?
“Having an entrepreneurial mindset means having a service mindset and understanding with empathy what you’re trying to solve, and being scrappy and making the best of the tools you have.”

🔗 Read her story at the link in our bio.

This summer, the Farley Center welcomed an incredible group of students from National Taiwan University (NTU) for a two-...
08/07/2025

This summer, the Farley Center welcomed an incredible group of students from National Taiwan University (NTU) for a two-week immersion into Northwestern University’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

As part of the NTU Entrepreneurship Summer Program, students spent two weeks exploring innovation from every angle through academic lectures, founder stories, and field visits across Chicagoland.

Highlights included:
- A behind-the-scenes tour of McDonald’s’s HQ and its innovation hub Speedee Labs
- A visit to 3D printing startup Azul 3D and venture capital firm Drive Capital
- Conversations with the team at Every Body Eat®, founded by Farley faculty member Patricia “Trish” Thomas
- A peek inside Microsoft’s and innovation hub mHUB offices
- A visit to gener8tor in Willis Tower, hosted by Farley faculty member Ryan Jeffery
- A tour of local Chicago gem Phoenix Tofu
- An iconic Chicago Architecture Center boat tour
-Entrepreneurship lectures by Farley faculty members Ed Acuna and Kate Jackson, and tours of Northwestern’s innovation spaces including The Garage at Northwestern University and the Ford Prototyping Shop

Special thanks to our speakers, faculty, and industry partners who made this experience unforgettable. You helped bring the entrepreneurial spirit to life!

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2133 Sheridan Road, Room G-300
Evanston, IL
60208

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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