What's happening at Derby Entrepreneurship Center - March 2026
Tufts New Ventures Competition Semifinalists announced!
We received a record number of applications for the 2026 Tufts New Ventures Competition. Many thanks to our large team of alumni volunteers who helped select teams to advance to the live semifinals on March 27th. At this hybrid event, teams will pitch their ventures in one of three tracks, General, Healthcare & Life Sciences, or Social Impact,for the opportunity to advance to the finals, where they will compete for cash prizes and in-kind services valued at over $250,000.
Join us and cheer on Tufts entrepreneurs in the live Semifinals. You can register to join in person or on zoom.
Entrepreneurial Internship Program Deadline: March 15
Derby Entrepreneurship Center collaborates with Tufts Career Center to offer a limited number of $4,500 grants to students accepted into otherwise unpaid entrepreneurial summer internships. Tufts students can apply for a job, get an offer, and apply for a grant through the Career Center by March 15, 2026.
Event Highlight: Eventide Impact Investing Field Trip
We are grateful to Derby Entrepreneurship Center Advisor, Robin John, A03, for welcoming Tufts students to their Boston office to learn about impact investing. Thank you for giving our students an opportunity to learn about value-focused investing for integrity, impact, and performance.
Event Highlight: Beyond The Hill
Students filled the ASEAN Auditorium for a flagship event: "Beyond the Hill: Alumni Luminaries and Career Connections". The event included a keynote by Jeff Stibel, A95, A29P, moderated by Professor of the Practice, Jack Derby, featuring an all-star lineup of accomplished alumni:
Rachel Blumenthal, A02, DEC Board Member
Benjamin S. Carson Jr., A08, DEC Board member
Becky McCullough, A06
Kenny Nova, A86, A23P, A27P, DEC Board Member
After the panel, students and alumni mingled at a networking reception where they made new professional connections.
Double #JumboWin! Jean Pham, MSIM '21, and Sophie Letcher, BME Ph.D. '25, Selected for MassNextGen Initiative
Major congratulations to Jean Pham, cofounder of Cellens, and Sophie Letcher, cofounder of Entocellular, for being selected for the 8th cohort of the Massachusetts Next Generation (MassNextGen) Initiative.
Both Cellens and Entocellular were born at Tufts. Each venture won 1st place in the Healthcare & Life Sciences Track of DEC’s Tufts New Ventures Competition and participated in the Tufts Venture Accelerator. As MassNextGen awardees, they will each receive $100,000 in funding, along with additional support and in-kind services from MassNextGen sponsors.
Elaine Chen Recognized as a Woman Entrepreneurial Leader by Startup Boston
Elaine Chen, Cummings Family Professor of the Practice in Entrepreneurship and Director, Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, has been recognized by Startup Boston alongside leaders from Harvard Innovation Labs, Boston University’s Innovate@BU, and Babson's Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, in the Universities & Talent Pipeline Builders category.
Apply to a 5th Year Master's Degree Program by April 1!
The Tufts Fifth-Year Master’s Degree Program offers Tufts undergraduates the opportunity to save on graduate tuition and reduce their course load. Certain undergrad courses may be double-counted toward a master's program from our parent organization, The Gordon Institute, including the MS in Innovation & Management and the MS in Engineering Management. Apply now!
Check out our Derby Entrepreneurship Center events page. Additional events will be added throughout Spring. Get involved in entrepreneurship at Tufts! Check out DEC events
Tufts Career Center Events!
Check out the upcoming events offered by Tufts Career Services. The Spring 2026 semester features a mix of in-person and virtual events.
Dr. Faraz Harsini, a biomedical and food systems scientist, LGBT activist, and Iran refugee will be leading this lecture which explores how engineering, technology, and systems design intersect with global food production, environmental sustainability, and public health.
The Harvard Aging Initiative is hosting a fireside chat with Harvard Alum, Ankit Gupta, a General Partner at Y Combinator and co-founder and CTO of Reverie Labs.
Johnson Lee, A98, will share the fascinating journey of E Ink, the technology behind e-readers like the Kindle, exploring its challenges, reinventing, and path to success.
Northeastern University's Roux Institute in Portland Maine is running the Maine Summer Accelerator. Students will receive one month developing their venture with expert mentorship, workshops, and access to Northeastern's resources.
Defeat the Odds Pitch Competition - Apply by March 20
Hosted by Fetch, this national competition invites college and university students across the U.S. to pitch their business ideas for a chance to win prize money, mentorship, and hands-on learning opportunities.
Located in the heart of downtown Boston, Venture Lane is a curated community and coworking space for Boston’s best B2B tech startups. Apply for Coworking space
Be a Startup Boston Ambassador
Startup Boston is building programming to connect student founders, innovators, and startup-curious students who want to break into the Greater Boston startup scene.
