The Campus Connect: A Centralized Digital Marketplace for Student Entrepreneurship and Campus-Based Services
Presenter: Jada Iwuoha
Mentor: Kevin Fulmer, Alex Brown Center for Entrepreneurship; Tasha Vanzie, Alex Brown Center for Entrepreneurship and BwTech
RAC Arena, 2 – 3 p.m., Poster #34
With the growing number of entrepreneurs and talented students at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County there is an urgent need for a centralized solution that allows students to advertise and engage in the services/products offered by students within the campus community. Currently, many student entrepreneurs and campus organizations use disconnected communication channels such as social media, word of mouth, or group chats, allowing for limited visibility and inconsistent outreach. As a result, many students on campus aren’t aware of these opportunities and believe they must leave campus to receive the services they need. The Campus Connect is a digital platform which offers a user-friendly website where on-campus student-run businesses can register, create profiles, and promote their products/services directly to the students of UMBC through campus marketplaces and service listings. The Campus Connect addresses the limited visibility and centralized support for student entrepreneurs while reducing barriers for students seeking affordable, convenient, and campus-accessible services. Initial usability testing with nine student participants indicated that users were able to quickly locate services, understand business offerings, and navigate the platform with minimal instruction. These findings suggest that centralized digital marketplaces can significantly improve awareness of campus-based services and reduce accessibility barriers.
This work was funded, in part, through an Undergraduate Research Award from the UMBC Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.
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