Course Overview

Startup Lab is a dynamic and immersive project-centric course where student teams engage in the design and testing of innovative business concepts tailored to address real-world needs. The course practically applies startup development methodology, guiding students through the stages of idea generation, market research, prototype development, customer acquisition strategy, and revenue model formulation. As a culmination of the course, students are required to pitch their comprehensive business plans.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be able to:
• CLO1: Identify business ideas in line with the market opportunities.
• CLO2: Design a marketing research program to validate the selected business idea.
• CLO3: Develop a prototype of proposed product or service.
• CLO4: Develop Marketing strategy using traditional and digital tools.

Course Content

The course will cover the following topics in detail:

The course will include the following activities in detail:

 

Instructional Method
How are the learning and teaching activities will be included in the course (TLM)

• Problem- Based Learning (PBL): learners will be requested to identify a range of sustainability-related problems, guiding them to apply critical thinking, analyze intricate systems, and collaboratively propose innovative solutions and business concepts.
• Project Work/ group work (PW): learners will work on assignments through group work and interactive discussions focused on the identified problems and issues and leading to develop sustainable and innovative solutions.
• Practice based activities (PBA): learners will apply all the acquired knowledge and skills in developing product
prototype and demonstrating the prototype to expert audience for feedback and validation.

Required Course Materials
Course Resources
E-text Title: Six-Week Startup: A step-by-step program for starting your business, making money, and
achieving your goals.
Author(s): Abrams, Rhonda
ISBN: 9781933895642
Publisher: The Planning Shop
Edition: 4th ed.
Additional Resources
Resource Type Details
Software resources 1. Digital Tools for Business Idea Assessment - Google Trends, Google AdWords,
and Uber suggest.
2. Market Research Digital Tools- Google Keyword Planner, Facebook Audience
Insights, Answer the Public
3. Prototype Development- MIT APP Inventor; Proto.io; Figma (Free starter plan);
Looka.com
4. Social Media Advertisement- Develop social media advertisements on Facebook;
Instagram; LinkedIn.
5. Patentability search- using Google Advanced Patents to verify that your solution
has not already been patented.
6. Website- WordPress; Jot.com

Assessment
The course assessment will be conducted according to the outlined process below. Indepth rubrics will be disseminated to students for each assignment, aiming to offer clarity regarding the grading process and to track students' progress effectively.

How the course learning objectives/ competencies will be assessed:
The module assessment will unfold in the form of a comprehensive portfolio project, structured across three essential steps:
Step 1: Assignment 1
Step 2: Assignment 2
Step 3: A final assessment incorporating two key elements— an individual component centered around the Startup journey Vlog,
and a group-based Host Seat Pitching session.

Assignment 1: In this assignment, students will undertake the challenge of identifying an innovative business concept rooted in
comprehensive market research, addressing present market needs. The task involves a thorough analysis, compelling students to
articulate how their proposed business concept aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Assignment 2: In this assignment, students will undertake the challenge of formulating a comprehensive customer value
proposition, creating a storyboard, and developing a prototype for the proposed product or service. This process will seamlessly align
with the insights derived from Assignment 1.

Hot Seat Pitch: Create a comprehensive slide deck encompassing the elements of an initial business plan with evidence related the project requirements (business concept development, market research, prototyping, etc.), as well as delivering an effective elevator pitch to persuade an expert audience about the appeal of their business concept.

The Startup Journey Vlog: This assignment aims to help students develop their reflective skills, cognitive thinking skills, creativity
skills, digital literacy skills and digital presentation skills whilst learning and applying concepts and topics related to Startup creation and development. Through a video log, students should share their thought about what they have learned from the course following the progress of a real-life startup from ideation to growth, providing valuable tips, advice, and lessons learned along the way.