Applications Open! Enroll for Summer 2027 at 2026 Tuition Pricing Until Sept 30
Build and pitch a social venture in this 2-week entrepreneurship program for high school students at UC Berkeley.
Instructors were rated 4.4 out of 5 by students surveyed across the broader program in 2026.
Course Description
A strong social venture begins with a problem worth understanding, not a product waiting to be sold. Students examine a major issue affecting communities in the Global South, identify root causes and gaps in existing solutions, and ask what a new venture could change responsibly.
Startup teams compare traditional and social-enterprise models, study global venture cases, and develop a solution around the needs of a defined customer or stakeholder group. Workshops cover market research, customer outreach, sustainable business models, impact metrics, budgeting, financing, and persuasive storytelling. Fundraising simulations and pitch practice give students repeated opportunities to test assumptions and respond to questions.
Teams bring the work together in a social-venture pitch deck. Their final proposal includes the issue, solution, business model, outreach and marketing plan, measures of impact, budget, and financing request. Peer feedback helps each group turn separate ideas into one cohesive case for action before a Demo Day presentation, where teams work within time limits and answer live questions.
This two-week full-day academy is part of Summer Discovery at UC Berkeley, held on the university’s campus. Students spend the full program focused on one intensive academy. The academy is available to residential and commuter students. Beyond class, students connect focused academic work with campus life, growing independence, and clearer direction about what students may want to study or pursue next.
What Will You Do?
• Analyze a social issue through root causes, affected groups, and solution gaps
• Compare traditional startups with mission-driven social venture models
• Research a target customer and shape a locally relevant solution
• Build impact metrics, a budget, and a financing request
• Practice fundraising and Shark Tank-style pitches with peer feedback
• Create and present a complete global social-venture pitch deck
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
• Analyze a global social issue through systems, stakeholders, and existing solution gaps
• Design a sustainable venture model with impact measures, outreach, and financing
• Present an evidence-based social-venture pitch and respond to audience questions
Students will leave with a team pitch deck, practical venture-design experience, stronger persuasive communication, and greater clarity about study or careers in business and social impact.
Why Social Entrepreneurship Skills Matter
Social entrepreneurship asks students to hold two demanding questions at once: can an idea create meaningful impact, and can the organization behind it sustain the work? Answering both requires systems thinking, stakeholder research, financial judgment, and clear communication.
Students learn to look beyond symptoms, identify who is affected, and test whether a proposed solution fits the local context. Building a budget and financing request connects purpose to operational reality. Team pitch development also requires negotiation, division of work, feedback, and evidence-based persuasion. These skills are useful in business, nonprofit work, public policy, international development, and any setting where people must align resources around a complex problem.
Who Should Attend?
This course is for high school students who have completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade and are interested in entrepreneurship, global issues, social impact, or how businesses can respond to community needs. It is a strong fit for students who enjoy research, collaborative problem-solving, and testing an idea against real stakeholder needs.
Students should be ready to examine complex social problems, work in a startup team, consider tradeoffs in funding and impact, and present a social-venture pitch.
Recommended Program
Based on students surveyed in Summer Discovery’s 2026 UC Berkeley program.
Why UC Berkeley?
UC Berkeley gives high-school students the opportunity to pursue serious academic exploration in a campus environment shaped by scientific inquiry, new ideas, and an active connection to the wider Bay Area. The Berkeley Hills, distinctive architecture, and green spaces make the experience feel different from an ordinary school routine.
Students learn alongside peers, become more independent, and experience the pace and possibility of university life. The Bay Area context adds exposure to a region influenced by research, technology, entrepreneurship, culture, and public debate. For families, the value is not campus prestige alone. It is the combination of academic depth, community, and a student gaining clearer insight into the subjects, environments, and possible directions that genuinely motivate them.
After successfully finishing this course, you will be awarded a certification completion for your accomplishment.
*This is a preview, not what you will receive