Graduate Entrepreneurship Certificate
The Buerk Center’s certificate in entrepreneurship prepares University of Washington graduate students for the world of start-ups and new technology enterprises. Our emphasis on cross-campus involvement means you’ll take entrepreneurship courses alongside students from other disciplines, work with UW inventors on their market-ready applications, and have the opportunity to apply for fellowships in UW technology ventures or local angel funds. Certificate students, whose disciplines range from business to engineering and architecture to drama and medicine, take classes, gain real-world experience, and network with the region’s most innovative entrepreneurs. Working together, students bring ideas to life through entrepreneurship competitions and the Buerk Accelerator. After confirmed completion of the required coursework, students will receive an electronic certification as proof of successful completion (a printed certificate can be made available upon request). Individual ENTRE classes will show on your transcript but not the actual certificate.
Questions? Contact Jessica Roberto at [email protected]
Student Eligibility
All currently enrolled, degree-seeking graduate and PhD students at the University of Washington Seattle campus with a minimum of three quarters left in their program are eligible to apply.
UW graduate students who are in a Professional Master’s Program degree or certificate program, pay tuition through the Professional & Continuing Education (PCE) program, and are in a fee-for-service or tuition-based program, need to contact their home program advisor to determine the cost PCE will charge their student to take ENTRE classes.
Please note: This is not a stand-alone certificate. Applicants MUST be concurrently enrolled in a degree program to be eligible.
Application
Eligible students must complete the Graduate Entrepreneurship Certificate Application to be admitted to the program (UW NetID Required). Applications are accepted cyclically throughout the academic year in May, October, and February.
2025-2026 Deadlines
| Desired Starting Quarter | Application Deadline |
|---|---|
| Autumn 2025 | May 9, 2025 |
| Winter 2026 | October 21, 2025 |
| Spring 2026 | February 13, 2026 |
Registration
Full-time and Evening MBAs register for ENTRE classes through their regular bidding system.
All other Certificate students receive priority registration for select ENTRE after bidding concludes. Instructions are e-mailed to students before registration opens each quarter and seats are issued on a first-come, first-served basis.
2025-26 Academic Year Registration Dates
| Quarter | Registration Opens | Registration Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Autumn 2025 | May 19, 2025 | June 1, 2025 |
| Winter 2026 | November 10, 2025 | November 23, 2025 |
| Spring 2026 | February 23, 2026 | March 1, 2026 |
View the MBA Program Elective Course Information page for more details. Email [email protected] with inquiries.
Curriculum
Total Credits: 18. All courses besides ENTRE 557 must be taken for graded credit where offered.
ENTRE 509 Foundations of Entrepreneurship
2 credits
Five noted Seattle entrepreneurs will lead students through the steps, stages, trials and tribulations of starting a company—as only they can. Each and every one of them has been in the trenches and survived. What’s more, these are people you’ll want to know as you head down the entrepreneurial path. The class will be a fast-paced overview of the entire company creation process and is designed to help you decide if entrepreneurship is the thing for you to pursue. Students will develop a model for a start-up and reflect on what they’ve learned weekly.
ENTRE 510 Entrepreneurial Strategy
4 credits
Start-ups are high-risk, high-return endeavors, and although there are notable examples of wealth creation, failure is the norm. This course uses competitive strategy to analyze the success and failure of entrepreneurial ventures and identifies the strategic principles that could increase the probability of success.
ENTRE 555/MKTG 555 Entrepreneurial Marketing
4 credits
Examines the skills and tools entrepreneurs need for bootstrap or guerilla marketing in their early-stage companies. Covers how to target market segments, position products, estimate demand, set prices, gain access to channels, and manage issues of rapid growth.
ENTRE 557/FIN 557 Entrepreneurial Finance
4 credits
From the start of a new venture, entrepreneurs have financial decisions to make. They need to understand venture capital markets, stages of financing, business cash-flow models, measuring early-stage financial performance, and how to prepare financially for a successful placement. In this course, students will examine the elements of a term sheet, learn how to value early-stage companies, discuss compensation issues, make presentations to angel investors and venture capital groups, and learn to manage the finances of a new venture.
ENTRE 532 Software Entrepreneurship
4 credits
By Application – Applications open early November
This class is also called “Entrepreneurship: Company-Building from Formation to Successful Exit.” It is a case- and project-based course focused on starting a software or hardware company. Guest entrepreneurs, lawyers, and financiers discuss market identification and analysis, business planning, financing, and typical operating and administrative challenges.
ENTRE 540 Business Plan Practicum
2 credits
The Business Plan Practicum gives student entrepreneurs the opportunity to network with founders and CEOs, explore their entrepreneurial aptitude, and work through the details of their own start-ups. It provides structure, tools, and resources for starting a company and preparing to compete in the Dempsey Startup Competition. Students do not have to take this class for credit in order to compete in the Dempsey Startup. Credit/no credit only.
ENTRE 540 Business Plan Practicum / Resource Nights
2 credits
Note: This is a placeholder code and not an actual class.
Students are eligible to receive 2 credits if their team advances to the Investment Round of the Dempsey Startup Competition. Students do not need to take the Winter instance of the class to be eligible.
ENTRE 541 Technology Commercialization
4 credits
Thousands of patents for innovative technologies are granted each year, yet only a fraction reach the market as products. This course explores turning a technology into a compelling product and bringing that product successfully to market. Through lectures, case studies, and guest speakers, students gain hands-on experience building and presenting a commercialization plan for an innovative new technology.
ENTRE 542 Venture Capital Investment Practicum
2 credits
This course provides an overview of the venture capital world. Though the capstone of the class is the Venture Capital Investment Competition (VCIC), the curriculum more broadly equips students with tools to evaluate early-stage investment opportunities. The class is interactive and integrative, featuring speakers who are entrepreneurs, VCs, attorneys, and former VCIC competitors. Credit/no credit only.
ENTRE 543 Environmental Innovation Practicum
2 credits
An interdisciplinary course focused on developing innovative clean-tech solutions to today’s environmental challenges while exploring new business opportunities. Weekly speakers include experts in natural sciences, engineering, social sciences, business, entrepreneurial finance, policy, and law. Topics include alternative energy, energy efficiency, green building, and transportation. Students are well-prepared to enter the Buerk Center’s Environmental Innovation Challenge.
ENTRE 545 Health Innovation Practicum
2 credits
This course teaches the mechanics of taking a promising healthcare solution from inception to commercialization. Topics include healthcare challenges and opportunities, biodesign processes, innovation pipelines, intellectual property, company formation, healthcare markets and reimbursement, and medical regulatory processes. Students are well-prepared to enter the Buerk Center’s Health Innovation Challenge.
ENTRE 579 / BIOE 505 Biomedical Entrepreneurship
4 credits
Introduces students to concepts and methodologies important for commercializing medical technologies such as implants, diagnostics, and therapeutics. Medical technologies have unique funding, regulatory, and market requirements, which form the foundation of the course. No specialized science or engineering knowledge is required; scientific concepts are introduced as needed.
ENTRE 579 Grand Challenges for Entrepreneurs
2 credits
This course is designed for students interested in tackling major global challenges—innovation, big data, food and water systems, energy, education, poverty, and more. Students explore how solutions to these challenges can be researched, validated, and implemented using entrepreneurial creativity, opportunity recognition, business models, pivoting, and strong execution.
ENTRE 579 Angel Investing
10 credits (Multi-Quarter)
By Application – Applications open early April for the following academic year
A unique, year-long elective focused on early-stage investing and tech entrepreneurship. Students are placed with local angel, seed-level VC, or early investor groups and participate as investor members. The class collectively sources and diligences investment opportunities for a $25,000 class investment. Course topics include pitch deck evaluation, business model analysis, venture and angel financing, and due diligence. Previous investments include C-SATS, SafKan, Aquagga, and Sparrow.
ENTRE 579 Creative Destruction Lab
4 credits (Autumn & Winter)
By Application – Applications open in May for the following academic year
Offered in partnership with the Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) accelerator program, this course combines classroom learning with hands-on engagement. Students attend CDL sessions alongside participating startups, collaborate on venture projects, and join a vibrant entrepreneurial community at UW. Open to MBAs, PhDs, graduate students, and advanced undergraduates.
Autumn Quarter 2025
ENTRE 510 — Entrepreneurial Strategy (4)
ENTRE 542 — Venture Capital Investment Practicum (2)
ENTRE 543 — Environmental Innovation Practicum (2)
ENTRE 545 — Health Innovation Practicum (2)
ENTRE 555/MKTG 555 — Entrepreneurial Marketing (4)
ENTRE 579 — Angel Investing (4) By application
ENTRE 579 – Creative Destruction Lab (2) By application
Winter Quarter 2026
ENTRE 532 — Software Entrepreneurship (4) by application
ENTRE 540 — Business Plan Practicum (2)
ENTRE 557 — Entrepreneurial Finance (4) *Non-MBA Students Only
ENTRE 579 – Grand Challenges for Entrepreneurs (4)
ENTRE 579 — Angel Investing (4) continued
ENTRE 579 — Creative Destruction Lab (2) continued
Spring Quarter 2026
ENTRE 509 — Foundations of Entrepreneurship (2)
ENTRE 540 — Dempsey Startup Competition: Investment Round (2)*
* NOT A CLASS. See class description under “Electives”.
ENTRE 541 — Technology Commercialization (4)
ENTRE 579 — Biomedical Entrepreneurship (4)
ENTRE 579 — Entrepreneurial Influence and the Pitch (2)
ENTRE 579 — Angel Investing (2) continued