August 2022 Newsletter

DMUmade programme attracts huge response

Following a successful pilot year in 2021, DMUmade - the Creative Entrepreneurship Programme - is back this Autumn and this time it’s taking place on campus.

More than 40 third years and graduates have already applied for the extra-curricular course, prompting the intake to be tripled to enable first years and second years to take part, via year-specific groups.

The programme promises practical and fun sessions, designed to teach DMU students and graduates entrepreneurial skills which they may apply in their own side hustles and business ventures or within a job.

There will also be elements of personal development, helping participants with self-confidence and communication skills. Special guests, such as KISS FM DJ’s will share their expertise and site visits are also on the cards.

Applications will remain open via a form on this website until early in to the new academic year. We would be grateful if colleagues could please help spread the word.

Connect Events to return this Autumn

Our long-running “Connect” events will return this Autumn. Sponsored by The Sir Thomas White Loan Charity, this popular event series is attended by students, graduates, staff - and the local business community, who come together to hear from guest speakers and to network.

Save the date - Thursday 13 October - for the first new event in the series, which will take place at the new Brooklyn Hotel on Welford Road.

Booking for the event will open soon.

New support for Enactus De Montfort University

DMU’s social enterprise society, Enactus De Montfort University will receive dedicated support from the DMU Entrepreneurship team from September. As well as participating in the DMUmade programme, the team will receive 1-2-1 guidance and support to help them grow their social enterprise projects.

Society president Komal Shahzadi said: “I’m excited for the coming year. There are many things I’m looking forward for the next year. First of all, I’m excited to meet new students who wants to go beyond the expectations and have a great impact on our society. I can’t wait to work with my colleagues and implement all our ideas on which we are working for almost a year. We are Enactus DMU, and we can do it.”

Please do encourage your students to get involved with the society. Details here.

New home for student and graduate entrepreneurship

Work is continuing on our new physical home, located in the Hugh Aston building. From the new term, we’ll be working from the new space, with larger activities taking place in The Yard, the Library and faculty buildings. More details will be announced by DMUworks very soon.

More students benefit from Entrepreneurial Global trips

Following successful trips to Los Angeles and Lisbon, our next DMUglobal Entrepreneurship trip will see a group of students from across the University learn about the entrepreneurial eco-system in Dubai.

The trip, to take place in the Autumn, will include workshops with students at DMU Dubai.

KISS DJ’s share experiences with Leicester’s Future BAME Entrepreneurs Cohort

A group of students and graduates from De Montfort University Leicester (DMU) received a life lesson in confidence and communication courtesy of two national radio DJs.

Alex Mansuroglu, who has hosted BBC Radio 1’s Early Morning Breakfast Show and presents on KISS FM, and Sam Darleston, of KISS FM and E4, shared their tips for overcoming self-doubt with budding entrepreneurs enrolled on the university’s new Leicester Future BAME Entrepreneur programme.

Hosted in London, the practical workshop was part of the initiative which aims to help students from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds improve their entrepreneurial skills.

Alex, who originally comes from Turkey, stressed that the students celebrate their differences and use their unique life experiences to help find their authentic voices.

He said: “I have faced many challenges because of my ethnicity but I turned those around into positives and accepted that being different to others is a good thing.  People who just copy and paste what others do might have short-term success, but they will inevitably fail.”

Sam added: “I grew up in a small village in the Midlands. I am working class. Many people in the media industry got there because they knew someone who helped put them there but there are also people like me who got where I am through hard graft. Believe in yourselves and keep going.”

Funded by the Office for Students, Leicester Future BAME Entrepreneur is a spin-off from the university’s successful Leicester Future Entrepreneurs initiative.

It was created in response to a 2020 report from the British Business Bank and Oliver Wyman, which suggested that Black entrepreneurs report lower turnover and profit than White entrepreneurs, while entrepreneurs from Asian and Other Ethnic Minority backgrounds have a significantly lower success rate for starting up a business.

The Leicester’s Future BAME Entrepreneurs programme also featured sessions from DMU alumni Marcus Dove, who has successfully established himself as a respected artist and We Are PEAC, a Leicester-based coaching company.

Read the full story here.

Latest Podcast

Our latest podcast features Pitch2Win finalist Ben, who has launched a successful business in the podcast industry. Each of our podcasts features a different guest, talking about their work. They also choose 3 songs, which you get to hear, along with the meanings behind them. Check out the latest episode via the player, below.