Eligibility and Rules

• At least ONE team member must be a current or former undergraduate or graduate student of San Jose State University.
• The team member/s with SJSU connection must play an integral role within the team and have a material (significant) impact on the writing of the business plan.
• The business plan submitted by a team must have been written by that team; plans written by anyone else on behalf of a team are not eligible to compete in the SVBPC.
• Any size teams are eligible, but no explicit consideration in the judging will be given to team size or composition.
• Participants are eligible to join more than one team.
• Teams that have received financing from outside non-venture capital sources, totaling less than $100,000 may compete. The amount and source of secured outside and inside capital arrangements should be clearly identified in the team's documents
• The eligibility of any unclear situations presented by submitted business plans will be determined by the SVBPC organizing committee.

• Teams that only use the name(s), and not the effort, of the person(s) connected with SJSU will be excluded from the SVBPC.
• Plans written by professional organizations, consultants, or anyone else on behalf of a team are not eligible to compete in the SVBPC.
• Business plans that have won other business plan competitions, including prior year SVBPCs are not eligible to participate in the SVBPC.
• Any team that receives financing from outside non-venture capital sources totaling more than $100,000 at any time during the competition will be disqualified.
• Existing companies with cumulative revenues exceeding $100,000 and with funding exceeding $100,000 are not eligible to compete.