Launch of the PEPITE Prize 2021

Let’s go for the new PEPITE prize! The ministry in charge of innovation and Bpifrance are launching the 8th edition of the “PEPITE - Tremplin pour l'Entrepreneuriat Étudiant” (PEPITE Prize - Springboard for Student Entrepreneurship), a support scheme for innovative business creation projects led by students and/or young graduates. The deadline for applications is 30 June 2021.

The PEPITE Prize was created in 2014 by the Ministry of Higher Education as part of its student entrepreneurship development policy to foster business creation by students and young graduates. The prize rewards the best projects from the Pôles étudiants pour l'innovation, le transfert et l'entrepreneuriat (PEPITE, or Student Centres for Innovation, Transfer and Entrepreneurship) with financial aid and dedicated support. Since 2014, the PEPITE prizes have followed nearly 21,000 project leaders under the French student-entrepreneur status.

5100 student-entrepreneurs in 2021

The implementation of 33 Pôles Étudiants Pour l’Innovation, le Transfert et l’Entrepreneuriat (PÉPITE) throughout France, combined with the creation of a national status granted to student-entrepreneurs, led to the creation of “an ecosystem necessary for the realisation of entrepreneurial projects by students and young graduates”. The student-entrepreneur status allows beneficiaries to be recognised and supported within an active network of more than 8000 members.

In 2020-2021, 5,100 young people received this status and benefitted from the commitment of all parties involved in the support of entrepreneurship. Therefore, according to the Ministry, the 2021 edition of the PEPITE Prize should “once again highlight all the talent and entrepreneurial creativity of students and young graduates in France”.

A wider target

The organizers of the prize specify that it is aimed at students and young graduates who benefit or have benefited from the national status of student-entrepreneur before the closing date for applications (30 June 2021).  For the 2021 edition, the scope has been broadened, as “young people who have had student-entrepreneur status and whose project has already led to the creation of an innovative or creative company after 1 July 2020” are also eligible.

In regards of the project presented, it can be “any innovative and creative business creation project”: technological or non-technological innovation (social, usage or service innovation, product, process, marketing or organisation innovation). However, the Ministry stresses that “the innovative character is understood in the broad sense, beyond technology alone, and the creative dimension emphasises the uniqueness and originality of the value proposition”. Finally, it should be noted that the company resulting from the project must be established on French territory.

A two-stage competition

As the organisers state, the competition will take place in two phases. A first selection is made by juries brought together by the 33 PEPITE winners, in cooperation with Bpifrance, to identify regional winners. Local prize ceremonies will be held on the campuses of each region on 30 September 2021, as part of the launch of CREATIV', the student entrepreneurship week.

The champions of the 33 PEPITE winners will then be distinguished as national winners of the PEPITE Prize, during a ceremony organised as part of BIG (Bpifrance Inno Génération), a large gathering of business creators, scheduled for 7 October 2021. The first of these winners will be the champion who will receive a national prize from the Ministry. This champion of champions will be the one who best represents, according to the jury, “the dynamics of its territory and whose project is the most promising” etc. However, all champions will receive a 10,000 euros prize from the Ministry of Innovation.

To know more: 

- The website of the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation 

- The PEPITE France network website 

- The Bpifrance website