The Start Something College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) program, formerly known as the Agricultural Entrepreneurship Initiative (AgEI), was founded in 2005 and is one of the foremost programs for developing agricultural entrepreneurs in the world.
Start Something’s activities have a foundation in the land-grant university mission of education, thought leadership, and outreach. By creating a broad understanding of entrepreneurship among faculty and students within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Iowa State University and its supporting partners, undergraduate programs are designed to supply students with exposure and experience with entrepreneurship, both in and outside the classroom. A diverse portfolio of educational experiences are complemented by programs in business incubation, public-private partnerships, technology commercialization, and industry interaction.
Get Started
Start Something College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) develops the entrepreneurial capacity of CALS students. There are many ways to engage, whether you want to develop your creativity, explore a business idea, launch a startup, learn new skills or connect with successful intrapreneurs and entrepreneurs.
Even if you're not quite ready to commit to a program or don't have a new business idea in mind, get your feet wet and join us for an event! Stop by our office in 0030 Curtiss Hall if you have any questions and explore how Start Something CALS can make an impact on your Iowa State University experience.
Not sure where to start or what opportunities to participate in? Start Something team can help!
Opportunity Type
- Competitions/Challenges
- Entrepreneurship
Skills and Competencies
- Collaboration
- Communication
- Creative Problem-Solving
- Personal Development
- Professional Development
Eligible Majors
- Agricultural and Life Sciences Education
- Agriculture and Life Sciences Exploration
- Agricultural Communication
- Agricultural and Rural Policy Studies
- Agricultural Business
- Agricultural Studies
- Agricultural Systems Technology
- Agronomy
- Animal Ecology
- Animal Science
- Biochemistry
- Biology
- Culinary Food Science
- Dairy Science
- Diet and Exercise
- Dietetics
- Environmental Science
- Environmental Studies
- Food Science
- Forestry
- Genetics
- Global Resource Systems
- Horticulture
- Industrial Technology
- International Agriculture
- Microbiology
- Nursing
- Nutritional Science
- Seed Science
For Students In
- All students
Semester Offered
- Fall
- Spring
- Summer
- Winter
Digital Badges Available
- Competitive Impact
- Entrepreneurship Impact