International Business student Mackenzie Scott and teammates win first place in George Washington University’s prestigious entrepreneurship competition during his year abroad.
It was surreal! We had worked so hard over the past couple of months to create the best pitch possible, so to hear our name be announced as the winners felt incredibly rewarding, especially when competing with so many other amazing ideas and talented students!
Our project was focused on creating a solution for university students with dietary restrictions. We put a lot of effort into creating an innovative and practical solution for these students who are often dealing with these issues on their own for the first time, something which the judges really resonated with, with one even saying they would buy our product as they recently found out they had a restriction themselves.
Our inspiration came from one of my teammates and having friends with dietary restrictions who constantly struggle with finding suitable food in the dining halls here. UFeast is an app that is specifically catered to university students with dietary restrictions by providing meal and recipe recommendations, meal tracking and planning features, and providing a social forum for students with similar restrictions to create a sense of community to share meals and restaurants with each other.
Studying abroad at the George Washington University has been an amazing experience for me. It has allowed me to go outside my comfort zone and explore new business areas I wouldn’t normally study at Queen Mary. Living in Washington, DC has also been incredible. The city feels so alive and is full of opportunities.
The Go Abroad team has been instrumental. Their guidance from day one has made the transition smooth and kept me focused on making the most of this opportunity.
Adjusting to a new academic culture and creating a new network of friends was initially challenging, but it taught me adaptability and resilience, making me now more confident in taking on any new challenge or environment.
Winning this competition has shown me that I can succeed in a skill I didn’t initially think I was very good at. I am now inspired to pursue entrepreneurship even further with UFeast, and eventually lead more projects that drive change.
If you’re thinking about it, just go for it! The growth, the connections, and the opportunities are all worth it. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Winning this competition has been amazing. Being able to represent The School of Business and Management at Queen Mary University of London abroad and bring home this success is something I’m incredibly proud of.