Nuts and Bolts of New Ventures

COURSE INFORMATION
IAP 2026 Course 15.393 - Nuts and Bolts of New Ventures

Purpose of Course
The nuts and bolts of preparing a New Venture Plan and launching the venture will be explored in this 37th annual course offering. The course is open to members of the M.I.T. Community and to others interested in entrepreneurship. It is particularly recommended for persons who are interested in starting or are involved in a new business or venture. Because some of the speakers will be judges of the MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition, persons who are planning to enter the Competition should find the course particularly useful.  Pre-registration is required for Credit or to Listen.   In the past approximately 50% of the class has been from MIT Engineering,Science and Architecture Schools and 50% from the Sloan School of Management. Topics covered are applicable to for-profit as well as social and development ventures. The course is open on a space available basis to persons outside the M.I.T. community. We typically have around 150 students registered for the course with another 100 to 150 additional participants from other colleges, businesses, non-profit and government organizations.

Dates, Times and Locations:

• Session 1: Tuesday, January 20, 2026
  Introduction: Most Startups Fail; How To Improve Your Odds;
  Marketing and Sales: Finding Your Customer
• Session 2: Wednesday, January 21, 2026
  Founder's Journey;
  How Are You Going to Make Money - the Business/Venture Model
• Session 3: Thursday, January 22, 2026
  Legal Issues;
  Organizational and People Issues
• Session 4: Tuesday, January 27, 2026
  Presenting Your Venture;
  Financial Projections
• Session 5: Wednesday, January 28, 2026
  Financing Sources Panel;
  Negotiation Skills
• Session 6: Thursday, January 29, 2026
  Common Startup Mistakes;
  The Blues-Print for Innovation
• Class Time:   6:00pm to 9:00pm Eastern Time
  Location: Check individual Session pages.
• Note: We have a lot to cover in the course and intend to start each session promptly.  Our first order of business will involve logistics, schedule adjustments, etc.   Please be on time or you may miss important information.

Academic Credit

• MIT students may take this course for 3 units of Pass/Fail Credit.
• Attendance IN PERSON at each session is required (unless otherwise approved) and the writing requirement must be fulfilled.
• To obtain credit you also must officially register for the course with the MIT Registar's office.   In addition also be sure to sign up for the course email list in order to obtain the latest course information.