USC: CRUNCH Student Incubator (2011 - 2015)
Course Description
This course provides an accelerated skill-based, community collaboration between students and external partners. The goal is for students in small teams (around 3) to rapid prototype a concept from conception through the alpha testing stage in a single semester. Team projects are made up of interdisciplinary teams and explore the three key research-design themes of the lab which include Refining Social Media Analytics, Experimenting with Transmedia, and Re-Thinking Urban Living. The pedagogical orientation throughout is on new media literacies and “learning by doing.” Specific themes that will be referenced throughout are user experience design, reputation systems and business positioning.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
This course provides an accelerated skill-based, community collaboration between students and external partners. The goal is for students in small teams (around 3) to rapid prototype a concept from conception through the alpha testing stage in a single semester. Team projects are made up of interdisciplinary teams and explore the three key research-design themes of the lab which include Refining Social Media Analytics, Experimenting with Transmedia, and Re-Thinking Urban Living. The pedagogical orientation throughout is on new media literacies and “learning by doing.” Specific themes that will be referenced throughout are user experience design, reputation systems and business positioning.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
- Understand the roles necessary to succeed in a startup culture
- Describe emerging trends in media, culture and society and the types of innovations and inventions that offer different pathways to success
- Have a solid technical foundation of contemporary concepts such as platforms, apps and online communities
- Write documentation for use in either agile development environments, including user stories and tech specifications / documents
- Maximize communicative practices by negotiating a common language in an interdisciplinary team in order to recruit talent, communicate within the team and pitch to potential investors
- Develop a budget and spend funds appropriately
CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Winners
2015 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Winners
2014 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Winners
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2013 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Winners
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2013 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Overview
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2012 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Winners
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2012 CRUNCH Student Design Challenge Overview
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Student Blog Posts and Feedback
- Article on Connu, our CRUNCH incubator winner from 2014
- Evening of Innovation: Startups Showcased
"Thank you both for everything. We became real in the Lab, and I am so grateful for your support and mentorship."
- Susannah Luthi, Connu CEO - CRUNCH Winner 2013
"Just wanted to let you know that I just started a new job this week -- all thanks to Crunch! At the first unconference, I met Tim Receuver from the State Department. Thanks to that, I interned with him the following summer. I stayed in touch and sent him my resume when I was job-hunting here in DC. And thanks to that, he forwarded my resume to a contractor he knew, and Ianded a job with Zoomph, a really exciting influencer engagement platform. Thank you for that. I think AIL was a lot more beneficial to me than my actual degree."
- Leonard Hyman, Crowdvocate CEO - CRUNCH 2nd place winner 2012
For more on the CRUNCH Lunch and Learn Speaker series, click here.
