The Entrepreneurship Inter-College is a competition, not a bursary. It pays no fees and covers no studies. Instead, students at South Africa’s public TVET colleges pitch a business idea or a business they already run, and the best pitchers win cash prizes and a year of mentorship and business support. If you need money for fees, look at the bursaries linked at the end of this page.
From Allan Gray Makers to Inspire
Allan Gray Makers, a programme that backs technically and vocationally talented young entrepreneurs, launched the national Entrepreneurship Inter-College in 2022 with the endorsement of the Department of Higher Education and Training. Today the contest runs under the name Inspire Entrepreneurship Inter-College Competition, and the old intercollege.co.za address now forwards to the Inter-College page on Inspire’s website, which shows Absa, AGGP and Spaco as partners. Allan Gray Makers’ own website now promotes its StartUp Academy for young artisans and carries no current Inter-College details.
The 2026 contest has finished its entry stage
Inspire took entries for the 2026 competition from 9 March to 24 April 2026 and has now closed them. The rest of the year followed three rounds:
- Internal college rounds (4 May to 30 June 2026), where accepted entrants pitched at their own college. College coordinators set the date, time and format.
- Regional rounds (7 to 21 August 2026), for the top students from each college.
- A national grand finale in September 2026.
Inspire has not yet announced dates for a 2027 competition. If the pattern holds, entries would open early in the college year, so ask your college’s entrepreneurship or student support office about it from the start of term.
Four ways to enter
- Business Idea: a profitable concept that is ready to launch.
- Tech Business: an existing business selling technology products or services.
- Trade Business: an existing skilled-trade business in fields such as construction, plumbing, electrical, mechanical work or carpentry.
- General Business: any existing business that does not fit the other three.
Rules every entrant must meet
You must be registered as a student at one of the 50 public TVET colleges; college staff cannot enter. You must own at least half of the business you enter, and only one person may represent a business throughout the contest. Inspire charges no entry fee. Businesses in tobacco, firearms (other than for sport), alcohol, adult content or gambling are excluded. Inspire accepts only complete entries, does not allow changes after you submit, and may disqualify anyone who misrepresents information.
What winners take home
For 2026, Inspire advertised a share of R320,000 in prizes, paid electronically into a nominated bank account within 30 working days of a winner being notified. Winners also get a year of mentorship and business support. Inspire’s page also stresses the exposure, networking and industry contacts that come from pitching in front of judges.
If you need study funding instead
Entrepreneurial students who want their studies paid for can read about the Allan Gray Orbis Fellowship, a university bursary aimed at future entrepreneurs, or the beVisioneers Mercedes-Benz Fellowship for young innovators with a project idea. The general bursaries hub lists funders open to any field.