News

After the closure of his first venture during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kamal Lutfi entered the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) program seeking a structured path to relaunch as a founder in Canada’s innovation ecosystem. MBET provided the clarity, community, and disciplined approach he needed to rebuild his entrepreneurial foundation.

Kamal credits the program with reshaping his leadership, strengthening his customer-development discipline, and teaching him to leverage Waterloo’s innovation network. He learned to treat each iteration as a hypothesis and to view failure as valuable data.

Today, Kamal is building a purpose-driven venture grounded in validated opportunity and long-term impact. He continues to stay connected to the Conrad School through mentorship, sharing real-world experience, and creating opportunities for future founders. His journey reflects MBET’s core mission: transforming setbacks into strategy and empowering resilient, evidence-based entrepreneurship.

The Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business is delighted to announce that professorMarc Hurwitz has been appointed associate director, Professional Graduate Programs. In this leadership role, Hurwitz will help guide the continued growth of the School’s professional graduate offerings, including the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) program, while enhancing student learning, strengthening industry engagement, and supporting the Conrad School’s ongoing evolution as a leader in entrepreneurship education at Waterloo. 

From a motorcycle crash in August 2022 to founding a peer‑powered mental wellness platform, Jerome Mugambi embodies the resilience and community mindset fostered in Waterloo’s MBET program. 

Within twelve months of the accident, he rode coast‑to‑coast across Canada to confront fear head‑on, built a nationwide motorcycling community, and reignited his passion for basketball through youth coaching. 

Today, his startup OpenUp uses AI‑assisted mentor matching to make mental health support radically accessible, an idea refined through League  of  Innovators, DMZ, YSpace, Innovation  Factory, and Builders Club  Waterloo.

Aileen Agada, an MBET alumna and founder of BeBlended, was recently spotlighted on CTV News for her innovative approach to connecting Black women with skilled hairstylists.

Celebrating the Conrad School's commitment to excellence in entrepreneurship education while honouring the contributions of its esteemed leadership team.

The Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business at the University of Waterloo is pleased to announce some exciting leadership updates that promise to further enrich its vibrant community and innovative programs.

Marking the end of the spring 2023 term is our termly competition roundup to celebrate the successes of Conrad School students.

Graduate students in the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) program and undergraduate students in BET 300 or Enterprise Co-op (E Co-op) performed admirably in both on- and off-campus competitions.

We have winners from the annual MBET end-of-year tradeshow, plus wins at an international competition!

We sent off the MBET class of 2023 last week at the annual end-of-year Tradeshow.

25 student ventures set up on the ground floor of the Engineering 7 building (home to the Conrad School), where passing students, faculty, staff and guests stopped by to learn more about the projects that MBETs have been working on for the last 10 months (or more!).

The Tradeshow was followed by a dinner where speeches were made, dessert was delicious and 5 student ventures were presented with prizes. Check out the winners and their ventures, as well as photography from the event!

As temperatures rise, we're looking back on a busy (and successful!) winter 2023 term with our students.

Graduate students in the Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) programs and undergraduate students in BET 300 or Enterprise Co-op (E Co-op) performed admirably in both on- and off-campus competitions.

Velocity Innovation Challenge: 

With a week to collaborate and devise solutions to global food, health and energy problems, nine student teams from presented their ideas at Velocity’s Innovation Challenge in February.