Create your own path. Be the driver of your future career. Combine your passion for creativity or desire to create change with your work in the classroom. Inspire others with your creative work or solutions to real world problems.

What are entrepreneurial and creative endeavors?

Students learn to set their own course by having experiences in early stage start-ups, advancing ideas to solve real world problems, or create artistic, written or performance-based projects. 

DifferenceMakers By the Numbers

  • $5M
    raised by teams
  • 40
    companies formed by teams
  • 11
    Number of teams patents filed or issued

Meet the DifferenceMakers

UMass Lowell business major Jeurys Santiago stands with a group holding a banner with the name of his networking and marketing company, Minds With Purpose
Jeurys Santiago '22
Business

Jeurys Santiago credits his entrepreneurship classes and experiences with helping him launch his networking and marketing company, Minds With Purpose.

I started learning more about entrepreneurship and networking so I could create opportunities for small businesses and creatives to connect.
Read More About Jeurys Santiago 
George Le and Peter Maitland onstage with Steve Tello, Holly Butler and their 2018 Idea Challenge Campus-wide DifferenceMaker award for Iron Legion
Iron Legion
DifferenceMakers

Iron Legion, the 2018 Campus-wide DifferenceMaker, is a team aiming to expand the effective use of drone technology in emergency response, particularly with police departments.

One of the problems we see is that police have a lack of situational awareness when responding to critical incidents.
Read More About Iron Legion 
Team ZENYAI pitching their idea to the audience and judges at the 2024 $50,000 Idea Challenge.
ZENYAI
DifferenceMakers

Developing software to those who struggle with traditional communication methods to express feelings and achieve a higher level of emotional connection with whom they are speaking to.

ZENYAI is developing software to those who struggle with traditional communication methods to express feelings and achieve a higher level of emotional connection with whom they are speaking to.
Read More About ZENYAI 
Justin Marcouillier looking at a face mask, Siddhant Iyer posing with the blue Rist Campus Wide DifferenceMaker trophy, and Pranav Ramaswamy holding a prototype of the N95 face mask with the TrueFIT technology.
TrueFIT, Rist Campuswide DifferenceMaker
DifferenceMakers

The TrueFIT design can be used to help employees in various industries, like construction, healthcare, and more.

The TrueFIT design can be used to help employees in various industries, like construction, healthcare, and more.
Read More About TrueFIT, Rist Campuswide DifferenceMaker 
One of the members USuccess team holding a microphone and speaking in front of blue UMass Lowell backdrop while two other members watch.
USuccess
DifferenceMakers

Create more financial stability and less frustration about finances by educating people on how to best use their money.

USuccess will help prevent student debt.
Read More About USuccess