Partner with Australia's premier student entrepreneurship society.
Our members have raised seed rounds backed by Y Combinator and Blackbird, and built companies now worth tens of millions. Sponsorship puts your organisation alongside them at the point where they are still deciding what to build and who to build it with.
“Without a doubt, this is the best university entrepreneurship program in Australia.”
Mason Yates, Principal at Blackbird
What our members go on to build
Sponsorship is worth what the community produces. These outcomes came from people who found their co-founders and first ideas through UQIES hackathons, trips and pitch nights.
Seed round raised by the founders of a Y Combinator backed startup.
Seed round led by Blackbird for a company founded by one of our alumni.
Raised by the founders of an Australian telehealth company.
Companies started by UQIES members include:
What sponsorship funds
Three hackathons, a full day innovation conference, and interstate and international trips that put students in front of the world's leading founders and investors.
Weekend of Startups
Running since 2016, Australia's largest student-led business plan hackathon. The 2026 edition was themed around the future of financial freedom and backed by Swyftx.
Sustainability Innovation Challenge
UQ's largest sustainability hackathon, running since 2022. Students take environmental problem spaces from concept through to a validated pitch.
Build for Impact
Our technical hackathon, built for engineering and computing students who want to ship a working implementation instead of a deck.
Bonfire Innovation Festival
Australia's first student-focused one-day innovation conference, with a Young Founders morning session, pitching workshops and a major startup panel.
Sydney trip
Twenty of our highest achieving members visit Australia's leading startup hub. The 2025 trip included Blackbird, AirTree, Canva, Atlassian, Stake and Instant.
International trip
A select group spend a week inside a major global startup hub. Our 2026 trip to San Francisco was hosted by Google, Netflix, Stripe, Plug&Play, Meta and SuperPower.
Organisations that have supported UQIES events
Sponsorship packages
Three ways to partner with UQIES for the year, from event visibility through to headline partnership. Every package can be tailored, so treat these as the starting point for a conversation.
Silver
Put your brand in front of the community
- Logo on the UQIES website and prospectus
- Recognition on signage across all three hackathons
- One dedicated social feature to 8,000+ followers
- Listing in our newsletter to 700+ members
- End-of-year sponsor impact report
Gold
Join us across the year, on campus and on the road
- Everything in Silver
- Named partner on our domestic and international trips
- Choose the workshops and events you want to be part of
- Special guest at events across the year
- A panel seat at Bonfire Innovation Festival
Platinum
Your own hackathon, and the full talent pool
- Everything in Gold
- A dedicated hackathon, named as your event
- Judging seats across that hackathon
- Mentoring sessions with the competing teams
- Full access to our student talent pool
Supporting us in kind
Venue space, catering, prizes, cloud or product credits and mentoring hours all help us run better events. Tell us what you can offer and we will build a package around it.
Mentor, judge or speak
Not every partnership starts with a budget. Founders, operators and investors work with us throughout the year, and it is usually the fastest way to get to know the community before committing to a package.
Tell us what you would like to be involved in and we will match you to the right event. Some roles carry a fee, which we are happy to discuss.
Register your interest- Hackathon mentorSpend a few hours with teams across a weekend, helping them pressure test an idea and get to a pitch.
- Judging panelSit on the panel for Weekend of Startups, the Sustainability Innovation Challenge, Build for Impact or our end-of-semester pitch night.
- Workshop facilitatorRun a practical session in your area, from technical craft through to go-to-market and fundraising.
- Bonfire speakerJoin the 40+ speakers who deliver panels, workshops and mentoring sessions at our flagship conference.
The full 2026 prospectus
Fourteen pages covering our event calendar, member demographics, past sponsor outcomes and package detail. Everything your marketing or partnerships team needs to make a decision.
We would love to work with you
Tell us about your organisation and what you want out of a partnership. We reply to every enquiry within two business days.