Thank you Kim and Brian Rist '77, Manning School of Business, for supporting the DifferenceMaker Program with a generous contribution and the establishment of the Rist DifferenceMaker Institute.
DifferenceMakerTM is a campus-wide program that engages UMass Lowell students in creative problem solving, innovation and entrepreneurship.
Teams by the Numbers
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$10 M Raised By Teams
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43 Companies Formed By Teams
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16 Teams Patents Filed or Issued
Attend the Francis College of Engineering Prototyping Competition
Join DifferenceMaker in supporting student teams as they pitch their innovative ideas through their prototypes.
Vote for your favorite team to win the Fan Favorite award.
Learn more about the FCoE Prototyping Competition today by visiting the Prototyping Competition webpage.
Apply to the 2025 DifferenceMaker $50,000 Idea Challenge
Want to make a difference? Looking to solve a problem through creative problem-solving?
Apply to the DifferenceMaker $50,000 Idea Challenge. Applications open on December 1st at 5 p.m.
Learn more about the $50,000 Idea Challenge by visiting the Spring Idea Challenge and Events webpage.
Are you a DifferenceMaker?
Do you have an idea? Do you see a problem you want to solve? Do you want to make a difference in your community, or in the world? Do you want to join a team and work with other students? Sound like you?
Get involved with DifferenceMaker:
Real-Life DifferenceMakers
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DifferenceMakersAn interactive educational experience that introduces people to some of the most famous minority inventions and inventors.
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DifferenceMakersGreen Fertilizer technology aims to solve the problem of food insecurity in developing countries, like Uganda.