Build & Grow Studio
An 8-week venture-building program at Queens College
Fall 2026 cohort update

Applications for the founding cohort have closed. A limited number of seats may become available.

Join the interest list to be considered for an opening in the current cohort or to receive priority notice when the next cohort opens.

Eight weeks · Two tracks · Real-world progress

Build & Grow Studio

Eight weeks of focused work on your own venture. Each week, you identify what matters, take action, gather real-world evidence, and use what you learn to decide your next move. You leave with greater clarity, demonstrated progress, and a practical 90-day plan.

Current cohort
Tuesdays, 7:15–8:45 pmOctober 6 to November 24, 2026
Where
In person at QC65-30 Kissena Blvd, Flushing
Cohort
8 to 12 peopleBuild track and Grow track
Tuition
$195 founding rate$95 reduced tuition available
Join the Build & Grow Interest List View the current cohort

Be considered if a seat opens now, or hear first when the next cohort opens.

Program overview

Two tracks. One practical path from ideas to evidence and action.

TIQC Build & Grow Studio is an eight-week, hands-on entrepreneurship program. Participants learn core business principles while working on their own goals and challenges. They test ideas, collect evidence, and make clearer decisions in a peer-supported environment.

It is designed for founders, small business owners, and people developing a project, business, nonprofit, community initiative, side venture, or research idea that should reach real people.

Track one

Build

For people who want to turn an idea into a project, business, or nonprofit. Work through the venture one domain at a time, test key assumptions, and discover which parts hold up in the real world.

Track two

Grow

For business owners who want to strengthen or expand an existing venture. Focus on the most important constraint, test practical changes, and use evidence to decide what to improve next.

Participants also build a personalized AI team to support strategy, research, marketing, customer insights, and day-to-day work. By the end of the program, each participant will have made meaningful progress and developed a practical 90-day action plan informed by tested assumptions and real-world evidence.

How a session runs

Ninety minutes, the same structure every week

The structure does not change, so it becomes a habit instead of a surprise. More than half the room's time goes to work on your own venture, not to a lecture.

  • 15 min Check-inWhat happened with last week's experiment. Numbers, observations, or a real person's words. Not impressions.
  • 20 min PrincipleOne useful business concept, taught through a participant's real situation that week.
  • 50 min BuildGuided work on your venture with peers, a facilitator, and AI as a thinking partner. Ends with a peer challenge on what you just made.
  • 5 min CommitOne experiment for the week. Low cost, done before the next session, and it produces a number or a real person's words.
The method

Six questions, pointed at your venture

This is the scientific method applied to a business. You run the same six questions every week, and the answers move from guesses to evidence as the weeks go on.

01EvidenceWhat do we actually know?
02GoalWhat are we trying to accomplish?
03ConstraintWhat is getting in the way?
04GapWhat do we still need to learn or build?
05ExperimentWhat is the smallest useful test?
06CommitmentWhat will you do, and by when?
What you will work on

Eight practical modules, applied to your own venture

You may miss one of the eight. Plan for about two hours between sessions: a customer conversation, a test, a fix. It is fieldwork, not homework.

Fall 2026 founding cohort

Tuesdays, October 6 to November 24 · 7:15–8:45 PM

In person at Queens College. Applications have closed, but interest-list members may be contacted if a place becomes available.

01Entrepreneurial foundations
02Customers and market discovery
03Value creation and business model
04Marketing and positioning
05Sales and revenue
06Value delivery and operations
07Finance and funding
08People, systems, and growth
Your Tuesday evening

One Evening, With Optional AI Support

The Studio begins at 7:15 PM. As an added benefit, tuition includes the optional Co-Create With AI Lab from 6:00 to 7:00 PM. Join the Lab when you want hands-on support using AI to build, create, or complete your fieldwork.

6:00–7:00 PMOptional AI Lab
Build With AI

Bring a real task, challenge, or idea. Get hands-on support using AI for research, strategy, marketing, customer insights, and content creation.

7:00–7:15 PMTransition Break
Pause and Settle In

Lab participants wrap up while Studio members arrive, connect, and prepare for the session.

7:15–8:45 PMBuild & Grow Studio
Learn, Test, and Make Progress

Work on your venture alongside a trusted cohort. Share what you are learning, receive practical feedback, and decide what to test or do next.

What you leave with

Evidence, clarity, and a practical path forward

  • A venture progress portfolio documenting what you built, tested, learned, and decided.
  • Real-world evidence gathered from customers, users, partners, or other relevant sources.
  • A clearer direction and a practical 90-day action plan informed by tested assumptions and evidence.
  • Your own AI support system for research, strategy, marketing, customer insights, and day-to-day work. (Developed through the optional AI Lab.)
  • A trusted peer network for continued feedback, accountability, and support through the Growth Circle.
Tuition

Tuition That Meets You Where You Are

Choose the option that fits your circumstances. Every accepted participant receives the same complete Studio experience. Requesting reduced tuition will not affect how your application is considered.

Reduced Tuition $95

Available to participants with demonstrated financial need. You may request it directly in the application. No additional documentation is required.

Sponsor Another Participant Optional contribution

If you would like to expand access, you may contribute toward another participant's tuition after you enroll.

Payment plans are available. Payment is due only after acceptance, and your place is confirmed when the first payment is received. Tuition for future cohorts may vary; interest-list members will receive dates, tuition information, and priority application notice.

How to join

Interested in Build & Grow Studio?

Join the interest list now. There is no commitment to participate.

Current or future cohort

Join the interest list

Tell us what you are building or growing and whether you are interested in the current cohort, a future cohort, or both.

We will contact you if a seat becomes available and give you priority notice when the next application period opens.

Join the Interest List
A shorter starting point

Not ready for eight weeks?

You can still start building. TIQC's shorter Build & Grow workshops and Sprints help you clarify your idea, identify your biggest constraint, and test a useful next step.

Ask to be kept informed about workshops, Sprints, and related Build & Grow opportunities.

Keep Me Informed

Tech Incubator at Queens College

Ying Zhou, PhD, Executive Director
[email protected] · 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Flushing, NY 11367