Daniel Wijaya (CAS’25) never expected a newsletter buried three swipes down in his email would reshape his approach to entrepreneurship. The computer science and economics double major with a business administration minor had exposure to entrepreneurship through his brother’s ventures, but uncertainty about the risks kept him on the sidelines.
“Before the Enlight Fellowship program, my brother was actually a really big fan of becoming an entrepreneur himself, and that kind of pushed me into trying to become an entrepreneur myself,” Daniel reflects. “But there was this big gap of uncertainty. It’s not really the stable approach that a lot of people would take on. There are so many risks involved, not to mention financial risk, but also the time risks you’re putting in, especially if you’re going to college.”
When Daniel spotted the Enlight Fellowship opportunity in an Innovate@BU newsletter, the social impact component immediately resonated with him. “I saw this looks really interesting, and it also involves social impact as well. I know it’s going to be something that I really am passionate about. Social entrepreneurship – that’s a great recipe, so I might as well just take it.”
Coming into the ten-week program with an open mind rather than a predetermined idea, Daniel discovered the program’s structured approach to idea development. “The program actually helps you funnel down into what you’re actually really passionate about and if there’s a feasible need to it,” he explains. “You start from this big umbrella of education, and as you filter down, you realize there’s this one particular problem statement that really resonates with you.”
Daniel’s placement at Bright Main Street provided hands-on community engagement experience that would prove crucial to his venture development. Working alongside fellow Enlight participant Sri, he spent weeks going door-to-door checking in with Brighton businesses and tabling at the Brighton Farmers Market.
“The experiences getting hands-on, working with people and talking with people, learning about their stories – that led me to the idea itself,” Daniel shares. The interactions revealed something significant about his experience as an international student. “I really have this unique experience where I experience Boston that is very different from what normal people would consider Boston to be like. People would normally consider Boston as just a city or school, but the things that are really left out are those hands-on experiences with helping other communities.”
This realization sparked Daniel’s venture idea: a web application connecting Boston University students with nonprofit volunteer and internship opportunities. For the program’s final pitch day, he created a Figma mockup demonstrating how the platform would bridge the gap between students seeking meaningful community engagement and organizations needing support.
The $10,000 stipend provided financial stability that allowed Daniel to focus fully on the program while covering summer living expenses in Boston. More importantly, he set aside funding to continue developing his venture beyond the fellowship.
The collaborative nature of the Enlight cohort created an environment where diverse passions intersected. “One of us is talking about helping out incarcerated people, another person is trying to help out in terms of financial literacy,” Daniel recalls. “It’s really cool and interesting to see these people who might share a lot of common things, but we all share very different passions.”
Following his Enlight experience, Daniel applied his developed idea to Innovate@BU’s Innovation Pathway, where he currently participates in the Walk stage. The self-paced program allows him to continue developing his venture alongside his coursework, with mentorship from Katie and Persevere guiding his progress.
Daniel’s regular presence at Innovate@BU keeps him motivated and connected to a broader entrepreneurship community. “Just coming here weekly and working here with different mentors and seeing different people working in the common space pulling up some really insane and cool ideas – that really keeps me motivated,” he says.
Beyond campus, Daniel appreciates the broader Boston entrepreneurship ecosystem that Innovate@BU provides access to. “You could really get into different mixers across the city of Boston. We normally have mixers at Tufts University and Harvard, even at MIT. Boston is a school city, and getting to know people outside of your own campus serves this great fulfilling purpose of meeting and sharing thoughtful ideas with one another.”
For students considering similar programs without predetermined venture ideas, Daniel offers encouragement.
“If you’re looking into pushing that next new idea you have, you may never know – you might get funding, you might meet some interesting people, you might even find a new co-founder. Here at Innovate@BU, we really have a lot of interesting resources that you could utilize and that could help you succeed in your entrepreneurship journey.”
