Lancaster University has won the licence to run the prestigious FLUX event - the higher education sector’s largest annual competition to encourage entrepreneurship and bridge the gap between education and work.

The competition, which has been running for six years, attracts teams of six students from universities across the country each year to compete on tasks using the specialist business tool Xing. The business-focused competition aims to provide appropriate challenges and enable the students to test a variety of skills they will need when entering the business world.

The competing students will also be able to network with, and have access to advice from, experts from up to 40 businesses and organisations - including from the Lancaster University Management School, as well as from entrepreneurs who have established their own companies within the special business co-location facilities in the Lancaster Environment Centre and InfoLab21.

Each team has to develop, plan and present their strategy to a panel of business experts who will pick the winners.

Lyndsey Egerton at Lancaster University, said: “This competition, which sees the best student business minds putting their skills to the test, is the most prestigious contest of its type and it is a real coup for Lancaster University to host it for the next three years.

“Lancaster University has a strong reputation of working closely with businesses of all sizes to provide real-world impact and contribute to growth in the regional and national economy.

“The FLUX competition compliments the university’s excellence in business engagement and will help develop the careers prospects of the next generation of entrepreneurs and business leaders.”

The next FLUX competition will take place over Easter in 2014 and Lancaster has already received interest from 50 universities looking to take part.