It is pretty difficult to figure out the problem without knowing in what way the pitches were bad.
What in particular was missing? Did the teams make unrealistic assumptions? Did focus on pie-in-the-sky financials? Etc...
What in particular was missing? Did the teams make unrealistic assumptions? Did focus on pie-in-the-sky financials? Etc...
1) The students don't take them as seriously as real businesses.
2) The faculty place requirements on what a pitch should look like.
When I was in school, I wrote horrible, 25 page business plans and the equally horrible slide deck as part of a new venture class. We knew it was shit when we presented it. As a result, you see serious teams literally doubling their efforts. They do one thing for class, and another for real life. (Well, maybe not doubling - real life is much less work.)
This sounds stupid, and to a degree it is. BUT - if you write these monstrous business plans and orchestrated piches, you will learn a thing or two about what works, what doesn't, what is required, what isn't, and what falls flat or gets ignored.
While I won't claim it's 100% intentional, there is at least some method to the madness.