Belief: I have a belief that an opportunity exists to expand and better the parking situation for students at the University of Florida. The unmet need is the convenient parking on campus for students to have access to. Often, there is limited parking close to campus hubs that most students need access to and use their car to travel to. Also, the places that parking is most available, the commuter lot for example, are distant from campus hubs that students need to access and walking to their car can be timely and inconvenient. Students who attend UF and need to a place to park their car at any time in order to access campus are those who have the need for better parking. I believe that while this need has always existed to some extent, as the UF student population has grown in size to almost 40,000 students this unmet need has also grown extensively. Currently, people are either circling for long periods of time trying to find a parking spot close to campus or they are settling for a parking spot that is further away and more inconvenient for them. I am 90% sure this is a problem that students who need access to parking on the UF campus deal with on a regular basis.
Prototypical customers: A female UF student who is only allowed a Red 3 decal; a third year student who travels to and from school on a daily basis; a UF graduate student who travels long distances home on the weekends
First Interview: A female UF student who is only allowed a Red 3 decal
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: Every time I move my car I find a need for better parking at UF, it is often very frustrating.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: As a second year student, I have had this need for both of my years at UF as parking has always been an issue for me. Beginning freshman year, I noticed that there was never enough parking in the most convenient locations on campus and I often had to wait over 30 minutes circling a lot to find a spot.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: As a female student, my number one concern with the parking situation is safety. Recently, there has been an attack on a UF student in the commuter lot, bringing attention to the parking situation that affects any student who needs to park on campus. While the commuter lot provides ample amount of parking, it is located far from the center of campus, making it unsafe for students who would have to walk at night or long distances to their final destination.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Currently, I try to find the best spot close to campus, even if that means waiting for an extended period of time. If I have to park my car at a lot that is far from my destination, I might utilize SNAP or Uber to travel from the parking lot to my final destination in order to avoid an often timely and unsafe walk.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: I feel that expanding parking at UF is crucial for students who need their cars to travel to campus and the current parking situation, or lack of, should be taken more serious by the university as threatening incidents have happened.
Reflection: This most insightful aspect of this interview was the focus on safety. Before, I had only thought about parking as being a matter of time and convenience.
Second Interview: A third year student who travels to and from school on a daily basis
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: I have class every day which requires me to park on campus.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: After moving off campus my sophomore year, I found it necessary to use my car to access campus for my classes.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: I think this is a serious problem for UF students because something like parking shouldn't be an obstacle for gaining a higher education and often, it is. When students are unable to find a parking spot or have to park farther than expected, it stands in the way of them attending classes and can greatly affect their education.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Right now I allot myself about an hour of time before my classes to find a parking spot on campus. This is time I could be spending on other activities but because parking is so awful, I have no other choice.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: I am confident that expanding parking at UF would better the lives of students and faculty UF. By removing the stressful situation that is parking right now, students would have more time to spend on academics or other activities outside of campus.
Reflection: I am not surprised that this student agrees that there is a need for additional and more convenient parking, however, I did not realize how parking has the ability to affect a students education. This has given even more validity to the unmet need that is UF's parking situation.
Third Interview: UF graduate student who travels long distances home on the weekends
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: It is rare that I do not have an issue with UF parking. I park on campus three times a week and almost every time I have a need for better parking.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: I recently became a graduate student at UF and did not realize that parking was such an issue on campus until I began my coursework.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: I think this is a serious problem for me personally because as someone who already has to drive over 4 hours back home on the weekend, the parking situation adds even more unnecessary stress to me and I am sure this is true for other students.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Right now, I often park far from my classes and allow time to walk the extra distance.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: If UF parking were to expand, many students would reap the benefits and it would create a lot less stressful environment regarding the situation. However, I see it would be difficult for the university to address and fix this problem completely in a quick manner.
Reflection: Often times, I find myself of only thinking of conventional four year on campus students who struggle with parking but after speaking with a graduate student, I have been able to see that this issue stretches farther than I initially thought. Also, this student brought up a valid point about how it is difficult for UF to accommodate for all of their students who require parking.
Summary:
While the basis of my original opportunity is still there, I have found even more substantial evidence that helps support my belief that an opportunity exists to expand and better the parking situation for students at the University of Florida. My new opportunity is that while UF needs to better and expand parking for students across campus, I understand the difficulty in accomplishing this task. I believe that entrepreneurs should adjust their opportunities based on consumer feedback on a case to case basis. While some problems they might have thought through all of the possible solutions, others they may not be so clear on and would rely more heavily on feedback to adjust their opportunities. As long as entrepreneurs as open-minded about changing their opportunities, customer feedback is never a bad thing.
Prototypical customers: A female UF student who is only allowed a Red 3 decal; a third year student who travels to and from school on a daily basis; a UF graduate student who travels long distances home on the weekends
First Interview: A female UF student who is only allowed a Red 3 decal
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: Every time I move my car I find a need for better parking at UF, it is often very frustrating.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: As a second year student, I have had this need for both of my years at UF as parking has always been an issue for me. Beginning freshman year, I noticed that there was never enough parking in the most convenient locations on campus and I often had to wait over 30 minutes circling a lot to find a spot.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: As a female student, my number one concern with the parking situation is safety. Recently, there has been an attack on a UF student in the commuter lot, bringing attention to the parking situation that affects any student who needs to park on campus. While the commuter lot provides ample amount of parking, it is located far from the center of campus, making it unsafe for students who would have to walk at night or long distances to their final destination.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Currently, I try to find the best spot close to campus, even if that means waiting for an extended period of time. If I have to park my car at a lot that is far from my destination, I might utilize SNAP or Uber to travel from the parking lot to my final destination in order to avoid an often timely and unsafe walk.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: I feel that expanding parking at UF is crucial for students who need their cars to travel to campus and the current parking situation, or lack of, should be taken more serious by the university as threatening incidents have happened.
Reflection: This most insightful aspect of this interview was the focus on safety. Before, I had only thought about parking as being a matter of time and convenience.
Second Interview: A third year student who travels to and from school on a daily basis
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: I have class every day which requires me to park on campus.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: After moving off campus my sophomore year, I found it necessary to use my car to access campus for my classes.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: I think this is a serious problem for UF students because something like parking shouldn't be an obstacle for gaining a higher education and often, it is. When students are unable to find a parking spot or have to park farther than expected, it stands in the way of them attending classes and can greatly affect their education.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Right now I allot myself about an hour of time before my classes to find a parking spot on campus. This is time I could be spending on other activities but because parking is so awful, I have no other choice.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: I am confident that expanding parking at UF would better the lives of students and faculty UF. By removing the stressful situation that is parking right now, students would have more time to spend on academics or other activities outside of campus.
Reflection: I am not surprised that this student agrees that there is a need for additional and more convenient parking, however, I did not realize how parking has the ability to affect a students education. This has given even more validity to the unmet need that is UF's parking situation.
Third Interview: UF graduate student who travels long distances home on the weekends
Q: How often do you find yourself needing better parking at UF on campus?
A: It is rare that I do not have an issue with UF parking. I park on campus three times a week and almost every time I have a need for better parking.
Q: How long have you had this need?
A: I recently became a graduate student at UF and did not realize that parking was such an issue on campus until I began my coursework.
Q: Why do you think this is a serious problem for UF students?
A: I think this is a serious problem for me personally because as someone who already has to drive over 4 hours back home on the weekend, the parking situation adds even more unnecessary stress to me and I am sure this is true for other students.
Q: How are you currently addressing your need?
A: Right now, I often park far from my classes and allow time to walk the extra distance.
Q: How do you feel about expanding parking at UF?
A: If UF parking were to expand, many students would reap the benefits and it would create a lot less stressful environment regarding the situation. However, I see it would be difficult for the university to address and fix this problem completely in a quick manner.
Reflection: Often times, I find myself of only thinking of conventional four year on campus students who struggle with parking but after speaking with a graduate student, I have been able to see that this issue stretches farther than I initially thought. Also, this student brought up a valid point about how it is difficult for UF to accommodate for all of their students who require parking.
Summary:
While the basis of my original opportunity is still there, I have found even more substantial evidence that helps support my belief that an opportunity exists to expand and better the parking situation for students at the University of Florida. My new opportunity is that while UF needs to better and expand parking for students across campus, I understand the difficulty in accomplishing this task. I believe that entrepreneurs should adjust their opportunities based on consumer feedback on a case to case basis. While some problems they might have thought through all of the possible solutions, others they may not be so clear on and would rely more heavily on feedback to adjust their opportunities. As long as entrepreneurs as open-minded about changing their opportunities, customer feedback is never a bad thing.
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