While most college students are stressing over exams, projects and homework, first-year student Meghan Sharkus has to add business plans, Food and Drug Administration approvals and patent requests to her to-do list.

Sharkus started ExpressionMed a year and a half ago, designing adhesive products of different shapes, colors and patterns to be placed over diabetic children’s insulin pumps. The idea was almost a decade in the making, emerging from her own experiences with childhood diabetes.

“My best friend Jessica was diagnosed with diabetes in third grade,” Sharkus said. “She hated having a pump, and it was really stressful for her, and people would make fun of her.”

Knowing how diabetic kids struggled with their confidence, Sharkus set out to find a solution. Her involvement in Distributive Education Clubs of America, a program designed to help high school students become leaders in the business field, helped transition her initial idea into a business.

“I always knew the idea was good, but a good idea doesn’t always translate into a good business,” Sharkus said. “You actually have to have the skills to bring it to market and run a business that’s not going to go bankrupt or give people a bad experience.”

As a young high school student, many people didn’t believe that Sharkus could successfully start a business. But during a month’s stay at the University of Pennsylvania for a business program called Endeavor, she gained a new perspective.

“A lot of people said, ‘Go to college, graduate college, get a job then start a business.’ Things like that,” Sharkus said. “But at Endeavor, they told me you’re never too young to start a business.”

Sharkus took that advice to heart, tackling this project despite being the only employee in her company, which has been a difficult way to start.

“I have been a team of one, which is the most tragic part of this startup because it really does make a difference,” Sharkus said. “But I definitely haven’t worked on it alone.”

Sharkus has developed relationships with different companies, business people and lawyers in the Twin Cities area who have served as mentors. She worked as a waitress to help fund company expenses, and her dad has given her loans that he expects to be paid back within a month.

Balancing the demand of school work and the responsibility of starting up a business has been stressful for Sharkus. After finishing homework, she has to worry about package design, conference calls, manufacturers and business meetings.

“Running a business is a full-time job and school is hours out of your day, so it definitely makes school feel a lot different,” Sharkus said. “It’s definitely way harder to start a business in school, but the philosophy is that there’s never a good time to start a business.”

Sharkus’ early start for her company was one of the reasons why St. Thomas was one of her top choices. She was also accepted to the Wharton business school at the University of Pennsylvania, but she felt that St. Thomas was most fitting for her future plans.

“What drew me to St. Thomas was definitely their entrepreneurship program,” Sharkus said. “I got to the Twin Cities and resources here I think are actually better than resources in Philadelphia. Through St. Thomas, I’ve gotten a lot of those introductions. Business is all about connections.”

ExpressionMed is still in its early startup phase, and Sharkus hasn’t decided when she wants to officially launch the company.

“There’s a lot of wrong ways you can start a company,” Sharkus said. “Like launching too early, which is what I’ve been tempted to do so many times because November is Type 1 Diabetes Awareness Month … November only comes around once a year, so it’s kind of difficult to assess.”

Despite the uncertainties that come with starting a company, Sharkus is determined to keep moving forward as a student and businesswoman.

“Every point in your life is going to be busy. The cliche quote is, ‘There’s no time like the present,’ but there really isn’t,” Sharkus said. “Just keep going … Entrepreneurs always make themselves busy.”

Mary Brickner can be reached at bric0029@stthomas.edu