UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State’s I-Corps short course is accepting applications for its October-November cohort. The no-cost program helps researchers test a startup idea through customer discovery and lean startup methodology. The cohort will begin on Oct. 21 and runs through Nov. 11.
Apply to the short course by Oct. 7.
NSF I-Corps uses experiential education to help researchers gain valuable insight into entrepreneurship, starting a business or industry requirements and challenges. Participants learn valuable skills in connecting with customers, asking the right questions, and how to find partners to help get startup ideas off the ground.
The short course will expose participants to key stakeholders and funding resources in the entrepreneurship community, increase chances of receiving an SBIR/STTR award, and put participants in an excellent position to apply for the National I-Corps Program.
“The NSF I-Corps short course was an amazing opportunity to learn about optimizing an idea or product for commercialization by conducting invaluable customer discovery,” said Nino Lo Verso, who participated in the spring 2021 short course. “The course really stressed the importance of finding out what people need and then leveraging your technology to help them. It is a great way to get researchers out of the lab and help them develop products people need and want with their novel technologies.”
Short course participants will meet once a week over the course of one month and should expect to spend 5 to 10 hours per week conducting customer interviews and completing assignments.
Penn State teams are also welcome to apply to other regional short course offerings from the broader region. Contact the Penn State NSF I-Corps Program Manager, Derek Gross, to find the best solution for your team.
Learn more about NSF I-Corps at Penn State.