How are University Innovation Fellows different from all other student networks? There is one BIG fundamental difference: University Innovation Fellows care about enhancing the innovation ecosystem on campus. They care about lasting institutional change that benefits the students’ educational experience. They care about leaving a legacy on their campus. They are entrepreneurial, but they CARE […]
*** NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR FALL TRAINING: We are searching for 27 University Innovation Fellows to join current team of 33. Deadline for Fall Training is September 16th. APPLY NOW. *** Welcome to the brand new home of the University Innovation Fellows Program! So much has changed, where to we begin? Let’s start from the […]
Three Critical Remote Leadership Skills I Learned as a University Innovation Fellow (Useful, since my cofounder lives 500 miles away!) By Blake Margraff Note: These thoughts and stories, and whatever messages or lessons they may convey, are not limited to the experiences of University Innovation Fellows (formerly Student Ambassadors Program). Perhaps one of the most […]
Watch this 15-minute interview with Jaun Carlo Pascua, 2010 Student Ambassador from UNLV, and you’ll get a sense for why we believe Patience, Persistence and Perseverance are three important qualities in a student changemaker. 2010 Student Ambassador from the inaugural group has been working way for the last three years, unbeknownst to me. Last I […]
What if the guy who invented the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system were to pitch to a VC today. Would he have been funded? Check out this hilarious video commentary, produced by NorthernImagination. From Wikipedia: Nikola Tesla (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Тесла; 10 July 1856 – 7 January 1943) was a Serbian-American[2][3] inventor, electrical […]
By Sean Newman Maroni In my first post, we played with the idea of creating “autocatalyzing” events–being the person who gets a new event or initiative started but then gives up control to another person or to the community itself. In this post, I’d like to elaborate on how I came to this idea, and […]
In this video interview Georgia Tech rising senior Jim Schwoebel describes his experience entering college knowing his destiny was to invent, innovate and be an entrepreneur. But, when he got to Georgia Tech, he found that most of the innovation resources were geared to juniors, seniors and grad students. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wv80zjX6HZc&w=560&h=315] Freshman and sophomores weren’t […]
These thoughts and stories, and whatever messages or lessons they may convey, are not limited to the experiences of Student Ambassadors. Perhaps one of the most significant strengths of the NCIIA Student Ambassador program is its ability to quite accurately simulate student entrepreneurship; the two are not mutually exclusive! What it means to dive head-first […]
Jared Karp and Adam Eastman describe the sequence of events over one academic year which helped catalyze a student-led movement in the innovation culture on campus. New! Timeline for sequence of events posted below. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZziMZC5RD4Y&w=560&h=315] We got word of the $20 million gift on Monday afternoon and 78 hours later, we were able to […]
Secret Agents Wanted. Report to ASEE Booth #417. [vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/68241834 w=500&h=281] We are recruiting operatives for the Fall training. Faculty and Administration should report to the Epicenter Booth at the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE) to learn why the country’s future, not to mention the future of your engineering school, will only be secured […]
by Humera Fasihuddin Update 7pm 6/19: And the standings have been announced! See below for each team’s placement and prize. Today, I have the great honor of awarding a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winner for the ninth year of the BMEidea Awards. The top three represent the finest in student innovations addressing real clinical […]
by Humera Fasihuddin Finding seed funding for your venture while you’re going to school can be a tricky thing. There are sources of funding out there, you just need to do a bit of ‘hustling’ to get it. Here’s a list of EARLY STAGE funding resources, including grants, business plan competitions, sources of loans and […]
By Elliot Roth CREATORS CREATE to hone their CREATIVITY. Engineers are artists. The best of them are making something everyday to exercise their creativity and problem-solving abilities. But, all too often intention is overshadowed by procrastination. Everyone is guilty of procrastination. It’s easy to promise yourself that you’ll do something but it’s a different matter […]
Student Ambassador-curated Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) and Innovation Resources Stanford, MIT, Johns Hopkins and many others are offering free online classes to give learners independent opportunities to pursue education without the diploma, of course. Add, yes, there are many lists of free online courses, many of which are good and a bunch of which […]
Source: ODesk and Millenial Branding, The Future of Work Thank you to ODesk and Millenial Branding for conducting this study and producing an awesome infographic that articulates the mindset of our Student Ambassadors. Our Student Ambassadors, most of whom are engineers, have “seen the light’. They have come to realize that through engineering, they can […]
By Blake Marggraff When it comes to balancing your efforts as a student entrepreneur and campus ambassador with school, choices that once seemed black and white suddenly tend to blend together. Sure, a few late nights (early mornings?) here and there don’t seem too bad, but in a world where assignments and exams already fluctuate […]
By Sean Newman Maroni Building a university entrepreneurial community is unlike any other student leadership role. As a student leader of NC State’s Entrepreneurship Initiative for the last three years, I’ve learned a lot about sparking entrepreneurship and why many university entrepreneurship programs fail. This article is the first of a 12-part series on cultivating […]
I am ruthless! Thank you, @BenEinstein of Bolt, for articulating the INSTINCTS and RUTHLESSNESS required to bring a great product into the world.
Congratulations to Student Ambassadors Sean Maroni (NCSU), Lucas Arzola (UC Davis), Blake Marggraff (Washington University St. Louis), and Jared Karp (UC Berkeley) who launched BetaVersity this past April. BetaVersity designs and installs prototyping labs and ‘design kitchens’ for students to not only cook up new ideas, but also to make them a reality. For a […]
This Is Water: A Commencement Address Worth Bookmarking This is Water from Patrick Buckley on Vimeo. “This Is Water” is a video interpretation of the famous 2005 Commencement address delivered by David Foster Wallace at Kenyon College (read the backstory about this inspiring video created by LA-based production shop, The Glossary, and the WSJ article […]
Student Ambassadors and University leaders take note, the Kauffman Foundation has made it a whole lot easier to get up and running with your own campus competition! I-Start is an online tool that allows anyone to set up and manage a business plan, business model or design competition. The Kauffman Foundation acquired the platform in […]
What does the study of Biomimicry, Berkeley University and Whole Foods have in common? Boys growing mushrooms, that’s what. But first, let me tell you why this is on my radar screen. I was recently invited to review Stage 2 applications for The Biomimicry Design Challenge (visit the link to see the submissions that made […]
Today show segment showcases exciting new program that’s ‘making makers’ within high school. According to the segment, The unemployment rate for people under the age of 25 is 16.2%, double the national average. A new program in Massachusetts is designed to train students in advanced manufacturing, robotics and precision machining to satisfy the predicted 100,000 […]
The April issue of Harvard Business Review features a must-read article from Steve Blank on the acclaimed Lean Startup Methodology being deployed widely in the technology venture development circles. This is an especially exciting development for two reasons: 1) While HBR has published widely on management issues faced by large and established companies, it hasn’t […]
