Academic Entrepreneurship: The NSF I-Corps Program - Part II [Entrepreneur Viewpoint]

Reports on the I-Corps program, a nationally-renowned initiative with sites throughout the U.S. One full site was launched at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in January 2015 and was the first I-Corps program in the state of Florida. This program is customer-focused learning and targets early stage startups. It promises that spinning off an invention into a business is a process that can be learned and systematically executed. This program serves as the platform to initiate a conversation between your team members on one side and the market and customer on the other side, test your idea, and provide a better sense of direction for your idea and its applications. It helps students gain the resources, knowledge, confidence, and skills to enter an industry mindset and to convert their creative ideas into something tangible and useful.