‘Valorisation postdocs’ for entrepreneurial researchers

‘Valorisation postdocs’ for entrepreneurial researchers

Yesterday, the universities presented the ‘Faculty of Impact’, the first national postdoc programme focused on entrepreneurship and valorisation. Until 2025, three groups of ten young researchers will have two years after their graduation to develop their own idea as an entrepreneur. 

These ‘valorisation postdocs’ are under contract with a university for two years and receive training and coaching on entrepreneurship, intellectual property and investments. They do not have to teach or publish articles and they have access to laboratories. At the end of the second year, their idea must be converted into a concrete product and, if all goes well, sufficient capital must have been raised.

 

Risky

Together with research financer NWO, the universities will work out the details of the programme, after which it can start this autumn. It is intended for researchers with ideas that investors still consider too risky, but which are very useful to society. 

“We see that a lot of knowledge remains on the shelf because it is still too far from the market,” says chairman of the board Mirjam van Praag of VU University Amsterdam to the FD. “Without our help it will stay that way. That is why this programme does not compete with existing startup organisations of universities.” (HOP, Hein Cuppen)